Part III - 2019-20 Departmental Plan

Catalogue No. PS35-8E-PDF
ISSN 2371-7505

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Plans at a glance and operating context

Transition and transformation

In 2019–20, the CBSA will continue to be faced with a rapidly changing border environment characterized by rising volumes across all lines of business as well as increasingly complex security and international concerns. As such, demands on the Agency’s resource base will continue to increase. These perennial challenges, along with the associated governmental and societal expectations to overcome them, continually raise the bar for the delivery of integrated border management. In particular, the Agency must contend with the following realities:

• travellers and goods are crossing the border in progressively greater numbers each year;
• national security threats are constantly emerging and evolving, requiring continual readjustment of the Agency’s methods of work at the border; and
• the Agency strives to keep pace with shifting national and global trends, as well as increasing volumes of travellers and goods, within the scope of the Agency’s current resources.

Last fiscal year, the Agency successfully completed a comprehensive review of all its managerial and operational areas, including its workforce, infrastructure, organizational design, business management approach, revenue collection activities and innovation agenda, with a view to realigning its program management and undertaking an extensive suite of modernization efforts.

This significant transformational journey, driven by the contextual elements cited above as well as the Agency’s capabilities for change management, begins with engaging employees in building the culture that is needed for the future. This will progress throughout 2019–20 as the Agency continues to examine all aspects of its business, including identifying options and resource requirements for improving its organizational health and sustainability, in order to deliver modernized and integrated border services. In addition, the Agency will be refining its departmental performance indicators to ensure that they are realistic and reflective of the Agency’s dynamic operating context and evolving expectations for border management.

Operating context

To support the priorities of security, public safety and trade facilitation enshrined in the CBSA’s mandate, the Agency continues to shift its business model toward focusing efforts and resources on high-risk persons and goods, while expediting the free flow of low-risk persons and goods into Canada.

The CBSA operates in a complex and dynamic environment where it must remain responsive to evolving threats, adaptive to global economic trends, and innovative in its use of technology to manage increasing cross-border volumes.

The opioid crisis continues to pose a serious threat to the safety of Canadians. Together with domestic and international partners, the CBSA is working to enhance detection capabilities for opioids through the development of new tools and methods, as smugglers often attempt to circumvent existing controls by altering the chemical compounds of opioid substances. Additionally, in support of the Government of Canada’s decision to legalize cannabis, the Agency remains vigilant in working with law enforcement partners and establishing compliance management tools to maintain border integrity and discourage the illicit cross-border movement of cannabis.

In recent years, rates of gun and gang violence have been steadily increasing in Canada. The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness convened a Summit on Gun and Gang Violence^{Footnote i} in March 2018 to establish priority actions geared toward its reduction. In collaboration with law enforcement partners, the CBSA remains vigilant in combatting the illegal smuggling of firearms.

Driven by the growing prevalence of e-commerce, the CBSA strives to keep pace with rising volumes in the postal and courier modes, as well as emerging risks in the international supply chain, while maintaining an effective balance between trade facilitation and customs enforcement. Concurrently, upward trends in global migration have resulted in the arrival of increased numbers of asylum seekers to Canada, placing additional demands on the Agency’s resources.

The CBSA plays a vital role in the prosperity and competitiveness of Canada’s economy. Through its trade programs, the Agency continues to promote economic benefits and protections for Canadian industry by administering domestic trade legislation and international free trade agreements. In particular, the CBSA is preparing to implement new and amended trade requirements following ratification of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) which was trilaterally signed in November 2018, as well as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) which was signed in March 2018 by all eleven member countries.

While the CBSA has high-profile responsibilities to screen imported goods (e.g., $561 billion worth in 2017) for health, safety and security concerns, the Agency also collects approximately $32 billion annually in applicable duties and taxes on these goods. Accounting for these goods and assessing the applicable duties and taxes involves extensive administration by both importers and government. As such, the Agency is in the process of modernizing its customs accounting processes and replacing existing systems with a unified solution called CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM), a large-scale business transformation enabled by information technology (IT) that will redesign customs information requirements, processes and systems to simplify the accounting process for the trade community and the Agency alike.

Recognizing that the success of the Agency’s transformation depends upon the continued productivity of its workforce, the Agency is advancing efforts to develop the character of its leaders and build a healthy, adaptive culture. In 2019–20, the Agency will initiate the implementation of new management structures and processes to better align its program management activities with its Departmental Results Framework.^{Footnote ii}

Plans at a glance

Over the coming year, the CBSA will continue to fulfill its mandate, modernize its business, engage its people, and improve its programs and services in order to safeguard Canada’s borders and economy, while facilitating legitimate trade and travel. An overview of the Agency’s planned results for 2019–20 is provided below in line with the key objectives outlined in the Agency’s three-year Strategic Framework pictured below.

