2026-05-22
Canada is extending alcohol excise duty relief for brewers, distillers and winemakers for two more years, a move officials said will help small producers cope with higher costs and give them more room to invest in their businesses.
The measure, announced Tuesday in Regina by Rechie Valdez, the minister of women and gender equality and secretary of state for small business and tourism, and Buckley Belanger, the secretary of state for rural development, takes effect April 1, 2026 and runs through 2028. It keeps the annual inflation adjustment on beer, spirit and wine excise duties capped at 2% and continues a separate cut that halves the excise duty rate on the first 15,000 hectolitres of beer brewed in Canada.
The federal government said the combined measures will provide more than $30 million in total relief over the two-year period. For a craft brewery, the reduced duty on the first 15,000 hectolitres could mean as much as about $90,000 in tax savings in the 2026-27 fiscal year alone.
Officials framed the extension as part of a broader effort to support businesses facing uncertainty from rising costs. Valdez said the government was standing behind breweries, distilleries and wineries as they navigate economic pressure, while Belanger said local producers help drive jobs and activity in downtowns and main streets across Saskatchewan.
The announcement was made at District Brewing Company in Regina. The government said the relief is intended to help protect Canadian jobs, ease cost pressures and support local economies tied to beverage production.
The Canadian Craft Brewers Association estimates there are nearly 1,200 small and independent craft breweries and brewpubs and their suppliers across Canada, supporting nearly 30,000 jobs and contributing $1.7 billion to gross domestic product.
The federal government first announced in March 2024 that it would cap inflation adjustments at 2% for beer, spirit and wine excise duties for an additional two years. It also cut by half the excise duty rate on the first 15,000 hectolitres of beer brewed in Canada for two years. Those measures are now being extended again.