&&Northern Sky Greyhound Adoption Association (Northern Sky Greyhound) is a greyhound dog rescue organization that imports retired greyhounds from various countries and places them in adoptive homes across Canada.&&&&Northern Sky Greyhound is importing 6 retired racing greyhounds (aged 3-6) from Ireland for the purpose of finding adoptive homes in Canada. The sending organization, Irish Greyhound Trust, pays all pre-transport vetting and transport fees and, there is no charge to Northern Sky Greyhound.&&&&Northern Sky Greyhound has suggested the use of section 51 of the Customs Act, the Deductive Value Method (DVM), to establish the value for duty (VFD) of the imported rescue dogs.

&&A VFD must be declared for all goods imported into Canada, irrespective of whether they are provided free of&&charge, or are commercial or personal (casual) importations.&&&&The VFD of imported goods shall be determined in accordance with sections 47 to 55 of the Customs Act. The primary basis of determining the VFD of imported goods is the transaction value method (TVM) (section 48 of the Customs Act). Where the VFD cannot be appraised in accordance with the TVM, then one of the alternate valuation methods set out in sections 49 to 53 of the Customs Act must be used in sequential order.&&&&Section 48 – The transaction value method&&&&The transaction value method is the primary method of valuation. However, it requires a sale for export to a purchaser in Canada. In this case, the greyhounds are not sold, and no monetary exchange occurs between Northern Sky Greyhound and Irish Retirement Greyhound Trust (IRGT). Therefore, the transaction value method cannot be applied. Accordingly, an alternative method of valuation must be considered to determine the VFD of the animals.&&&&Section 49 and 50 - The transaction value method of identical or similar goods&&&&Northern Sky Greyhound confirmed that they cannot establish an identical or similar price, as they have no previous importations of same or similar goods where a transaction value method VFD was accepted. Consequently, sections 49 and 50 are not applicable.&&&&Section 51 – The deductive method of valuation&&Under DVM you must be able to determine a price at which the goods are resold at after importation and then back out from that price all applicable deductions such as profit and general expenses of the importer in order to arrive at a value for duty. The DVM could be applicable in this case as the animals are being adopted out by Northern Sky Greyhound for a fee.&&&&Memorandum D13-11-7, Establishing the Value for Duty of Imported Rescue Animals, provides guidance in this regard.&&&&Northern Sky Greyhound sets an adoption fee of $600.00 per dog. Prior to adoption, each dog requires temporary housing, food, basic care, and Canadian veterinary services. The average cost incurred per dog is $485.00. Northern Sky Greyhound has supplied a detailed breakdown of expenses for the 2024/2025 period, outlining the costs directly associated with preparing adoptable dogs before they are placed in suitable homes across Canada. The value for duty established using the Deductive Value Method is $115.00.&&&&Based on the information provided, we agree that the Deductive Value Method is the appropriate valuation method.