CBSA has published Customs Notice CN15-013, advising of the changes to its pre-clearance program. Transport Canada has made changes to the appendix G program for the commercial importation of new Canadian compliant vehicles, effective April 20th, 2015.
Overview
Transport Canada’s Appendix G Pre-clearance program enables Canadian commercial importers to use a streamlined process when importing new, fully compliant Canadian-specification vehicles directly from pre-cleared foreign manufacturers.
The Appendix G program is available for domestic commercial importers who import fewer than 2,500 vehicles per year. It identifies pre-cleared foreign original equipment manufacturer (OEMs) of new Canadian-specification vehicles that pose a low risk of non-compliance. Only vehicles from foreign manufacturers and vehicle class registered with the program may be imported via Appendix G.
Note: Importers who choose to import vehicles from foreign OEMs that are not listed on Appendix G must use Transport Canada’s case-by-case importation process outside of Appendix G.
What’s New?
- Canadian commercial importers will no longer be required to be listed on Appendix G as a condition to import from pre-cleared foreign vehicles manufacturers. Admissibility at the border will be determined by validating that both the foreign manufacturer and eligible vehicle class are listed on Appendix G. As such, importers currently listed on Appendix G will be removed from the list.
Importers wishing to import vehicle via Appendix G must be able to meet the following criteria:
- Established in Canada as a corporate entity with an import/export RM account registered with the Canada Revenue Agency.
- Meet CBSA requirements as the importer of record as outlined in paragraph 43 (4) (ii) of Memorandum D17-1-4. http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/dm-md/d17/d17-1-4-eng.html
- Import fewer than 2500 vehicles per year.
- Complete a Vehicle Import Form 1 or, the new electronic Form 1 available for download from the Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV) web site, for all vehicles imported via the Appendix G Pre-clearance program.
- Importers may also use the Single Window Initiative (SWI) Integrated Import Declaration (IID) once it is available from their customs broker.
- It is highly recommended that importers use either of the electronic methods available to benefit from data entry efficiencies, data accuracy and pre-admissibility decisions under SWI.
- Be able to track vehicles that are imported into Canada through their own sales data, or be able to obtain this data from the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) to conduct a recall (section 10 of the MVSA).
- Upon request from the department, be able to provide TC with test records and compliance documentation demonstrating compliance for any imported vehicles directly to TC, or under these new guidelines, directly from the manufacturer on the importer’s behalf.
- Be aware that as the importer, they are ultimately responsible for all aspects of compliance with the Motor Vehicle Safety Act.
Pre-clearance program–Appendix F and Appendix G, FAQ’s, application process can be viewed on Transport Canada’s website.