Market · Canada

Import kitchen cabinets to Canada, through the 2026 safeguard.

On 31 July 2026 Canada put a provisional 25% safeguard surtax on wood cabinets, vanities and their subassemblies. The measure is up to 200 days long, it is declared under code 26169A, and it lands on flat-pack and ready-to-assemble goods exactly as it lands on finished ones. Here is the file we work from.

Four Canadian house packs, drawn to Canadian plans, are in the Canadian design reference.

Get a quote See how ordering works

The Canada file, measured

Four dated facts on every Canada shipment.

Number	What it covers
25%	Provisional safeguard surtax on wood cabinets, vanities and their subassemblies, charged on the value for duty and in addition to any other duties owing
Up to 200 days	The provisional period from 31 July 2026, while the CITT runs its safeguard inquiry into whether final measures are warranted
4 tariff items	9403.40.00.10, 9403.60.10.31, 9403.60.10.39 and 9403.91.00.90 - the classifications listed in the Order
Code 26169A	The safeguard code declared on the Commercial Accounting Declaration, with the amount entered in field 87

Source: CBSA Customs Notice 26-17, published 31 July 2026 and updated 5 August 2026. The worked walk-through is in the Canada surtax guide.

2026, dated

What importing kitchen cabinets to Canada costs in 2026.

Each layer is calculated on the value for duty of the goods. Rates are dated facts, so each row carries what it is and where it was checked.

Layer	What it is	Level, as checked
Base duty	The MFN rate on the tariff item you declare	Confirm with your broker on the code and the material
Provisional safeguard	Wood cabinets and vanities for permanent installation, plus their subassemblies - flat-pack and ready-to-assemble included	25% of value for duty, effective 31 July 2026, for up to 200 days
Formaldehyde	Composite wood panels, laminated products and the finished goods containing them	SOR/2021-148 emission limits; import and sale of non-compliant product prohibited
GST	Charged on value for duty plus duties plus the safeguard amount	5%

The US side of the same discipline - Section 232, Section 301 and AD/CVD - is in the landed-cost guide, and the whole importing series sits under importing & compliance.

Before the first container

Five documents, then the deposit.

Before you import kitchen cabinets to Canada on a program, these five are the file CBSA and your broker will ask for.

The classification, confirmed in writing. Your broker names the tariff item on the cabinet and on any parts that ship separately - for cabinets and vanities that is where the four tariff items in the Order sit, and it decides everything above them.
Proof of origin. Required for all imported goods on request, and it is what any exemption is tested against: commercial invoice, Canada Customs Invoice, a certification of origin, or the documentation your free-trade claim rests on.
The formaldehyde report. Number, issuing body and expiry for the panels in your build. Ours is 18mm E0 plywood at or under 0.05 mg/m3 (GB/T 39600, report SQ2405393); the letter system is explained in the formaldehyde guide.
The packing list, crate by crate. It is what the broker declares against and what your own cube arithmetic runs on. The measured example - 22 spaces, 386 boxes, 38.09 m3, seven pallets and one wood case - is on the whole-house page.
The landing-cost sheet. Base duty, the safeguard amount, GST and the delivery leg as separate lines, so the comparison is landed cost per linear foot and not factory price.

What ships north

Programs a Canadian order usually runs on.

Dark-wood whole-house kitchen with island, design rendering

Whole-house programs

One spec across kitchen, wardrobes, vanities and laundry - and one container instead of five deliveries.

Pallets of flat-pack cabinet crates ready for export

Flat-pack, numbered to the bay

The format the safeguard names in writing - panels nest, freight drops, and the crew assembles at your site in 1.5-2 days.

Apartments & multi-family

One spec per unit type, production in floor sequences, per-unit crating staged to the fit-out calendar.

By project type

Three ways Canadian buyers run this factory.

Program

Contractors & builders

A written production slot before the deposit, per-stage crating, and the five documents that make order four behave like order one.

See the contractor line →

Program

Villas & whole homes

Every room on one frozen spec and one delivery date - kitchen, pantry, laundry, walk-ins and office in the same batch.

