ACTA Remains Steadfast in Advisor Advocacy Amid Tariff Crisis

Here we go again.

Just five years after the pandemic slammed the Canadian travel industry, travel advisor advocacy group ACTA is preparing for new and potentially devastating challenges from tariffs and other trade actions imposed on Canada by US President Donald Trump. 

“This is a very important time in Canada’s history, and although I can’t believe I’m saying this word again so quickly, but Canada is once again facing an unprecedented time,” ACTA President Wendy Paradis told an online Town Hall Tuesday afternoon. More than 200 people participated in the live broadcast.

Paradis says the latest crisis is very different from the last one, the COVID pandemic which brought the travel industry to a screeching halt. But a trade war between the U.S. and Canada could still have a major impact on outbound travel from Canada. The frustrating part is that it’s hard to gauge or prepare for that impact, because the tariffs are a moving target.

“At this time, it really is directed at our economy and the information around tariffs and the impacts of the tariffs is not only changing by the day, but also by the minute,” Paradis said.

The facts ACTA released during the town hall regarding the potential impacts of the tariff war are quite staggering. Avery Campbell, Director of Advocacy and Industry Relations for ACTA revealed a number of concerning factors for advisors and the industry as a whole to be aware of.  

First, there’s a potential job loss for 1 million Canadians — 4% of the workforce — if tariffs go into full effect. This would significantly impact the economy, reducing disposable income for travel and leading businesses to reconsider travel expenses.

President Trump has also signed an executive order requiring his secretary to recommend a list of countries of which to prohibit entry into the United States, like the so-called Muslim ban of his first term. This in turn, may affect the admissibility of some Canadians into the US.  

He has signed an executive order to review the invocation of the Insurrection Act, which would give him power to deploy military personnel within the United States in specific circumstances. The executive order cited gaining complete control of the southern border as potential circumstances. If granted, Campbell said, it could result in an overall decline of interest in travelling to the United States. 

Another issue is an executive order that recognizes sex as only male or female on passports, which could have implications for transgendered or non-binary travellers to the US. It’s important to note the 90-day reporting period for these orders ends on April 20 at which time decisions will be announced.

In the town hall, ACTA reported February travel statistics which saw a 14.5% reduction in total travellers from Canada to the US — 23% by land and 2.5% by air. Avery says he expects the air figure to increase for March. An Ipsos February poll found 48% of Canadian travellers saying they intended to avoid travel to the United States. Another poll in March found that number had risen to 73% for March.

All of this turmoil can be a hard pill for advisors to swallow, but ACTA says it remains steadfast in its support and advocacy of travel advisors.

In fact, a benefit of the pandemic might very well be the preparedness of ACTA to deal with a crisis of this nature.

“We are advocating for several things, and one of them is for the supports needed by various segments of our membership. Some will be more impacted than others, some will be impacted at different times than others,” said Paradis. “We are working to understand the needs of our members and how governments can support them help ease them through this challenging time, and we are doing that through consultations at every level of government; federal, provincial and territorial.”

To help with that advocacy, ACTA is asking its members to provide necessary data. “We need information from our members to understand how your business being impacted by the current situation,” says Campbell.

“The reality is, businesses are being impacted in different ways, it’s all over the place. Some are seeing reductions in US travel, but that’s being counterbalanced by increased travel to Mexico or the Caribbean. I’m asking our members to please email me with information to help shed light on the situation and help us to understand what’s happening. It will help us advocate for financial or other supports that may help you as well as identify potential areas where we can help reduce red tape to support you through this challenging time.”

You can view the slides of the ACTA Town Hall presentation here. The Canada-US Relations Blog on the ACTA website also features a space where you can quickly write to US Senators expressing concern about the tariffs, and information about the Canadian government’s tariff response.

Avery Campbell can be reached at acampbell@acta.ca