Situations That Can Delay Your Customs Clearance in Canada

If you are associated with international shipping, then customs clearance is an unavoidable part of it. No doubt, the processes are extremely lengthy, but with a bit of knowledge, you can prevent all the unnecessary delays. If you want to improve the customer experience and on-time deliveries, you need to omit the customs delay and follow the processes meticulously. In this extremely competitive market, nobody wants to get stuck behind the customs line and face unnecessary monetary losses. 

Here are discussed some of the major causes of customs delays, and knowing them can help you prevent them.

Incomplete or missing documentation

The CBSA controls the entire flow of imports and exports across Canadian borders. There will be strict documentation enforcement, and the requirements are large. These vary depending on the type of shipments that are passing. The process is not at all straightforward and will need the exact documents. The compliance is extremely complex, and one also needs to file to the AES platform before proceeding. Without these, the customs clearance process might be halted.

Incorrect tariff classification codes

About 20% of the shipments that are arriving in Canada have the wrong tariff classification codes assigned to them. Hence, a lot of business is missed by the government annually. The misclassified shipments also lead the exporters to pay larger duties and fines, and also prevent the customs department from knowing exactly what is getting shipped within Canada. If the codes are declared wrongly, you might also miss out on the opportunity for free trade agreement benefits. There might also be large and unexpected clearance delays too. 

Incorrect product valuation

There must be a valuation assigned to every product that is arriving at the Canadian border. This has multiple purposes. The duties and other taxes are listed based on this, the accurate statistics of the goods movement are also tracked through this, and the applicability of the additional legal requirements are also understood through the product valuation. But, determining this valuation can be a bit difficult in the first place. There are multiple factors you need to consider, and it differs based on the uniqueness of the goods being transported. However, if the valuation of the products is unknown, customs clearance may take longer than usual.

With this knowledge, now you can easily expedite your customs clearance in Canada and prevent any unwanted delays.