Announcement –  Supports Available to Help Mitigate the Impact of Tariffs (FedDev Ontario)

As a valued client of the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), I am writing to share information on the federal supports that are available to help mitigate the impact of tariffs on your business.

An immediate measure of support to businesses is $6.5 billion in liquidity and other support, announced on March 7. This includes $5 billion from the Trade Impact Program at Export Development Canada, as well as $500 million in financing, advice, and loan deferments through the Business Development Bank of Canada, and $1 billion in new financing through Farm Credit Canada to reduce financial barriers for the agriculture and food industry. The federal government is also introducing temporary flexibilities to the EI Work-Sharing Program to help employers retain experienced workers and avoid layoffs. Links to these programs are available through their sites.

The links below provide details on supports, programming and actions to help businesses and workers that are directly impacted by the U.S. tariffs. I encourage you to regularly consult these sources for up to date information:

• Canada’s response to U.S. tariffs – Canada.ca 
• Supporting Canadian exporters through United States tariff challenges 

The government’s response also includes almost $60 billion in counter-tariffs, including $29.8 billion announced on March 12. Details are available here. You may be interested in seeking remission of the tariffs on products from the U.S. where goods used as inputs cannot be sourced domestically or reasonably from non-U.S. sources, or due to other exceptional circumstances that could have severe adverse impacts on our economy.

If you have input about potential goods to be included in further Canadian countermeasures, the deadline for input has been extended to April 2, 2025. You can provide feedback through this link:

Notice of Intent to Impose Countermeasures in Response to United States Tariffs on Canadian Goods – Canada.ca.

The Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) remains committed to working with industry leaders, community leaders, business owners, entrepreneurs, and organizations across southern Ontario to help businesses grow and reach new markets.