The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has a mandate to ensure that all goods entering Canada do not pose a risk to the health, safety, and security of Canadians, while facilitating the free-flow of legitimate goods.
The vast majority of marine containers shipments are processed and authorized by the CBSA to enter Canada without delay. A small percentage of containers is selected by the CBSA for examination, based on a comprehensive risk assessment and random selection, using state of the art technology to facilitate the examination process at no cost to the importer.
The commercial examination process consists of key stakeholders with distinct roles in moving containers into Canada. The CBSA is responsible for the examination of marine containers, but does not control, influence, or charge for the:
Carson International is pleased to partner with Miller Thomson LLP in our webinar coverage addressing international trade issues, and how best to navigate changes.
Canada’s economic prosperity is closely linked to its ability to maintain free trade agreements that provide benefits to Canadian business as a result of global access. Many of Canada’s FTAs go beyond trade in goods and cover areas such as services, intellectual property (IP), investment, labour and the environment.
Join the conversation regarding how free trade agreements can benefit Canadian businesses by increasing efficiencies, reducing costs and providing opportunities to expand.
Speakers:
Dave Pentland, Carson International Dan Kiselbach, Miller Thomson LLP
Webinar Details:
Leveraging The Benefits Of Free Trade Agreements Thursday, November 12, 2020 Time: 12:00 p.m. (PST) / 3:00 p.m. (EST)
Webinar connection details will be provided by Miller Thomson before the webinar.
R.S.V.P. by November 11, 2020.
The webinar will be approximately 30 minutes in length.
On September 30, we hosted a webinar in partnership with Miller Thomson LLP about ecommerce and the importance of employing a digital-first strategy in the COVID-era.
In case you weren’t able to join us — or just need a refresher — follow the link below to access the presentation and webinar recording.
Undoubtedly, 2020 has been a year of challenges. Whether by Air, Ocean, or Ground, freight has felt the deep impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Air Cargo
As airlines have increased the number of flights, air freight rates have decreased with the corresponding increase in capacity, with air rates currently at approximately double. It is currently forecast that the demand for air cago will increase, along with rates. With the much anitcipated fall launches of new smartphones from Apple and Samsung, air capacity will continue to be challenged.
At destination, there is significant congestion and wait times at terminals. Airline handling warehouses are struggling to keep up with demand, causing lengthy waits for pick up.
Ocean Cargo
Early in the pandemic, ocean carriers started to use blank sailings to control capacity and increase their pricing. As economies re-opened, supply chain have not been able to recover from this. Large volumes of cargo being held at origin were being pushed out in addition to large quantities of PPE.
In May, ocean rates were $1600 USD to the West Coast, and $3100 to the East Coast. Currently, ocean rates have increased to $4000 USD to the West and $5200 USD to the East respectively.
With the huge surge of cargo, Canadian railroads have not been able to accommodate the overflow. The Montreal port strike that took place this past August has had a crippling impact on rail in particular, as carriers diverted containers to Halifax, and rail simply could not provide enough cars to move cargo between Prince Rupert and Halifax. It is expected that the backlog of cargo diverted to Halifax could take upwards of a month to clear.
It is also currently a challenge to secure export rail appointments, as many rail locations are no longer able to accept empty containers since they have run out of capacity.
These cargo delays are causing equipment shortages at origin.
The port facilities — Prince Rupert, Vancouver, Montreal, and Halifax — are all full and dealing with congestion. This is causing delays in cargo loading to rail. In Vancouver, it is now taking longer for vessels to berth and discharge containers. For some vessels it is currently taking up to 3-4 days for vessels to berth.
The cumulation of these issues is wreaking havoc on schedule integrity. There are some new schedules from Shanghai to Vancouver that have increased from 15 to 30 days, while vessels are not returning to Asia on time, impacting schedules at origin.
Ground Cargo
Despite the closure of the Canada / U.S. borde, truck transportation has not been largely affected. The current issues that do exist are around cargo imbalances, with more cargo coming out of some areas than trucks moving in. Carriers moving cargo to Canada are full.
These challenges, of course, pose significant obstacles for businesses. We encourage you to reach out to us for guidance around how to navigate these complex freight issues as we continue to move through the COVID-19 pandemic.
We will continue to provide updates as they become available, and are always available to answer any questions or concerns.
Carson International is pleased to partner with Miller Thomson LLP for another instalment in our webinar series addressing Canada/U.S. cross-border trade developments and updates.
Cross-border ecommerce is plagued by a myriad of legal and financial regulations, with every country has its own regulations concerning imported goods. Customs agencies use the commodity type, quantity, and other factors to determine duties and taxes charges.
Avoid missteps that may result in border delays, financial headaches and fines by joining the conversation.
Panelists:
Dave Pentland, Carson International Dan Kiselbach, Miller Thomson LLP
Webinar Details:
Avoid Audits and Delays While Increasing Your eCommerce Business Wednesday, September 30, 2020 Time: 12:00 p.m. (PST) / 3:00 p.m. (EST)
Please register by September 29 at 4:00 p.m. (PST).
The webinar will be approximately 30 minutes in length.
Canada is abandoning free trade negotiations with China amid a host of disagreements on a range of topics, according to Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne.
“I do not see the conditions being present now for these discussions to continue at this time. The China of 2020 is not the China of 2016,” Champagne said about trade negotiations as quoted by The Globe and Mail.
The comments mark a major policy shift towards China that brings Canada more in line with the hardline posture adopted by the United States, Australia and parts of the European Union.
What began as an expressed interest in fostering deeper economic ties between the two countries, has now turned soured after Canadian authorities detained Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou in 2018 at the request of the U.S., which was followed by the arrests of two Canadian nationals on charges of espionage in China.
The tense relationship has been further exacerbated by Canada’s condemnation of the newly enacted Chinese law on national security in Hong Kong and a suspension of some bilateral agreements with the special administrative region.
Beijing has said that it reserves the right to respond to any interference on Canada’s part and the Canadian side will be held accountable for all the consequences.
Despite the tensions, China remains Canada’s second-largest trading partner after the US.
Non-Resident Importer Program Free Webinar Recording
On August 20, 2020 we hosted a webinar in partnership with Miller Thomson LLP for non-resident importers. The webinar provides an overview of the program and details tips to help your business and traps to avoid. Some of the topics we cover in this webinar include:
Advantages to being a non-resident
What CBSA officers look for
Transaction value method
Key definitions in the Valuation for Duty regulations including; Purchaser in Canada, Permanent Establishment, Importation as Inventory and example scenarios in how these definitions could be applied in practice
GST/HST issues for non-resident importers
In case you weren’t able to join us — or just need a refresher — follow the link below to access the presentation and webinar recording.
As of August 16, 2020, the U.S. government restored a 10% tariff on Canadian aluminum imports. In response, the Canadian government is taking steps to target the U.S. with retaliatory tariffs, totalling $3.6 billion.
Aluminum and retaliatory tariffs will have a huge impact on North American trade.
That’s why we put together this guide to help navigate businesses through this ongoing trade situation. Download our guide today to find out what you can do to reduce impact to your business.
