Administrative Monetary Penalty System
C026

Contravention

When requested by an officer, person failed to present goods, to remove any covering from goods, to unload any conveyance or open any part thereof, or failed to open or unpack any package or container.

Penalty

Occurrence Penalty
1st $500 Footnote *
2nd $750
3rd and subsequent $1,500
Footnote *

A 30-day delay in the escalation of penalty levels from the first to the second will apply to this contravention. Should a second penalty with the same contravention be issued against the same client, the system will not escalate the penalty level to level two unless 30 days have transpired from when the first Notice of Penalty Assessment (NPA) was issued or the infraction occurred. The non-escalation rule applies from the first level to the second level only; it does not apply from the second to the third level.

Return to footnote * referrer

Penalty basis
Per request
Retention period
12 months

Guidelines

Non-compliance occurs when the person who has reported goods under section 12 or the person who is stopped by an officer in accordance with subsection 99(1) of the Customs Act fails to present goods, to remove any covering from goods, to unload any conveyance or open any part thereof, or failed to open or unpack any package or container when requested to do so by an officer.

Applied against person who reports the goods under section 12 of the Customs Act inside or outside Canada or person who is stopped by an officer in accordance with subsection 99(1) of the Customs Act.

Officers should use discretion with regard to the term "available for examination" when goods are referred. For example, if the goods have arrived at the sufferance warehouse yard, but have not yet been off-loaded into the warehouse, no AMPS would be applicable.

If an RMD or RNS arrival notice is submitted or transmitted to the CBSA despite the person who reported goods under section 12 of the Customs Act having clearly indicated that the goods had not arrived, see C274.

In the case where the goods must be on hand at the time of the release request, and there are multiple containers documented on one cargo control document (against one release request), at least one of the containers must have arrived at the destination sufferance warehouse at the time the release request is submitted. The remaining containers must have arrived at the port of report and be en route or awaiting furtherance to the inland destination.

Should goods be referred for secondary processing, the importer / broker will be given an opportunity to provide information to the officer that the remaining goods have arrived in Canada and are en route or awaiting transportation to destination.

Requests for examinations must have enough detail for client to understand what is expected.

A reasonable amount of time to prepare the goods will be allowed. The term ‘reasonable’ is dependent on mode (for example marine operators will be given time to offload and stage the goods which is not required in other modes) and the nature or quality of the goods (such as hazardous goods that require special handling); extra time will be allotted to make the arrangements.

For situations where goods are moved or removed from the customs office or sufferance warehouse, see C033.

For non-compliance when the operator of a bonded warehouse, duty free shop, or a sufferance warehouse fails to open any package or container of goods or fails to remove any covering to allow free access to the goods when an officer requests to see the goods in order to conduct an examination, refer to C047 or C357.

References

Legislation

Customs Act, subsection 13(b)

D-Memo

N/A

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