Order Amending the Order Fixing May 13, 2024 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1 and the Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 Come into Force: SI/2024-21

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 158, Number 11

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SI/2024-21 May 22, 2024

Order Amending the Order Fixing May 13, 2024 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1 and the Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 Come into Force

P.C. 2024-505 May 9, 2024

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, amends the Order Fixing May 13, 2024 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1 and the Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 Come into Force, P.C. 2024-192 of March 1, 2024,

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

This Order amends the Order Fixing May 13, 2024 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1 and the Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 Come into Force, P.C. 2024-192 (the previous Order) to change the coming-into-force date of sections 209 to 211 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1 (BIA 2021), and sections 303, 329 and 330 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 (BIA 2022) from 3:00:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on May 13, 2024, to 3:00:00 a.m. EDT on October 21, 2024.

Objective

The objective of this Order is to delay the coming-into-force date from May 13, 2024, to October 21, 2024, for the aforementioned amendments to the Customs Act (CA) in BIA 2021 and BIA 2022, which will ensure that the Canada Border Services Agency’s (CBSA or the Agency) Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) project is fully launched in alignment with the law. This delay is as a result of a potential positive strike vote by the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) that could impact a large number of CBSA employees.

Background

The CARM project is a major initiative to modernize the CBSA’s systems and business processes used to assess and collect duties on imported goods. Once fully implemented, CARM will modernize and simplify the CBSA’s accounting practices and systems to produce detailed financial statements, increase accountability, improve asset stewardship controls, and reduce barriers to trade.

To update the legal foundation required for CARM implementation, both legislative and regulatory changes were made. On March 13, 2024, the Order Fixing May 13, 2024 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1 and the Budget Implementation Act, 2022, No. 1 Come into Force, P.C. 2024-192 was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II, and established May 13, 2024, as the date the amendments to the Customs Act and, consequently, the regulatory changes, would come into force. This was done to align the coming into force of the legislation and regulations with the May 13, 2024, implementation date of the system.

On April 19, 2024, the CBSA announced its intention to delay the external launch of the CARM system until October 2024. This delay is as a result of a potential positive strike vote by PSAC that could impact a large number of CBSA employees. The vote is being held from April 10, 2024, until May 15, 2024, and, if there is a positive strike vote and the Border Services bargaining unit does strike, there is a risk that a large number of employees involved in the system implementation will be impacted.

Given the links between CARM and other business mainframe systems shared by the CBSA and the Canada Revenue Agency, the next scheduled window to migrate major IT changes is October 2024. For this reason, the launch of CARM for trade chain partners (TCPs) is delayed until October 21, 2024.

CARM will launch internally at the CBSA on May 13, 2024, as planned, to advance the Agency’s compliance and enforcement efforts. This internal launch will allow the CBSA to utilize the CARM system to identify errors and discrepancies in the accounting of imported goods and payment of duties, which is expected to help the Agency’s work towards the expected benefit of better compliance.

The coming into force of the legislative amendments and related regulations, as well as the external launch of the CARM system, must align so the government is not placing legal obligations on TCPs until the system is available for them to be able to meet those obligations. The amended Order delays the coming into force of the amendments to the Customs Act until the date of the external CARM system launch on October 21, 2024. As a result, the coming into force of the associated regulations will also be delayed until October 21, 2024.

Implications

Delaying the coming into force of the legislative amendments sets industry partners up for success, as it will ensure that, even in the event of a positive strike vote, CBSA employees will have adequate time to support TCPs in onboarding to the CARM system. The support of CBSA employees is critical to the successful implementation of CARM, as employees play an important role in educating TCPs on the CARM system; helping them onboard and set up their accounts in CARM; and responding to their questions and concerns received via the CARM Client Support Helpdesk.

During this time, TCPs will continue to have access to the TCP onboarding/certification environment to ensure that they are registered and prepared to utilize the CARM system in October. Until the external launch of the CARM system on October 21, 2024, existing systems will remain in place and TCPs will continue to follow current processes and legal requirements. The CBSA will not be introducing any additional changes to the CARM system that would have any impacts on stakeholders who have already upgraded their internal systems and have completed their certification in preparation for CARM implementation. As a result, they will not be required to make any additional changes or incur any additional expenses.

Consultation

To prepare for the launch of the CARM system, the CBSA has held approximately 100 consultation and technical working group sessions, over 160 direct engagement events, and has completed multiple cycles of testing, including over 10 months of simulation with direct participation by CBSA employees and industry. Industry has worked to be ready with approximately 71 500 importers now registered in CARM — these importers represent over 92% of the volume of goods imported.

On April 19, 2024, the CBSA provided an update on its plans for the launch of the CARM digital initiative. The CBSA also updated employees and stakeholders on its plan to launch internally, indicating that CARM will launch at the CBSA on May 13, as planned, to advance the Agency’s compliance and enforcement efforts.

The CBSA will continue to support TCPs as they work to onboard and prepare for the external launch of the CARM system on October 21, 2024.

Contact

Michael Saray
Acting Director
Commercial and Trade Policy Division
Canada Border Services Agency
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0L8
Email: CBSA.OCT/CECO.ASFC@cbsa-asfc.gc.ca