The 2026 CBSA revisions and customs notices affect different parts of an import process. Some change the data submitted with an entry; others change tax coding, tariff treatment, permit handling or the interpretation of an existing procedure. Treating every notice as a new duty or as a general CARM change can lead to the wrong operational response.
For importers in Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton, the practical question is not simply whether a notice was issued. It is whether the goods, accounting method or warehouse procedure falls within its scope. The following breakdown identifies the action type for each relevant revision and the records or instructions an importer may wish to review with its broker.
1. Changes to accounting and verification records
D11-6-8: CARM and the Commercial Accounting Declaration
CBSA revised Memorandum D11-6-8 on September 9, 2026. The revision updates guidance concerning verification of non-FTA origin, tariff classification and value for duty, and reflects CARM Release 3 and the replacement of the B3-3 and B2 forms with the Commercial Accounting Declaration, or CAD. The memorandum is relevant to commercial importers and brokers whose transactions may be subject to CBSA verification in these areas. Read D11-6-8.
This is primarily an accounting and record-management change. Importers generally should not assume that the revision creates a new tariff rate. Instead, they may wish to confirm that their internal records, commercial invoices, classification decisions, origin support and value-for-duty calculations can be reconciled to the information reported through the CAD.
A useful discussion with a broker can focus on three questions:
- Which internal document is the source for each CAD data element?
- Can the importer connect the declared tariff classification, origin and value for duty to transaction-level supporting records?
- Have legacy references to B3-3 or B2 been removed from instructions, templates and accounting procedures where appropriate?
2. Changes to tax and excise coding
D18-5-1: temporary fuel-excise-tax suspension
CBSA amended Memorandum D18-5-1 on June 30, 2026, to reflect the temporary suspension of the federal fuel excise tax. The amendment updates CARM references for excise codes, excise exemption codes and GST exemption codes. It can affect importers declaring goods subject to excise duties or taxes, including fuel, alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, vaping products, luxury vehicles and other excise-tax categories. Read D18-5-1.
The operational response is different from a tariff-classification review. Importers dealing in affected products generally should have their broker confirm the current code and tax treatment for the relevant goods and accounting period. They may also want to review automated entry instructions and exception reports so a prior code is not carried forward without checking its current status.
The notice does not, on its own, mean that every importer receives a tax adjustment. Its relevance depends on the goods being declared and the excise or GST treatment applicable to the transaction.
3. Changes to regulated-goods and permit handling
D19-13-2: firearms, weapons, devices, parts and ammunition
CBSA replaced the April 25, 2025 version of Memorandum D19-13-2 on June 25, 2026. The revised memorandum addresses the interaction of tariff item 9898.00.00 with the Criminal Code, the Firearms Act and the Export and Import Permits Act. It applies to parties involved with importing or exporting firearms, weapons, devices, parts or ammunition. Read D19-13-2.
This is a controlled-goods and legal-authority review, not a routine classification refresh. Importers handling these products through Ontario ports, including businesses distributing into the GTA, generally should ask their broker to review the product description, tariff treatment and any applicable permit or documentation requirements before shipment. Existing broker instructions should not be assumed to remain adequate merely because the product has been imported before.
TRQ goods entering customs bonded warehouses
Customs Notice 26-20, released August 21, 2026, clarified the process for tariff-rate-quota goods entering a customs bonded warehouse. CBSA stated that the clarification does not change the policy: goods subject to a TRQ require a valid shipment-specific Global Affairs Canada import permit to receive the within-access duty rate. Read Customs Notice 26-20.
Importers and warehouse operators generally should separate two questions: whether the goods may enter the bonded warehouse, and whether the importer has the permit needed for the within-access rate. Companies using bonded facilities near Toronto, Mississauga or Brampton may wish to confirm who obtains, verifies and retains the shipment-specific permit before the goods are accounted for at the intended rate.
4. Changes to entry data and product-specific tariff treatment
Aluminum: mandatory origin fields from October 1
Customs Notice 26-15 states that, beginning October 1, 2026, mandatory Single Window Initiative data fields apply to covered aluminum imports under General Import Permit No. 83 and the relevant SWI or IID commodity codes. The fields are the country of largest smelt, the country of second-largest smelt where applicable, and the country of most recent cast. Submission before October 1 is optional. The notice also identifies exceptions for certain CSA-importer transactions and shipments with a value for duty of $5,000 or less. Read Customs Notice 26-15.
This is an entry-data readiness issue. Importers of covered aluminum products generally should determine whether their suppliers can provide the required smelt-and-cast information and whether their products and transactions fall within an exception. Broker instructions, supplier questionnaires and purchase-order data fields may need to be reviewed before the mandatory date.
Electric motorcycles and cycles: tariff-description correction
Customs Notice 26-21 amended the description for tariff item 8507.60.20 on August 6, 2026, replacing “electrically-powered motorcycles” with “motorcycles or cycles with an electric motor.” Importers of goods classified under that tariff item, including relevant batteries or battery products associated with electric motorcycles or cycles, generally should review their classifications and any existing advance rulings. Read Customs Notice 26-21.
5. Changes to duty exposure and preferential tariff treatment
Wood cabinets and vanities: provisional surtax
Customs Notice 26-17 states that a provisional safeguard surtax of 25% of value for duty began July 31, 2026, for specified wood cabinets, vanities and subassemblies classified under the tariff items identified in the notice. The measure may apply for up to 200 days. The notice also addresses CUSMA treatment, duty relief, drawback and goods entering customs bonded warehouses. Read Customs Notice 26-17.
Importers of covered products generally should begin with the tariff items and product descriptions in the notice rather than relying on a broad product name such as “cabinet.” Distributors, retailers and construction-supply businesses serving Ontario markets may wish to review open purchase orders, customs-bonded inventory and broker instructions for the possible surtax treatment.
United Kingdom: CPUKT treatment
Eligible goods originating in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man became eligible for Comprehensive and Progressive United Kingdom Tariff treatment under the CPTPP on September 1, 2026. The updated T2026-2 tariff files became available on September 16, 2026. Read Customs Notice 26-22.
Importers generally should not treat the change as an automatic preference for every shipment from the UK. The goods must be eligible under the applicable tariff treatment and the importer should have origin documentation that supports the claim. Broker instructions and classification tables for qualifying UK-origin goods may need to be updated.
What to discuss with your customs broker
A focused review is more useful than applying the same checklist to every notice. Importers may wish to group their questions as follows:
- Accounting: Are CAD, classification, origin and value-for-duty records aligned with current CARM procedures?
- Tax: Do any imported products require revised excise, excise-exemption or GST-exemption coding?
- Data: Can suppliers provide aluminum smelt-and-cast information before October 1 where the new fields apply?
- Permits: Are shipment-specific permits available for TRQ goods seeking the within-access rate, and are regulated products supported by the required authorities?
- Tariff treatment: Do covered wood products, electric-cycle goods or qualifying UK-origin products require a classification or preference review?
These federal revisions do not create a single GTA-specific border procedure. Their effect depends on the goods and procedures used by the importer. A company moving freight through Toronto, Mississauga or Brampton may therefore need changes in only one area—such as supplier data or tariff coding—while leaving other entry processes unchanged.