See the whole-house program →

Program

Commercial & hospitality

Hotels, resorts and retail fit-outs on the same QC gates, staged to the opening calendar.

See the line →

Painted kitchen with island and tall units, design rendering

The box, the edge, the hardware

The spec does not change at the border.

A Canadian order runs the same ten factory stages as a US or Australian one: 18mm E0-grade plywood cut to the drawings at ±0.5 mm, 2mm PVB hot-melt banding on every cut edge, Blum soft-close hinges rated to 50,000 cycles, trial assembly before the deposit.

Board18mm E0 plywood, ≤0.05 mg/m3 (GB/T 39600)
ReportSQ2405393, with the issuing body and expiry
Edge2mm PVB hot-melt on every cut edge
RevealChecked to ±0.5 mm before crating

The full specification, line by line, is on quality & warranty.

FAQ

Import kitchen cabinets to Canada - asked before the first order.

What does the 25% surtax apply to?

Wood cabinets and vanities intended for permanent installation, and their subassemblies - frames, boxes, doors, drawers, drawer components, back panels and end panels. CBSA states it applies whether the goods are solid or engineered wood, finished or unfinished, and whether they ship assembled, unassembled, flat-pack or ready-to-assemble. The rate is 25% of the value for duty, in addition to any other duties owing.

How long will the surtax last?

The provisional measure runs for up to 200 days from 31 July 2026, while the Canadian International Trade Tribunal conducts a safeguard inquiry. After that period the surtax applies only to the goods the CITT finds are being imported in conditions that cause or threaten serious injury to domestic producers - and if the inquiry finds none, the surtax stops as of the finding.

Are any shipments exempt?

Yes, and the list matters: goods in transit to Canada on the coming-into-force day, goods originating in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Chile or Israel, goods originating in the developing countries and territories listed in the Order, casual goods, goods classified in Chapter 98, freestanding furniture not designed for permanent installation, separately imported accessories and hardware, and wall-mounted medicine cabinets up to 7 inches deep.

How is the surtax declared at the border?

On the Commercial Accounting Declaration under safeguard code 26169A. The amount goes in field 87, the Safeguard field - not field 85, which is where ordinary surtaxes are entered. If you self-declare in CARM, you calculate the amount and enter it yourself, and CBSA may verify the declaration afterwards.

What about formaldehyde compliance in Canada?

Canada regulates composite wood products under the Formaldehyde Emissions from Composite Wood Products Regulations (SOR/2021-148), which prohibit importing or selling panels and laminated products above set emission limits. Our board is 18mm E0 plywood at or under 0.05 mg/m3 (GB/T 39600, report SQ2405393) - the same family of limits as US TSCA Title VI.

Can I still import kitchen cabinets to Canada from China?

Yes - the safeguard is a duty, not a ban, and it is priced, documented and dated. The practical work is arithmetic: 25% of value for duty on top of base duty and 5% GST, so the only honest comparison is landed cost per linear foot rather than the factory price. We quote DDP with the numbers named, and Canadian importers can also use CBSA's duty relief and drawback programs, subject to the CUSMA provisions described in the notice.

Your Canadian program, one floor plan away.

Send the plan and the province it ships to. The quote comes back with base duty, the safeguard amount, GST and the delivery leg as separate lines.

Send your floor plan Read the surtax guide

The duties and classifications on this page are those published by the Canada Border Services Agency in Customs Notice 26-17 (31 July 2026, updated 5 August 2026) and the Formaldehyde Emissions from Composite Wood Products Regulations (SOR/2021-148). Confirm the entry with your own broker. The rest of the importing file: importing & compliance and sourcing & QC.

Before the plan is drawn, it is worth knowing what the taxes do to the total. The Canada cabinet cost calculator sets the per-linear-foot basis against the 25% surtax and the provincial rate for each province.

Other markets

Kitchen cabinets by market.

The same box, the same edge banding and the same hardware leave the factory for every program on this site - what changes is the border file, the duty and the paperwork. United States · United Kingdom · Australia · Africa · Saudi Arabia