Canada Customs Brokerage

We are experts at importing goods into Canada.

Freight Forwarding

Customs Brokerage tailored to your business

At Near North Customs Brokers, we take the time to understand your business and your needs to ensure we provide the best service possible.

Regardless of the port of entry, mode of transportation, or commodity of goods, Near North Customs Brokers provides 24/7 timely, accurate, and compliant customs brokerage services.

With our best in the business technology, you can track the status of your customs release on both sides of the border. Your freight carriers and their drivers will have 24/7 tracker support — PARS for Canada and PAPS for the United States — with a customs expert just a phone call away.

Our Expertise

With one of the highest ratios of licensed brokers and certified customs specialists in the industry, we are able to provide you with accurate and timely customs entries. Here are our three main areas of expertise.

Tariff Classification at Near North Customs Brokers

Tariff Classification

Tariff classification is key in establishing the rate of duty on imported goods and in determining eligibility under preferential trade agreements. All commercial and ProForma invoices must contain the ten-digit Harmonized System (HS) classification codes for all products on the shipment at time of customs release. Erroneous classification can result in penalties, re-delivery requests, or loss of import entry privileges.

Count on Near North, with our in-depth knowledge of customs tariffs and their legal and interpretive rules, to determine the tariff classification of your imported goods and to manage your compliant classification database.

Tariff Classification at Near North Customs Brokers

Free Trade Agreements

Free trade agreements, such as the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA/USMCA), grant importers substantial or complete elimination of customs duties on qualifying goods. In order to benefit from such advantages, importers must ensure their imported goods are covered by valid Certificates of Origin at the time of import. If called upon, exporters issuing free trade Certificates of Origin must be prepared to provide to customs authorities satisfactory evidence that the goods qualify under the rules of origin.

We help you interpret free trade agreement rules of origin and determine the originating status of a good. 

Compliance Audits by Near North Customs Brokers

Compliance Audits

Customs compliance is enforced through periodic spot check verifications, full audits, and the imposition of penalties for failure to comply.

We guide our clients through this arduous process. We focus on the areas that the CBSA has identified as problematic: internal processes and controls (record keeping) related to customs activities; tariff classification; customs valuation; the proper application of CUSMA/USMCA tariff treatments; and the quality of the import documentation supplied to the CBSA.

We can review your current practices and guide you to full customs compliance well before the CBSA calls on you.

Real-time status of shipments with Shipment Web

With our Shipment Web program, our clients get access to real-time status to entries, billing, and shipment documentation.

For Customs Self Assessment (CSA) Importers, we have EDI (electronic data interchange) capabilities that enable our clients to transmit data related to their imports directly to our customs brokerage software — saving time and money.

A Partner in Protection member

We believe in import security. We are a Partner in Protection (PIP) member with the Canada Border Services Agency. PIP is a cooperative program between private industry and the CBSA to enhance border and trade chain security. The voluntary program streamlines the border process and makes it more efficient for low-risk, pre-approved businesses recognized as trusted traders.

Learn more at: CBSA’s Partners in Protection.

Our Services

Customs Self-Assessment

The Customs Self Assessment (CSA) program simplifies many of the import border requirements so that low-risk shipments can be processed more quickly and efficiently at the border for pre-approved importers, freight carriers, and registered drivers.

Qualifying importers must be able to track and reconcile information on all imported goods using their internal accounting system, from purchase order through to receipt of goods and vendor payment. We’ll help you get approved for CSA and/or prepare and file the monthly customs entry.

Non-Resident Importer

Canada’s Non-Resident Importer (NRI) program allows foreign or US-based businesses, organizations, and individuals to ship goods to Canada while enjoying the same advantages as Canadian importers — without having to have physical facilities in Canada.

We’ll help you with the process of becoming a non-resident importer step by step.

Temporary Imports

Goods that are brought into Canada temporarily – for example: construction equipment, materials for trade shows – are done with temporary admission permits (E29B). In some cases, a security deposit is required. There are also many restrictions on what items qualify for GST/HST exemption.

We can make the process cost-effective and seamless.

For more information on temporary freight or cargo imports, read the CBSA’s Memorandum D8-1-1.

Vehicles

All used vehicles – including heavy equipment, ATVs, snowmobiles, etc.- for commercial or personal use, must be registered with the Automated Export System (AES) at least 72 hours before it is shipped. Our US office can do the AES filing to export the vehicle, while our Canadian office completes the required RIV Form 1 to register the vehicle for Canadian roadways and apply the correct duties and taxes to import the vehicle into Canada.

See: Guide to importing a vehicle to Canada from the United States

Small Parcel Service

Do you have a vendor in the United States that doesn’t ship to Canada?

Our Small Parcel Service (SPS) means you can have your goods shipped directly to our warehouse location in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan for pickup in the United States and then straight to customs clearance with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) into Canada.

We can also provide delivery to your doorstep.

Online & Personal Purchases

Online and personal purchases are shipments meant for personal use and must be accompanied by a commercial invoice or bill of sale. GST and/or PST/HST (depending on the province) applies. Duty and taxes are calculated based on the Canadian value and tariff classification of the goods.

We prepare the invoice and figure out the applicable duties and taxes to ensure you get your package without delay.

A few things you should know about importing into Canada

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) facilitates the flow of legitimate travellers and trade in Canada. The agency also enforces more than 100 acts and regulations that keep our country and Canadians safe.

More at: CBSA – Importing Goods Into Canada

Single Window Initiative (SWI)

The CBSA’s Single Window Initiative enables Importers and Customs Brokers to provide an electronic Integrated Import Declaration (IID) to the CBSA for the nine Participating Government Departments and Agencies (PGAs) that regulate goods coming into Canada. The IID can be for both non-regulated and regulated commodities.

Under the SWI, it’s important that you understand which PGAs are regulating your products. Some products are regulated by multiple PGAs, and the PGAs regulating your products may have changed under SWI. Additionally, each PGA and the CBSA can issue penalties for incorrect and missing documents.

More at: SWI-IID Regulated Commodities

Special Import Measures Act (SIMA)

The CBSA provides help to Canadian producers who face unfair foreign competition in the Canadian marketplace. The CBSA is responsible for the administration of the Special Import Measures Act (SIMA), which helps to protect Canadian industry from injury caused by the dumping and subsidizing of imported goods.

More at: SIMA

Why compliance is so important

In Canada, compliance with customs regulations is ensured through the Administrative Monetary Penalty System (AMPS), which, as the name implies, is enforced with monetary penalties. 

Commercial importers can be penalized for simply having the wrong tariff applied to a good – even if the duty rate is a non-revenue issue.

Fines for violating the Customs Act start at $500 for a first infraction and go up to $25,000 for incorrect record keeping.

For more about AMPS, visit the CBSA’s AMPS web page.

 

Near North Customs Brokers Inc. Terms & Conditions

Canadian Society of Customs Brokers

As part of our commitment to quality and service, Near North Customs Brokers is ISO 9001:2015 Certified.

Canadian Society of Customs Brokers

Near North Customs Brokers is an active member of the Canadian Society of Customs Brokers (CSCB).

Near North Customs Brokers

Near North Customs Brokers provides tailored customs brokerage, trade consulting, and freight-forwarding services in Canada and the United States.

Contact Us

Corporate Office

55 Patterson Road, 2nd Floor

Barrie, Ontario

L4N 3V9

Stay Connected

© Copyright Near North Customs Brokers Inc.