The CBSA has received numerous inquiries on the Importer Records program in CARM. As of October 21, 2024, importers who are maintaining records outside of Canada or not at their place of business in Canada will not be issued an importer account (RM) unless the BSF900: Agreement to maintain records elsewhere than the place of business in Canada has been completed and submitted in the CARM portal (for more details please refer to Memorandum D17-1-21: Maintenance of Records in Canada by Importers). Please note that records must be kept in Canada, the USA or Mexico.
If an importer has an existing BN15, please follow User Guide – Update your CBSA information at the program level.
If a new RM account is needed, please follow User Guide – Enrol in the Importer program
If an importer has as an existing RM account that is inactive, it can be reactivated by contacting CARM Helpdesk.
To ensure your application is processed in a timely manner, please ensure your BSF900 is fully completed and uploaded to CARM. Please see below for some instances that may delay your application process:
- If a third party is to maintain Books & Records on your behalf; CBSA requires a confirmation letter signed by the third party that they are holding your Books & Records at the address indicated in the BSF900.
- Addresses listed on the BSF900 need to match the addresses listed in CARM. If there’s an error in the address or if the importer moves, please contact the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to update the address related to the BN9.
- If importers are renting an office suite from a coworking/shared office space, then a valid lease/rental agreement should be uploaded to the CARM enrolment/program update case to ensure we can validate the Books & Records address.
- If you are a non-resident importer, please make sure to fill out the for “Non-Resident Importers” section on the 2nd page of the BSF900 and provide the supporting documents (e.g.: articles of formation/incorporation, proof of paid annual registration fees for the current year, etc…).