Toronto, May 14, 2025 – Canadian importers and trade chain partners have until May 20 to enrol in the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)’s new program which allows their goods to be cleared at customs without paying duties and taxes on arrival. However, new data by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) shows that nearly half (45%) of importers are not registered with the program, and another 18% are unsure if they need to be.
All Canadian importers must be fully registered with CBSA’s new Assessment and Revenue Management System (CARM) and post financial security, with cash or bond, before May 20 if they wish to participate in the Release Prior to Payment (RPP) program. If importers aren’t registered with the new system, they’ll have to physically show up at the border and pay duties and taxes to have their goods released. Until this change, importers mostly relied on their customs brokers to manage this process for them as part of the service they provided.
“We’re already seeing disruptions to supply chains and cross-border trade. Now is not the time to push for these changes,” said Corinne Pohlmann, Executive Vice-President of Advocacy at CFIB. “Currently, there are only two options to meet the RPP requirements, and none of them are appealing for a small business operating on a tight budget. Smaller importers, especially those importing only once or twice a year, would rather have an option of paying with a credit card on file than provide a cash deposit or buy a yearly security bond.”
CFIB sent a letter to the government urging it to make an exemption for smaller importers from the current financial security requirements under the RPP program or allow them to use a credit card instead. CFIB is also asking government and border agencies to be lenient with importers during the first few years of CARM’s implementation and prioritize education over penalties.
“It’s going to be chaos at the borders. For small importers, it’s burdensome having to go through the registration process and post financial security on top of dealing with tariff pressures. They already have so much on their plate, that going ahead with the new rules would just seem tone deaf,” said Michelle Auger, CFIB’s senior policy analyst.
For more information on CARM and how to register, visit cfib.ca.
For media enquiries or interviews, please contact:
Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, CFIB
647-464-2814
public.affairs@cfib.ca
Methodology
Final results for the Your Voice – April 2025 survey. The online survey was conducted April 10-24, 2025, number of respondents = 2,561. For comparison purposes, a probability sample with the same number of respondents would have a margin of error of ±1.9%, 19 times out of 20.
About CFIB
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small and medium-sized businesses with 100,000 members across every industry and region. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners’ chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.
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