Canada's Proposed Customs Valuation Changes Could Be Illegal, Law Firm Says
Canada's proposal to alter its customs valuation policy to value imports according to the price of their "last sale" or "sale for export" not only would be bad for business, it "could also be illegal," lawyers at Sandler Travis said in a June client alert. The firm said the proposal is contrary to Canadian court precedent and the World Trade Organization's Customs Valuation Code that identifies the sale for export as the one in which "title is passed to the importer of the goods."
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"The changes could also effectively increase import duties above the levels at which Canada has agreed to be bound under WTO rules," the post said. "Moreover, the regulations could violate the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and Washington’s activist approach to addressing violations could open Canadian exports to the threat of retaliatory duties."
The Canada Border Services Agency's proposed amendment would add a definition of "sold for export to Canada," which would make the relevant sale for customs valuation purposes the last sale. The changes also would repeal the current definition of "purchaser in Canada," changing it to read "the person who purchases or will purchase the goods in the relevant sale for export to Canada" (see 2306050071). Two weeks remain for the comment period on the proposed changes.