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CBSA's 2026 Trade Verification Priorities Are Out: What Steel, Aluminum, and Origin Claims Mean for Your Next Shipment
CBSA has published its 2026 trade verification priorities, and steel, aluminum, and CUSMA origin claims are squarely in the crosshairs. If you import in these sectors, the question isn't whether you could get a verification letter, it's whether your records would hold up if you did. Here's what CBSA is actually looking for and how to get ahead of it.
Can You Use ChatGPT to Classify HS Codes?
ChatGPT is fast and useful for understanding tariff concepts, but it wasn't built to classify goods for customs filing. It can suggest a starting point, but it doesn't apply the GIR rules, cite live tariff schedules, or produce an audit trail. Here's how to use each tool for what it's actually good at.
What Is a Detailed Adjustment Statement?
A Detailed Adjustment Statement is how the CBSA tells you something changed on an import you already declared — whether that means you owe more or you're getting a refund. It shows up after a correction, a re-determination, or a trade compliance audit. Knowing how to read one and when to push back can save you money and keep you on the right side of appeal deadlines.
HS Code vs HTS Code
An HS code and an HTS code start from the same place, but they are not interchangeable. The HS gives you six digits recognized across more than 200 countries; the HTS adds national digits that determine the actual duty rate, tariff treatment, and admissibility in a specific country. Getting the national digits wrong — even with a correct six-digit base — can mean the wrong duty or a rejected entry.
The 6 GIR Rules, Explained
Every product crossing a border needs a Harmonized System code, and the GIR rules are the method customs authorities worldwide use to assign one consistently. There are six rules, applied in strict order — the first one that resolves the classification is the one you use. Get the sequence wrong and the classification won't hold up on audit.
AMPS Penalties in Canada
AMPS is the CBSA's civil penalty system for trade non-compliance, and most penalties aren't the result of bad intent — they come from late accounting, wrong classifications, or records that can't be produced. Understanding how the graduated penalty structure works, and which contraventions show up most often, is the first step to keeping your import and export operations clean. This guide covers the essentials and the practical habits that reduce your exposure.
What Is CARM?
CARM — the CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management system — is now the official way commercial importers account for duties and taxes in Canada. It shifted financial security responsibilities to importers, replaced paper forms with electronic accounting, and moved account management into a self-service portal. If you import commercially into Canada, here's what you need to know to stay on the right side of it.
CARM Compliance Guide for Canadian Importers
CARM has been mandatory since October 2024, and CBSA is actively assessing penalties on importers who haven't set up their accounts properly. This guide walks through everything you need to get compliant — registration, financial security, broker delegation, and payment — plus what's changed in 2026 with retaliatory tariffs, steel and aluminum scrutiny, and Bill C-35. If you're still treating CARM as someone else's problem, this is your wake-up call.
CARM Portal Setup: Step-by-Step Registration Guide
If you haven't registered on the CARM Client Portal yet, you're missing duty notices, re-determinations, and compliance correspondence that CBSA now sends directly to importers. This guide walks through every step of the registration process — from getting your GCKey to setting up financial security — so you can stop relying on your broker to catch things you should be seeing yourself. The process takes under an hour if you're prepared, but the bond paperwork can take weeks, so don't wait.
Financial Security Requirements Under CARM: What Changed in 2025
Most importers never had to think about financial security before CARM — their broker handled it. That changed in May 2025, when the transitional period ended and importers became responsible for posting their own bond or cash deposit directly with CBSA. If you haven't checked your CARM Client Portal lately, especially with retaliatory tariffs pushing duty costs higher, now is the time.
Business Number Transition Guide: From Legacy to BN15
If you're still importing under an old RM account number and haven't finished your BN15 transition in CARM, your shipments are at risk. This guide covers exactly what the transition involves, what can go wrong, and how to confirm your account is set up correctly before a release hold forces the issue.
CBSA Audit Priorities for 2026: What Importers Need to Know
CBSA's 2026 audit priorities are broader and more data-driven than most importers realize, and CARM has given the agency tools to flag compliance gaps at scale. From transfer pricing to retaliatory tariff surtaxes, the areas under active review cover a wide range of importers. This guide breaks down what CBSA is actually looking for and what you should be doing before a verification letter lands in your inbox.