The Canada Border Services Agency Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) is a multi-phase project to modernize the collection of duties and taxes for commercial goods imported into Canada. CARM will help to protect and grow over $750 billion in trade and $30 billion in revenue collected at the border each year by providing Canadian businesses an online self-service tool and simplified importing processes.

With CARM, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is updating and upgrading its 35-year-old legacy systems through a series of releases. The initial phase of the project was launched in May 2021 and allowed importers, customs brokers and trade consultants to view importer transactions and statements of account, request rulings, and pay invoices with new electronic payment options.

Recognizing the investment and impact that CARM represents for industry and for the Government of Canada, the CBSA is taking a phased approach with it becoming the official system of record for the collection of duties and taxes for commercial goods imported into Canada.

In October 2023, the CARM Release 2 system will be available for selected industry partners who want to test their own internal systems, and for software service providers to continue to certify their software with CARM.

The proposed regulatory amendments continue on schedule with a planned coming-into-force date of May 2024, when CARM becomes the official system of record. Further enhancements are expected to become available in fall 2024. A forum will be established with key stakeholders to discuss implementation of this phased approach and application of regulations in support of CARM.

To ease the transition to CARM, all commercial businesses who import goods into Canada are to register now on the CARM Client Portal, ahead of the planned coming-into-force date of May 2024.

This is an excerpt from the August 14, 2023 edition of the Canada Border Services Agency.