Clearit.ca's Blog on Customs Brokerage and News Updates

Last month, a press release by the government of Canada was released, outlining the steps that the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) will be taking to protect Canadian trade this year.  Without a doubt, 2020 was a rocky year for Canadian business, so CBSA making a clear public statement that they are hard at work to protect importers and exporters is very welcome. The release was published on International Customs Day (January 26), which...

Canadian trade professionals are cautiously optimistic when predicting what may be in store in 2021. With the new year already underway, we’ll be assessing the state of affairs and predictions for the industry. We will be pulling from the Global Export Forecast by Export Development Canada (EDC) -- which aims to identify the trends that influence global trade, as well as an article by journalist Mary Gooderham in the Globe & Mail.  Step...

As an importer, it is ideal that you accustom yourself to the Harmonized System (HS), so you can classify your commercial goods with ease. The Harmonized System is a system of codes that pertain to names and numbers that are commonly referred to in international trade. Canada has abided by this coding system, virtually since its inception - in the same ranks as 199 other countries and 98% of world trade.  HS codes are defined by CBSA as follo...

It has been over 6 months since CUSMA went into effect, with the primary function of renegotiating NAFTA and unifying the North American market into a single space for goods and services. The agreement has drawn a bit of critique from US manufacturers who believe they may be outbid by Mexican competitors -- especially in the domain of textile and apparel.  If you are interested in learning more about other areas of CUSMA, this article is part...

Importers of all sizes have long since relied on importing from China, mainly due to lower manufacturing costs. Working with China is a cost-effective avenue for importers -- and knowing this, China has also made an effort to produce products that are attractive to a Canadian market.  Whether you work with China to produce a unique item, or to resell goods they already have available, it is a viable business model for the foreseeable future. ...

2019 and 2020 have undoubtedly been quite challenging for trade professionals in North America. With new imposed tariffs, renegotiations of NAFTA, a pandemic, and the US election, 2020 proved to be one of the rockiest years yet in the last decade. With that, it’s likely that across both countries, the trade sector is ready to take advantage of smoother seas ahead for 2021.  Recommended reading:  Trade Compliance: 5 New Orders & Regulati...

We’ve talked at length about a few different elements of CUSMA/USMCA/T-MEC and the impact of this “new NAFTA” agreement on Canadian importers. Today, we’re continuing that knowledge transfer to do a deeper dive at T-MEC, or the Mexico applications of this new FTA (free trade agreement).  Imports from Canada to Mexico have actually increased from a healthy 756359 USD THO to 866727 USD THO in September 2020. It is projected that these n...

As an importer, you may be familiar with the idea of sanctions, and even how certain sanctions related to your particular offering function. Regardless of your degree of knowledge about sanctions, staying informed, up-to-date, and refreshed on sanctions and how they impact your work is integral. Remaining compliant to sanction legislation is central to maintaining your business reputation and managing legal and financial risks.  As such, we w...

In an October 2020 release by CBSA, it was announced that the Turnaround Interim Policy would be expiring the following month. This policy is relevant to importers that use highway carriers to move their goods.  Now, it is required that highway carriers must be in compliance with CBSA’s commercial reporting requirements for the movement and control of unreleased goods in Canada. (Read the CBSA release here: Sunsetting of the CBSA Turnaround...

Along with many changes to trade legislation that took place when CUSMA/USMCA/T-Mec was enacted in July 2020 -- Canada has also agreed to prohibit goods that were produced by forced labor. Canada joins the ranks of other nations taking a stand against forced labour: United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and many others!  In an article by Stephen Pike, Partner and trade expert at Gowling WLG, he covered the various impacts that this regula...