Strengthening border compliance

The CBSA will continue to refine security screening activities to enable the timely identification of inadmissible persons, while implementing measures to improve Canada’s immigration detention system in line with the National Immigration Detention Framework. The improvements for national security screening will be achieved through ongoing training for IRCC and CBSA staff on emerging national security inadmissibility issues, ensuring timely availability of relevant information for admissibility decisions, and continual identification of opportunities to improve internal processes and leverage technology. The Agency will also continue with the Entry/Exit initiative to enhance compliance management capabilities through information sharing with the United States (US).

In collaboration with United States Customs and Border Protection (US CBP), the Agency will pursue opportunities for preclearance operations in both the traveller and commercial streams to assess compliance in advance of travellers and goods reaching the border. In addition, the Agency plans to begin the implementation phase of the CARM project which aims to strengthen oversight of compliance with trade requirements through automated assessment and collection of revenues.

In response to the opioid crisis, the CBSA will continue to engage with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to reduce opioid smuggling through the identification and interdiction of illicit drugs. In support of cannabis legalization, the CBSA will continue to monitor and implement measures to maintain border integrity, while remaining vigilant in detecting signs of impaired driving at ports of entry. Specifically, the Agency will advance the development of administrative monetary penalties as an additional compliance management tool to discourage the illegal cross-border movement of cannabis.

The Agency is working in collaboration with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to increase vigilance regarding potential routes of entry of items that pose a risk of introducing African swine fever to Canada. The Agency has taken steps to ensure all border services officers have been made aware of the impact of the African swine fever and is strategically deploying its resources to focus on personally and commercially imported goods arriving from affected countries.

Modernizing border crossing

By leveraging technological innovations and data analytics, the CBSA will continue to deploy automated solutions to modernize and streamline the border experience. For example, the Agency will continue to implement automated fingerprint verification at major airports through biometrics to confirm the identity and admissibility of travellers in a secure and efficient manner.

In addition, the CBSA will proceed with the modernization of its Trusted Traveller and Trusted Trader programs. For example, the Agency will pilot facial biometric verification technology within its NEXUS program, and will continue to test the viability of remote commercial processing in the highway mode through the pilot of the Secure Corridor Concept.

Working smarter for better results and greater efficiencies

The CBSA will continue to examine all aspects of its business and leverage modern Enterprise Architecture practices in order to identify options for improving organizational health and sustainability. In particular, the Agency will finalize a new results-based organizational structure, supporting greater accountability and strategic decision-making in program management and resource allocation.

The Agency will also continue efforts to modernize its border infrastructure, information management and IT, including improving its real property portfolio, supporting the Federal Science and Technology Infrastructure Initiative, upgrading some of the Agency’s aging systems and equipment, adopting some initial cloud computing practices over the next three years, and strengthening cyber security defence mechanisms.

Recognizing the widespread diversity inherent to Canada’s national identity, the CBSA will continue to support the Government of Canada’s reconciliation efforts with Indigenous peoples. The Agency is committed to being a leading organization that engages, respects, cooperates and partners with Indigenous peoples to provide integrated border services.

Last fiscal year, the CBSA established an Indigenous Affairs Secretariat to provide an Indigenous perspective in support of the ongoing work to implement the Agency’s Indigenous Framework and Strategy (IFS). Moving into 2019–20, the IFS includes an innovative approach to co-develop strategies using design thinking with Indigenous partners in order to address the issues identified in the Report on First Nation Border Crossing Issues.^{Footnote iii}

For more information on the CBSA’s plans, priorities and planned results, see the “Planned results” section of this report.

CBSA services at a glance

The CBSA processes millions of travellers and shipments every year and provides services at multiple points across Canada and abroad, including the following (based on 2017–18 data):

CBSA Services at a Glance

Volumes	Locations
96 million travellers 27.3 million cars 34.5 million air passengers 21.4 million commercial releases 157,373 trains and vessels 46 million courier shipments 16,180 drug seizures 11,217 firearms and weapons seized 1,307 tobacco seizures $32 billion of duties and taxes collected $2.8 million of suspected proceeds of crime seized 7,786 removals of inadmissible persons	10 cruise ship operations 426 marine reporting sites 3 mail processing centres 54 inland offices 27 rail sites 71 sufferance warehouses 117 land border crossings 12 ferry terminals 13 international airports 216 commercial vessel clearance facilities 39 international locations

Planned results: what we want to achieve this year and beyond

Financial, human resources and performance information for the CBSA’s Program Inventory is available in the GC InfoBase.^{Footnote iv}

Core Responsibilities

Border Management

Description

The CBSA assesses risk to identify threats, manages the free flow of admissible travellers and commercial goods into, through and out of Canada, and manages non-compliance.

Planning highlights

The CBSA will continue to improve its programs and services throughout the travel and trade continuum to ensure effective and efficient border management. This will involve further developing data analytics and targeting capabilities, modernizing border technology and infrastructure, and enhancing processes for border facilitation and compliance with customs requirements.

