As you are aware, the Canada Border Services Agency’s (CBSA) Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) project is a major transformation initiative to modernize the CBSA’s systems and business processes used to assess and collect duties on imported goods.
Trade Chain Partners (TCPs) will have access to the CARM Client Portal, an innovative self-service tool that will provide a simpler and more secure way to interact with the CBSA electronically. Once CARM is fully implemented, TCPs will benefit from efficiencies in the overall accounting and importation process.
CARM Release 0 and Release 1 were implemented in January and May 2021, respectively.
To enable the remaining CARM functionality (scheduled for October 2023), the CBSA is proposing to make amendments to nine regulations made under the Customs Act and three regulations made under the Customs Tariff to:
- support electronic communication between the CBSA, and TCPs by removing some requirements for in-person and paper-based communication and by adding some requirements for electronic communication (i.e. to account for goods and supply documentation related to duty free shop operations);
- update financial security requirements;
- implement simplified billing cycles that would provide more consistency among billing, accounting and payment due dates for imported goods, and enable a period to make corrections to accounting documents without triggering a redetermination or a penalty; and
- make consequential and housekeeping amendments to update outdated references and nomenclature in several regulations to correct the wording of referenced acts and regulations, government directives, Minister titles and reflect current program policy.
The proposal would also introduce new regulations under the Customs Act to set out the terms and conditions for the electronic administration and confirmation of financial security to the CBSA.
The proposed regulations were pre-published in the Canada Gazette, Part I on November 26, 2022
[Canada Gazette, Part 1, Volume 156, Number 48: Regulations Amending Certain Regulations Administered and Enforced by the Canada Border Services Agency and Canada Gazette, Part 1, Volume 156, Number 48: Financial Security (Electronic Means) Regulations], and are open for comments from interested parties for a period of 30 days.
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