Reporting and Summary Accounting of Vehicle Repairs by Highway Carriers

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By Darren Turnbull, ABC Customs Brokers Jan 14, 2016

ABC Customs Brokers frequently receives inquiries from carriers on how to report repairs done to their trucks or trailers while out of the country. On October 22, 2015, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) issued a revised version of memorandum D8-4-2 which deals specifically with this matter. It is important to note that the revisions were merely edits and did not affect existing policies and procedures. That said, this may be a good time to review this D memo and determine how you as a highway carrier are required to report repairs done to your equipment while outside of Canada. It makes reference to both free trade and non free trade partner countries but for the purpose of this article, let’s just assume that you are not driving anywhere but the USA or Mexico.

A link to memorandum D8-4-2 is at the bottom of this text but here are the highlights.

• The Customs Act requires that all repairs to vehicles done outside of Canada must be reported by the driver to the nearest CBSA office upon return to Canada.
• Highway carries can be granted authorization to report these repairs on a quarterly basis.
• The Customs Act grants relief from duties and taxes, including GST, for emergency repairs.
• When a vehicle is repaired in a free-trade partner country the value of the repairs is not subject to customs duties but unless the repairs are done under warranty, the value of repairs is subject to GST.
• If during an examination of the truck evidence of non-reported repairs is found, duties and taxes are to be collected immediately and penalties may be issued for non-compliance.

The above is just a brief summary of the policies and procedures governing reporting of vehicle repairs. We encourage you to review Memorandum D8-4-2 if you have any further questions.

If you would like to apply to account for repairs on a quarterly basis you can do so at the nearest CBSA office. If you have other questions on how to report repairs done to your truck or trailer while outside of Canada, we invite you to contact us.

Did you know?

ABC Customs Brokers' highway carrier services are designed to help highway carriers, truckers, drivers, dispatchers and self-carrying importers clear customs. Some of our services include barcode label printing, carrier bond applications, in-transit and single trip bonds, carrier code assistance, unassigned shipment referrals and more.