BYD cars and pickup trucks are seen at Suzhou Port in China's eastern Jiangsu province, before being loaded onto a ship for export to overseas markets, on Monday.-/AFP/Getty Images
Fewer than 16,000 Chinese-made electric vehicles have entered Canada since January under a trade deal struck between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping as part of what Ottawa described as a “new strategic partnership” aimed at easing tensions and strengthening economic ties.
That’s less than one-third of the 49,000 Chinese-made EVs that Canada said would be allowed into this country by Feb. 28, 2027, under the deal, which vastly reduced tariff rates. Beijing in turn agreed to scale back retaliatory tariffs on Canadian seafood, canola seed and other farm products.
Canada, which previously had teamed up with the United States to place a 100-per-cent tariff on Chinese-made EVs, broke with Washington in striking the deal nearly eight months ago. Mr. Carney is seeking new markets and investment in the face of mounting protectionism from the U.S.
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The success of the EV quota will likely be a subject of discussion between Mr. Carney and Mr. Xi when they meet in roughly 10 weeks at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China.
That’s when Canada and China are due to take stock of what was always a temporary solution to a nasty trade fight that began in 2024. The reductions in retaliatory tariffs – which China imposed in response to Canada’s EV levies, hitting products including Canadian lobsters and crabs, canola and peas – are set to expire Dec. 31 unless Beijing decides to extend the reprieve.
Huzaif Qaisar, director of communications for International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu, said 15,603 Chinese-made EVs have landed in Canada so far this year. He provided the information in response to a query from JOBFlocks.
He said a number of Chinese automakers are still going through the process of getting their products certified for operation in Canada – “which is why some companies haven’t started to utilize the quota yet.”
Mr. Qaisar said three companies have obtained access to the quota so far, adding that imports under the quota are granted on a “first come, first served” basis. He said other companies have expressed interest but are still “assessing their entry into the Canadian market.”
He declined to say which companies are receiving the quota, citing commercial confidentiality. The full quota of 49,000 amounts to less than 3 per cent of new vehicles sold in Canada on an annual basis.
Tesla, which is based in the U.S. but builds EVs in China, is presumably a major beneficiary of the quota. A number of high-end EVs from Lotus, a brand owned by China’s Geely Group, were also reportedly shipped to Canada earlier this year under the quota.
A Voyah Free electric and plug-in hybrid SUV, produced by Dongfeng is seen in the Old Port of Montreal in July.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press
In June, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly visited China to talk to four companies – BYD, Chery, Geely and Shanghai Launch Automotive Technology – that have been examining possible investments in Canada.
Canada is allowing up to 49,000 Chinese EVs into our market at a tariff rate of 6.1 per cent. The quota is slated to rise each year and would total 67,000 by 2031.
Mr. Qaisar said about half of the 15,603 Chinese-made EVs arrived with an import price that was below $35,000.
Canada is still looking for Chinese EV makers to enter into joint ventures with Canadians to build EVs in this country “with Canadian supply chains and Canadian workers,” he said.
Jeff Mahon, a former deputy director of the China division at the federal Department of Global Affairs, said Mr. Carney’s decision to invite Chinese EV production – with conditions attached – to this country could provide a template for similar agreements to expand two-way engagement in other sensitive areas.
He said Canada will also have to find a way to work out future steel trade with China, particularly as it comes under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to adopt the same external tariffs that Washington imposes on goods from other countries – a reported demand from recent Canada-U.S. trade talks.
Canada slapped a 25-per-cent tariff on imports of Chinese steel and aluminum in 2024, blaming overproduction of these products for swamping global markets. In 2025, Ottawa offered remission, or refunds, on tariffs for some types of Chinese steel that it doesn’t produce domestically. During his January meeting with Mr. Xi, Mr. Carney extended this remission program until the end of 2026.
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Mr. Mahon said he believes Beijing would prefer to see more rapid progress in the Canada-China relationship.
Since China’s tariff reprieve is also set to expire at the end of the year, industry players in Canada are pushing for a long-term solution for market access. If none is reached, then the higher retaliatory tariffs that were first imposed in March, 2025, will snap back into place. This will be one of the key issues for Mr. Carney and Mr. Xi’s meeting, Mr. Mahon said.
“China is able to move very fast when its leaders give direction, so I think China would probably like to see things move quicker,” he said. “Canadian industry players who were hurt in the tariff war are also keen for Canada and China to quickly land a durable agreement that could lock in lower tariff rates before the temporary measures expire at the end of the year.”
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the timeframe for the initial year of the agreement between Canada and China on allowing for imports of Chinese-made EVs.