Canada is a smaller market than the US, but it has its own rules. Plenty of shipments that clear easily into the US get stuck at a Canadian distributor because a CRN is missing or a steel surtax was not priced in.
CRN: the Canadian Registration Number
- Provinces and territories require pressure-retaining fittings used in boilers, pressure vessels and pressure piping to be registered under CSA B51. The registration number is the CRN.
- Fittings made to recognised standards (ASME B16.9, B16.11, B16.5, MSS SP-114 and others) are usually registered through the manufacturer's statutory declaration and a quality-system review.
- A CRN is issued per province. Many manufacturers register in one province and then extend to others.
- Distributors and inspectors check for it. Without a CRN, fittings may not be installable on regulated systems.
Plumbing products
Fittings for potable water and drainage must be certified to the applicable CSA and NSF standards. Lead-free rules mirror the US — see copper, brass and lead-free.
Steel trade measures since 2025
- Tariff-rate quotas on several steel product categories, with a 50% surtax above quota. Free-trade partners get larger quotas than non-FTA countries.
- A 25% surtax on steel goods containing steel melted and poured in China, from any country of export.
- Since 26 December 2025, a 25% surtax on listed steel derivative products from all countries.
- Canada does not stack these surtaxes: only one applies to a given good, following a set order of precedence.
Check whether your fittings' tariff items are on the lists, and where the steel was melted and poured. A fitting forged in Vietnam from Chinese bar can still trigger the China melted-and-poured surtax.
CBSA anti-dumping measures
Copper pipe fittings from China, South Korea and the US are subject to Canadian anti-dumping duties, and those from China to countervailing duties. Carbon steel welded pipe from several Asian countries, including Vietnam, is also under measures. That covers pipe, not fittings, but it matters if you ship spools or pipe with fittings — see AD on fittings.
CPTPP and DDP set-up
- Vietnamese-origin fittings that meet the CPTPP rules of origin can claim preferential customs duty. This needs an origin declaration — see CPTPP example for garments.
- A DDP seller can import as a non-resident importer with a CRA business number and CARM account — see DDP to Canada and DDP Canada vs USA.
- Main gateways: Vancouver for western Canada, and Montreal or US East Coast ports with trucking for Ontario and Quebec — see DDP to Toronto and DDP to Vancouver.