Switching aircraft & parts sourcing from China to Canada

When aircraft & parts crosses a US border, where it was made now decides a surprising share of what it costs. China carries roughly 37.5% in duties and fees against 10% for Canada, a spread worth near $29,013 on $100,000 of annual volume. Origin is one of the few cost levers a US importer controls outright, and it has rarely mattered more. Below, each tariff layer is laid out for both origins, with the saving scaled to several order sizes.

How the tariff stacks compare

The duty layers tell the whole story of the gap. From China, the entry is assessed a 25% Section 301 surcharge and a 12.5% forced-labor Section 301 duty on its aircraft & parts, an effective 37.5% once the $49.74 in processing fees are added. A Canada origin attracts a 10% forced-labor Section 301 duty on its aircraft & parts, an effective 10% once the $49.74 in processing fees are added. Section 301's 25% origin-specific charge is what separates the two origins; strip it out and the stacks would look far closer. Because the MPF and HMF ($49.74 combined) track customs value rather than origin, they wash out of the comparison entirely. That leaves a $2,901.25 gap on every $10,000 of goods, driven entirely by the 27.5% spread in effective duty rate. Multiply across your volume and it is near $7,253 for $25,000 and about $29,013 for $100,000 a year. On a $25,000 purchase order that is about $7,253 of duty difference — the kind of figure that shows up directly in a quarter's gross margin.

Trade context

The category, HTS 8801, 8802, 8804, 8805, 8807, takes in Commercial jets, Business aircraft, Helicopters, UAVs/drones, Jet engines, Avionics, and Landing gear among other aircraft & parts. For aircraft & parts, where buyers reorder frequently, the duty rate compounds into one of the largest controllable costs on the P&L. Concretely, what counts as aircraft & parts: commercial aircraft, helicopters, private planes, drones, aircraft engines, avionics, landing gear, and all components for aircraft maintenance and manufacture. From Asia-Pacific, China's top US-bound categories include consumer electronics, computers servers, and clothing garments. Absent a trade deal, China's aircraft & parts is assessed standard duties and whatever surcharges apply. A North America supplier, Canada concentrates its US exports in crude oil petroleum, passenger vehicles, and lumber wood products. Under USMCA, Canada-origin aircraft & parts that meets the rules of origin can clear duty-free entirely (USMCA 0%, except Section 338 annex goods) — a decisive edge where qualification holds. Spanning Asia-Pacific and North America, the two lanes differ in freight and transit, so weigh those against the duty saving. For a buyer committed to China, Canada is a concrete diversification target whose tariff math is settled and whose remaining diligence is commercial. US tariff policy in 2026 is unusually fluid, with effective rates on many categories changing several times a year — a reason to treat any origin comparison as a live calculation rather than a fixed sheet.

Recommendation

For $100,000 a year of aircraft & parts, the move from China to Canada is worth about $29,013, scaling to $14,506 at $50,000, $72,531 at $250,000, and $290,125 at $1,000,000. All values are calculated, not assumed — the engine applies the current published rates to identical goods and reports the difference. These figures reflect tariff and fee savings only, assuming equal product cost — your actual landed cost also depends on price and freight, which vary by supplier. Treat the annual saving as the ceiling on switching cost: as long as moving to Canada costs less than that, the change is accretive. Request parallel quotes from your China incumbent and a vetted Canada source, then compare landed cost with the duty gap held constant. Time the switch with the policy calendar in mind — the post-Section-122 picture can favour a different origin entirely. Run your own volume — and a post-Section-122 view — through the interactive Tariff Savings Finder.