Question Period Note: Tariffs on Chinese Electric Vehicles

• The Government is committed to the development of the Canadian electric vehicle (EV) supply chain
• The 100% tariff on EVs that came into force October 1 is part of that commitment.
• China’s non-market policies, as well as lax or non-existent environmental and labour laws, have led to significant overcapacity and market distortions.
• Key trading partners have also recognized and responded to this threat, including the U.S. and the EU.
• We remain committed to our EV adoption targets, and our suite of measures to accelerate the transition.
• We should not be relying on unfairly-traded Chinese imports to make the transition to net-zero.

• On June 24, 2024, the Government announced that it intended to consult on whether to impose a 100% surtax (tariff) on electric vehicles (EVs) from China, among other policy measures related to Chinese EVs. A 30-day consultation was launched on July 2, 2024.
• The Government received over 230 submissions from including from industry, labour associations, non-governmental organizations, businesses, individuals and certain provinces.
o Stakeholders in the automotive industry and its supply chain were highly supportive of a surtax, and highlighted the importance of aligning with the U.S. Some stakeholders requested expanding the scope to cover other goods related to the EV supply chain. Others raised concerns over potential negative impacts, including impacts impacts on the pace of Canada’s adoption of EVs.
• On August 26, 2024, the government announced its intention to impose a 100% surtax on EVs, effective October 1. The EV surtax came into force, as planned, on October 1.
• The government has set ambitious zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sales targets of at least 20% of new light-duty vehicles sales by 2026, 60% by 2030, and 100 per cent by 2035, as well as medium- and heavy-duty ZEV sales target of 35% by 2030 and 100% by 2040.
• The government remains committed to achieve these targets and has put in place a comprehensive suite of measures to accelerate electric vehicle adoption, including significant investments in incentives to make vehicles more affordable for consumers and business, programs to support charging and refuelling infrastructure deployments, and regulations to improve the supply of ZEVs to the Canadian market.

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