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| CFIA Release required at first port of arrival |
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(Toronto, December 22, 2005)… As of January 1, 2006, all release requests for plant and animal products regulated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) must be presented at the first port of arrival into Canada.
More specifically, for any product that must be referred to the CFIA, release approval must be granted before the product leaves the seaport, land border, airport, courier depot, mail or any other method of importation. This includes "in-bond" shipments where the Customs port of entry is located at an inland office. Shipments arriving from the USA via rail will be allowed to proceed inland to the Central Railyard Hub (a notice of this exemption is expected from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) in the coming days).
Shipments that move inland without the required CFIA release will have to return to the port of physical entry into Canada. At that time, the entry can be re-submitted to the CFIA for possible release approval. Enforcement action (ie: monetary penalties or prosecution) may/will be taken against the importer of record when a shipment of plant or animal products is not presented to the CFIA before or when it first crosses the physical border or touches Canadian soil (ie: port of landfall).
For more information, please call (905) 882-4880, Brian Rowe, General Manager – Customs Consulting Services.
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