CARM

Below is a synopsis of a recent publication from the Canada Border Service Agency [CBSA]:

November 18, 2022

Earlier this year, the CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) project shared that the Release 2 timeline was under review. We are pleased to announce that we are targeting an implementation date for CARM Release 2 in October 2023.

Over the next year, we will focus on preparing the Agency and its clients for upcoming changes. Although there has been a delay, it is advised to sign up for the CARM Client Portal and delegating authority to your broker as soon as possible to be best prepared. Once signed up, users can view their business numbers, apply for new business numbers, make payment of duties and taxes, view their statement of accounts with CBSA, and much more.

CARM Client Portal

The CARM Client Port [“CCP”] is the central feature of the CARM project, which, once fully functional, will become the main communications interface between the CBSA and trade chain partners. Through the portal, users will have online self-service access to manage their customs transactions, including electronic submission of corrections and adjustments, applying for classification rulings, and the accounting and payment of any applicable duties, taxes and fees on their imported goods.

All trade chain partners that conduct business with the CBSA will be required to register their business on the CCP before Release 2 in Spring 2022. The CCP will become accessible only to customs brokers and importers with CARM Release 1 in June 2021, at which time they will be able to create their individual user accounts and link it to their business account(s) on the portal.

There are several steps for importers to follow in order to register on the CCP and delegate access to their account(s), internally to their employees and externally to trade chain partners, such as Davidson & Sons Customs Brokers.

Business Number (BN) / Importer-Export Number (RM) 

Your CRA-assigned 9-digit business number will identify your business account on the CCP, and any RM extensions registered to your BN will identify your import-export program accounts.

CCP User Roles 

Prior to accessing the CCP, please review the below user profile definitions and roles, and determine the list of CCP users and account administers needed for your business.

• Business Account Manager [“BAM”] manages the daily customs operations and has full access to all business and program accounts. They are responsible for approving any access request, from either employees or their customs broker, and for assigning user roles to each new user. Business accounts can only be set up by a BAM who is authorized to conduct trade on behalf of the business and has access to privileged financial information. It is highly recommended to set up more than one BAM with complete management access to cover any absences, and to share in the administration of your business account(s).
• Program Account Manager [“PAM”] has the ability to create, edit and view all program account information, and is responsible for approving and granting program access to employees. For example: if ABC Windows & Doors (the 9-digit legal entity) has two import divisions, RM0001 ABC Windows and RM0002 ABC Doors, the BAM could assign a different PAM to each of the division/program accounts, or conversely, the BAM could be the sole person responsible for all RM accounts.

The BAM may assign a different PAM for each RM account linked to the 9-digit business account, or conversely, the BAM may server as the PAM for any and all RM program accounts. What this means is that you do not need to assign a PAM if you choose not to; the BAM could be the sole account manager at both the business and program level.

• Editor is able to create, view and edit all transaction information within a program.
• Reader is able only to view all transaction information within a program.
• Expired User allows the customs broker to be able to view information they submitted on behalf of a client after the business relationship has expired.
• Orphan User has registered on the CCP but has not been accepted or linked to any accounts.

CCP Registration

All CCP users must first create their Personal Profile before setting up any business or program profile accounts.

If you are a First-Time User – BAM(s) and all Employees

• Go to the CARM Client Portal
• Login via your GC Key or Sign-in Partner;
• Create your personal profile.

If you are the BAM and would like to register your business, choose “Register My Business”.

• Enter your 9-digit BN and the importer RM extension to link the business and program account(s);
• Provide your legal entity information – the exact corporate name and address as registered with the CRA;
• Answer the affinity/security questions to validate your identity;
• Read and accept the Terms & Conditions covering the delegation of authority between importers and customs brokers;
• Review your business information to ensure accuracy.

If you are an Employee, choose “Request access to my employer”.

• Enter your employer’s 9-digit business number to link to your employer’s account;
• Add a justification note to request access to your employer’s business account. Example: “Hi, I need access to make corrections and adjustments,” or “Hi, I need access to view the monthly payables for our clients,” and then choose Request Access.
• Once approved, the BAM will designate a user role for each program account assigned to you.

If you are a BAM or PAM and would like to delegate access to Davidson & Sons Customs Brokers

• From the CCP Home Dashboard, choose “Manage My Business Relationships” to review and approve (or reject) any pending requests listed under “Received requests”. This is where you will see any pending access requests from Davidson & Sons or any other service providers.
• If approved, designate access to Davidson & Sons at the business or program account level;
• Set the Business Relationship Details to include an expiry date;
• Set the Visibility Rules to control how much information your customs broker can view or edit. The three visibility options are:
  1. Submitted by the Customs Broker;
  2. Submitted by you (the importer);
  3. Submitted by Other Business (which may include another customs broker).

If you are a BAM or PAM and would like to delegate access to your employees

• From the CCP Home Dashboard, choose “Manage My Employees” to review and approve (or reject) any pending employee requests linted under “Access requests”;
• If approved, select and designate access to any applicable program accounts and assign the employee their CCP user role, ie BAM, PAM, Editor, or Reader, for each program.
• Create Employee groups based on their user profiles to facilitate assigning groups of employees to either individual or grouped program accounts.

You are now set up to begin conducting business with the CBSA!

What you, the importer, can do to be ready for CARM

• If you are a new user planning to use a GC Key to login to the CCP, apply online for your GC Key at https://clegc-gckey.gc.ca/
• Familiarize yourself with the CCP user definitions and roles – BAM, PAM, Editor, and Reader;
• Determine the list of CCP users and account managers for your business;
• If you are the BAM for your 9-digit business account, be sure to have a complete list with all of your active RM program accounts to know the employees responsible for each account. A current list will prepare you for receiving any access requests to know which program account(s) and user roles to assign to each employee. Prior to Release 1, if you are federally incorporated, you can view a list of the RM extensions of your 9-digit business entity here. After Release 1, you can review your list of RM accounts directly on the CCP.
• Make sure your employees have a set of login instructions to register on the CCP;
• Register you business on the CCP as soon as it’s available to do so.

www.davidsonandsons.com                    Your Partners in CARM                         www.cscb.ca