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

You’ve checked… and checked… and checked… and your shipment is still at customs. No one seems to be able to tell you why, and without your stock you’re losing money. You did everything right — as far as you know — but your shipment just is not clearing. Why? Customs delays can feel inevitable, and depending on when you’re importing, they might be.  Some factors will always be out of your control, like high mail volume or audit...

The world is smaller today than ever before. We wake up and drink coffee from Colombia, eat oranges from Florida, drive to work in cars from Korea, spend the day talking to colleagues in England, India, and Hong Kong and go home to stream television from all over the world. Everyone is connected, everything comes from somewhere else, and someone has to feed the demand. What if that someone is you? Getting involved in importing isn’t alway...

They have their own flag, their own coat of arms, a lot of power at the border. And technically, they’re a teenager, because they were only founded in 2003. They’re the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA), and despite how ubiquitous they are in our importing lives now, they’re pretty new on the customs scene. Our borders weren’t open and unpatrolled prior to 2003, but the founding of the CBSA did represent a shift in how customs bus...

How do you import your goods? Does your supplier send them along on containers as ocean freight? Do they cross the border in a truck, destined for a customs warehouse? Do you take them over the border yourself? The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) classifies any commercial goods for resale that the importers themselves bring back as Hand-Carried Goods. This is in contrast to using a commercial carrier to import your goods, and it comes ...

Last week, we talked to you about shipping during peak season and how to get your imports to port on time, even with the increased demand. This week, we’re going to talk about what happens when your imports don’t make it to port just right. While not a reality anyone likes having to deal with, lost cargo is a fact of international trade. It’s hard to get a good grasp on the real number — cargo shipping companies and insurance brokers h...

There is a peak season for everything. Peak travel seasons, peak shopping seasons… and peak shipping seasons! Import businesses and goods are lucrative ventures for resident and non-resident importers alike, but those profits can fly out the window if you’re not careful. Peak season rates jump exponentially because of the increased demand. Your cargo may even be subject to rolling — more on that later — so paying expedited fees can ...

Being audited is a stressful affair — and it can feel especially stressful if you know you’ve been compliant. You’ve filled out all the right paperwork and your customs broker has applied all the right tariff codes — what’s gone wrong? Probably nothing. If you’ve been selected for a customs audit, there’s no need to panic. You’re not necessarily being singled out for any wrongdoing. The Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA)...

You’ve likely heard of the concept of Power of Attorney (PoA) before. In essence, a Power of Attorney agreement gives another party (either an individual or a company) the authority to make decisions on your behalf. The most common situations in which the average Canadian will encounter a PoA agreement will likely be medical or legal. Power of Attorney agreements, however, go beyond ensuring your wishes are respected if you’re in a coma. I...

2018 was the year of increasing application of blockchain tactics in supply chains around the world. Previously relegated to the realms of cryptocurrency and financial technology, blockchain saw adoption across Canada in governmental, educational, and trade contexts. The Southern Alberta Institute of Technology became the first school in Canada to issue graduate credentials through blockchain, the fledgling Canadian cannabis industry took at look...

Happy 2019, readers! Welcome back for another year of importing tips to make your lives easier — we hope everyone had a relaxing bit of time off. That said, since we’re all still somewhat feeling the last lingering effects of the holiday hangover, let’s ease ourselves back in with a single form — to be exact, the standard accounting form importers must submit to Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) for importing commercial goods: the B...