Very Important Information for US and Canadian Camp Owners!
A Message from CBSA:
Beginning May 13th of 2024, all businesses importing supplies for their businesses or importing goods that will be used, resold, &/or have anything to do with their business must register for the CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management Program (CARM).
It is STRONGLY recommended that businesses register on the CARM Client Portal no later than April 1st to avoid delays in registration which may impact their May border crossing. As more and more importers become aware of this new registration, it could potentially slow down the process. Come May 13th, 2024, there will be no other options for commercial imports.
For clarification, an “Importer” is considered any person who imports or brings goods into Canada for a business (whether they own or are employed by the businesses or are just going there as a guest). There is an ability to permit people other than the owners to import goods for the business, but indications are it may be complicated.
The CARM Client Portal has been developed to simplify and streamline the border crossing experience for businesses. CARM will allow business owners to complete their list of goods they will be importing with the same details as always in advance of crossing the border. There will be no fees associated with this new process. You can still have access to computers at the border to login to the CARM portal to update or print documents if needed but this new system can also help to avoid all of that. Businesses may still use the services of a customs broker, but you still must register your business through CARM.
CBSA will be holding a few webinars to help businesses learn more about CARM and how to register. These webinars will be live and interactive. Attendees will be able to submit questions for a response during the session. We strongly encourage any business owner who imports goods to attend at least one of these webinars. The next webinars will be held on March 19th. Click here to see a list of upcoming webinars and to register.
Watch for links to these helpful tools on CBSA’s CARM webpage listed below to help you prepare for and complete your registration.
- User guide: Release 1 Onboarding to the CARM Client Portal
- Registration and learning resources
- Webinar dates and registration
- Video Library
- Common questions
- Client support (phone numbers to reach a real person)
Visit the CARM information page now and get started: https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/services/carm-gcra/menu-eng.html