US Trade Office Lists Quebec’s Language Law, Ottawa’s ‘Zero Plastic Waste Agenda’ as Trade Barriers

A store in Quebec City in a file photo. The Canadian Press/Jacques Boissinot

The U.S. trade office released its new report on country-specific trade irritants, and it now includes Quebec’s latest language law and Ottawa’s plan to phase out plastic waste.

The U.S. Trade Representative released its 2025 report on foreign trade barriers on March 31, just before the Trump administration is set to unveil its broad reciprocal tariffs plan for the world on April 2.

The report says that U.S. businesses have “expressed concerns” about how Quebec’s Bill 96 will impact their registered trademarks on packaging and labelling.

The law was adopted in 2022 as an effort to protect French language in the province and reinforces rules for businesses in relation to the use of French, whether on displays or for official documents.

While on a visit in Germany this week, Quebec Premier François Legault said in reaction to the U.S. report that there would be no compromise on reforms to strengthen French in the province.

Another new trade irritant for the United States under the Trump administration is Ottawa’s plan to reduce plastic waste.

Washington says the “Zero Plastic Waste Agenda” could create “negative impacts for trade and the environment.” It notes some of the measures adopted by Canada in recent years such as on single-use plastics.

The report says the United States supports Canada’s goal to reduce plastic pollution, but notes that U.S. industry is concerned there are no viable alternatives to plastic packaging. “Canada’s proposed reductions in food packaging and packaging compostability requirements could compromise food safety, increase food loss and waste, and restrict U.S. agricultural exports,” says the Trade Representative.

The 2025 report also adds the Canadian border agency’s new system to collect duties and taxes as a concern, as well as the Online News Act (Bill C-18). The law requires tech giants to pay Canadian media for the display of news links on their platforms.

Meta, owner of Facebook, complied by stopping the display of news links. Google struck a deal to be exempt from the act for five years while paying $100 million to an organization representing various media outlets.

“The Act gives the [Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission] new powers to regulate the Canadian news industry, including determining who is a journalist, what is an eligible news business, and calculating compensation,” says the Trade Representative’s report. “The United States continues to monitor this issue.”

April 2 Tariffs

How these matters will weigh on the tariff rate Canada will be subject to after April 2 remains to be seen.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration will focus on countries who have contributed the most to the United States’ negative trade balance. Canada currently has a trade surplus with the United States, but only because of its oil exports.

In the lead-up to the April 2 tariff announcement, U.S. President Donald Trump and his officials levelled various criticisms at Canada for its supply management system, controlling products like dairy and eggs, and some of its taxes.

In evaluating what reciprocal tariffs will be imposed on different countries, Trump officials said what they consider broader trade barriers such as Canada’s Digital Services Tax (DST), affecting principally U.S. tech giants, could be taken into account.

Supply management and the DST were identified as irritants under the previous U.S. administration.

Prime Minister Mark Carney did not say what he expects Canada’s tariff rate will be when asked by reporters on April 1.

“We'll be looking with interest [at] what is announced tomorrow,” Carney said during a campaign event in Winnipeg. Carney spoke to Trump last week and said the two commitments coming out of call were to have a meeting between the leaders after the election and for Minister of International Trade Dominic LeBlanc to keep in touch with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Carney also commented on Bill 96 being identified as a trade barrier by the United States. He said French language and culture would never be part of any trade negotiation, along with supply management.

Carney’s stance on Bill 96 itself has not been clear in recent days. He said on March 28 he supports challenging it in the Supreme Court, with the Liberal Party being the “party of the Charter,” but said on April 1 the bill should be protected from the United States.

“It’s a question for the courts, for the judges, and it’s a question about fundamental rights in Canada,” he said, adding he doesn’t see a contradiction between supporting a court challenge against the law while pledging to protect it.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said they would not intervene in the Supreme Court against the law. Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said Carney must be looked at more “suspiciously” given his stance on supporting a challenge to Bill 96 in court. Former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had expressed some concerns about the law but had not said whether his government would challenge it.

The legal challenge against the provincial legislation comes from the Task Force on Linguistic Policy, a crowdfunded group, which says the Quebec government is attempting to make “French supreme over all other rights.” The provincial government says the law is needed to protect the French language.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.