Import Permits and Regulated Goods: Which Goods Need Other Government Approval?

Why Some Goods Need More Than a Customs Declaration

CBSA collects duties and taxes, but it also enforces import rules on behalf of other federal departments and agencies, often called OGDs. Before importing, CBSA tells importers to check two things:

• Are the goods allowed into Canada at all? Some goods are prohibited, from obvious ones such as hate propaganda to less obvious ones such as used mattresses and some used automobiles. CBSA's D9 memoranda cover prohibited importations
• Are they subject to permits, restrictions or regulations? Many goods can be imported only with a permit, licence, certificate, registration or specific information for another department. CBSA's D19 memoranda cover other departments' acts and regulations

A missing requirement doesn't just slow clearance. The goods can be held, refused entry or returned, and the importer can face penalties.

Which Departments Regulate Which Goods

CBSA's reference list for importers names the departments and the goods each one regulates. The main ones for commercial importers:

• Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA): food, plants, animals and related products; food labelling; wood packaging; waste and used machinery or equipment
• Health Canada: consumer goods, drugs, food, medical devices, natural health products, pesticides, radiation-emitting devices, toxic substances and vitamins
• Transport Canada: vehicles and tires, and the transportation of dangerous goods
• Global Affairs Canada: goods on import controls, including certain agricultural products, firearms, steel, textiles and clothing, and goods under trade embargoes
• Environment and Climate Change Canada: endangered species, hazardous waste and recyclable material, and ozone-depleting substances
• Natural Resources Canada: explosives, including fireworks and ammunition; regulated energy-using products; rough diamonds
• Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada: radio and telecommunications equipment
• Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission: nuclear and nuclear-related dual-use goods and radiation-emitting devices
• Canadian Firearms Program and the Controlled Goods Program: firearms, and goods with military or national security significance
• Others: Canadian Heritage (cultural property), the Competition Bureau (textile labels, precious metal marking, packaging and labelling of non-food products), Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canada Energy Regulator

This is a summary. The full list, with links to each department, is CBSA's Other Government Departments and Agencies: Reference List for Importers.

How to Find Out What Your Goods Need

1. Classify the goods

   Most requirements are tied to the tariff classification, so start with the right HS code. See Tariff Classification in Canada.

2. Check each regulating department

   Use CBSA's reference list to see which departments might regulate the product, then check each department's own import requirements.

3. Use AIRS for food, plants and animals

   The CFIA's Automated Import Reference System shows requirements for CFIA-regulated goods by commodity, origin, destination, end use and HS code. The CFIA notes that AIRS is a reference tool, and the acts and regulations still govern.

4. Get the permits, licences or certificates before shipping

   Apply early. Some approvals take time, and a load that arrives first will wait.

5. Give your broker the numbers and documents

   Your customs broker enters the required details on the import declaration. Send permit, licence and certificate numbers with the commercial invoice.

Food Imports: The Safe Food for Canadians Licence

To import most foods into Canada, the importer must hold a Safe Food for Canadians (SFC) licence issued by the CFIA. The CFIA has an interactive tool to check whether a product needs one.

The licence number is entered in the "Registration Number" field of the Integrated Import Declaration exactly as issued, with no extra words, characters or spaces. If the declaration is rejected, the shipment is denied entry until the error is corrected and the declaration resubmitted. Operating without a required licence can lead to administrative monetary penalties or prosecution.

Non-resident importers without a fixed place of business in Canada may be able to get an SFC licence; see our Non-Resident Importer Guide.

How Requirements Are Checked at the Border

Under CBSA's Single Window Initiative, importers and brokers submit other departments' data electronically with the release request on the Integrated Import Declaration (IID), instead of separate paper forms. Nine departments and agencies, covering 38 government programs, take part. The declaration is validated before the goods reach the border, which reduces errors and holds.

Some goods can be released but still held at destination for another agency. For example, CBSA's release messages include "Goods may move, detain to destination (CFIA)". See What Is a PARS Number?

Common Permit Problems

• Importing a regulated product for the first time without checking its requirements
• Permit or licence numbers missing from the paperwork, or entered with extra characters
• A product description too vague to show whether a requirement applies
• Wrong tariff classification, which can hide a requirement or trigger the wrong one
• Labelling that doesn't meet Canadian rules
• Untreated or unmarked wood packaging

More on delays in Common Reasons Shipments Are Held at Canada Customs.

How Garden City Helps

As a licensed Canadian customs broker, Garden City Customs Services Inc. supports other government department requirements as part of customs clearance, and reviews classification and documentation for businesses bringing in new products through our customs consulting service. The permits and licences themselves are issued by each department to the importer.

Official Sources

• CBSA: Other Government Departments and Agencies, Reference List for Importers
• CBSA: Importing commercial goods into Canada
• CBSA: Single Window Initiative
• CFIA: Automated Import Reference System (AIRS)
• CFIA: Importing food with a Safe Food for Canadians licence