Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) usually offers its 3-hour Customs Broker Professional Examination near the end of October.
The professional examination requires a non-refundable $200 fee.
Exam questions are multiple-choice, but can be tricky. Of the 122 candidates who wrote the exam in October 2009, the average mark was 59%. Marks ranged from 24% to 84%.
Subject Areas Tested on Customs Broker Professional Exam
CBSA Memorandum D1-8-3 lists the laws and procedures relating to imports and exports tested on the customs broker exam.
Canada’s Customs Act is at the top of that list. With 214 sections (some of which have been repealed), Customs Act legislation is detailed, technical and complex.
The best way to understand the Customs Act is to carefully read and re-read key sections well in advance of exam day.
Below are critical Customs Act sections to study. These were selected based on lectures from a senior Customs Broker who teaches at a local college in Toronto.
Determine Transaction Value of Goods for Duty Calculations
Customs Act sections 48 to 53 detail an ordered set of 6 methods for determining the value of imported goods. That value is important, since it is applied to compute the amount of customs duty payable.
The most common method is transaction value, which is usually supported by a commercial invoice that clearly states the price paid or payable.
But there are many legal situations that can affect how an import’s transaction value is calculated. For example, what if the Canadian importer is related to the exporter in India? Customs Act subsection 48(3) explains that customs officers can apply the value of identical or similar goods imported from an unrelated party instead.
The second-most common method is value for duty calculated based on identical goods. This is defined under Customs Act section 49. White golf balls imported from Brazil made from 100% titanium are not identical to white 100% titanium golf balls imported from Italy – even though they may be physically the same.
Blue golf balls made from 75% titanium imported from the same Italian manufacturer are identical to red 75% titanium golf balls. However, transaction value of identical goods cannot be used if the trade level and quantities for the imported blue and red golf balls are significantly different or were not imported at around the same time.
Of all areas in the Customs Act, the 6 methods described in sections 48 to 53 to calculate value for duty is the source of the most questions. Therefore, students should spend considerable time carefully studying the legal mechanisms under the valuation sections.
Determination, Re-determination and Further Re-determination of Imported Goods
The second-most critical area in the Customs Act encompasses sections 58 to 60. Those sections deal with legal rules and regulations for determining, appealing and re-appealing the following attributes of imported goods:
- Country of origin
- Tariff classification
- Value for duty
- Product markings including labeling.
Section 59 states that re-determination of an imported good’s origin, tariff classification, value for duty or markings must be done within 4 years of the original determination.
Section 60 specifies the rules that the CBSA President follows when deciding re-determination and further re-determination requests. Parties have up to 90 days from the date they are given notice of determination or re-determination to ask the President to overrule the prior decision.
Both the 4 year period for re-determination and 90 days for appeal to the President are common questions on the customs broker professional exam.
Other Key Areas of Customs Act for Study
Students should also focus on the following sections.
- 9 Issue of customs broker’s licence
- 11 Presentation of persons on arrival in Canada
- 31 Release of goods
- 35.01 Marking of goods.
A customs broker must be licensed as prescribed under Section 9 to conduct business on behalf of clients. Anyone can import on their own behalf.
According to Section 11, all persons must present themselves at the nearest designated customs office open for business. This can include a customs office outside Canada.
Section 31 specifies that only goods that have been released by a customs officer or by other prescribed means may be removed from a customs office, bonded warehouse, sufferance warehouse or duty free shop.
Action Plan for Passing Customs Broker Professional Examination
This article highlights the essential sections of the Customs Act to study for the Customs Broker exam. As always, the devil is in the detail.
Focusing on the details in the above sections will dramatically improve one’s chances of passing the Canadian Customs Brokers Professional Examination.
Daniel Workman - A senior business and finance writer who also does French translations, notably international trade and insurance materials.
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