In 2019–20, the CBSA plans to achieve the following results under its core responsibility of Border Management:

The CBSA’s intelligence, threat and risk assessment activities support CBSA programs in the identification and interception of high-risk people, goods and conveyances that pose a threat to the security of Canadians

The opioid crisis continues to pose a serious threat to the safety and security of Canadians. The CBSA will increase efforts to combat opioid smuggling through the identification and interdiction of illicit drugs, with a particular focus on fentanyl and other highly toxic substances through the deployment of technology and detector dogs. Together with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the CBSA will continue to improve controls to reduce the supply of illicit drugs through the postal stream, including the establishment of additional safe examination areas and regional screening facilities.

The CBSA remains committed to working with security screening partners, including the RCMP, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, to optimize screening processes. Specifically, the Agency will continue working with partners to reduce the security screening inventory, ensuring that cases are screened in a timely fashion and reducing the potential for postponements at the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB).

The CBSA hopes to conclude the Passenger Name Record (PNR) agreement between Canada and the European Union (EU), which will ensure that commercial air carriers based in the EU continue to provide PNR data to the CBSA for risk assessment purposes and will allow the Agency to conduct its targeting activities earlier in the air travel continuum.

Admissible travellers are processed in an efficient manner

To enhance the CBSA’s capacity for processing of travellers in the air mode, the Agency will continue the introduction of automated fingerprint verification at major airports through Primary Inspection Kiosks (PIK). This functionality represents a major step forward in the Agency’s use of biometrics to confirm the identity and facilitate the entry of admissible travellers in a secure and efficient manner. In addition, PIK will be deployed at Calgary International Airport as part of the Agency’s continued expansion of PIK across the country.

Following the successful pilot of a streamlined International to Domestic baggage process at airports in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montréal, the CBSA will collaborate with the air industry on integrating this process as part of regular air traveller processing. For eligible travellers who are arriving internationally and transferring domestically, this process allows their baggage to be transferred directly to their final destination, except in circumstances where a secondary examination is warranted, thereby simplifying the connection process for the majority of connecting travellers. Once fully implemented, this process will represent a significant milestone in the CBSA’s efforts to develop innovative and facilitative solutions for border processing.

Travellers and their goods are compliant with applicable legislation

Following the legalization of recreational cannabis in October 2018, the CBSA will continue to implement measures to maintain and monitor border integrity, including questioning travellers regarding cannabis importation in the primary inspection line and disseminating public awareness tools. In addition, developments to the CBSA’s Administrative Monetary Penalty System will provide an additional compliance management tool to further discourage the illegal cross-border movement of cannabis.

The CBSA will remain vigilant in detecting signs of impaired driving at ports of entry. In 2019–20, the Agency will be delivering training to border services officers (BSOs) on screening methods for drug-impaired driving to ensure compliance with Canadian legislation at the border.

In managing compliance with applicable legislation, the CBSA will seek to expand the information sharing system between Canada and the United States (US) through the Entry/Exit initiative, whereby the record of a land entry into one country can be used as the exit record from the other for all travellers.

Finally, the Agency will continue bilateral discussions with US CBP to assess the future potential for Canadian preclearance operations in the US.

Admissible commercial goods and conveyances are processed (including the collection of revenues) in an efficient manner

In support of the Government of Canada’s commitment to trade facilitation, the Agency will build upon the cargo preclearance pilot program in collaboration with US CBP, and will proceed with the Bi-National Rail Cargo Pre-Screening Pilot as a proof of concept for future potential cargo preclearance operations. The long-term goal is to expedite the flow of legitimate cargo and conveyances between Canada and the US, while targeting and interdicting high-risk cargo and conveyances earlier in the trade chain.

The CBSA will continue the development of an Agency-wide strategy to support international e-commerce and will continue collaborations with the Canada Post Corporation to manage increasing postal volumes and peak periods.

Trade partners are compliant with applicable legislation, requirements and measures

In 2019–20, as part of the Agency’s efforts to improve its commercial examination process, the Agency will open and begin operation of the Tsawwassen Marine Container Examination Facility (MCEF) in Roberts Bank, British Columbia. The completion of this facility is the culmination of substantial efforts between the CBSA and the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority. The CBSA will also work toward improving its examination capacity by developing and deploying new detection tools and procedures within its facilities, including the new MCEF in Roberts Bank.

To strengthen trade compliance, the CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) project will automate the processes required to assess, collect, manage and report on revenue, and will further enable importers to self-assess and comply with Canada’s trade requirements. In 2019–20, the Agency plans to proceed with the detailed design and build phase of the CARM project, involving ongoing work with a third-party vendor and engagement with key stakeholders. CARM will incrementally release modernized functionality beginning in 2020–21. The initial release will modernize the Agency’s revenue management systems and provide external clients with foundational self-serve options (e.g., the ability to view their account information) through the introduction of a portal. Once fully implemented in 2021–22, CARM will address the Agency’s risk of inaccurately assessing duties and taxes owing on imported goods, while deterring wilful non-compliance with Canada’s trade requirements.

The CBSA will continue to build the compliance regime for customs duties following reviews completed in response to the Auditor General of Canada’s Spring 2017 Report.^{Footnote v} For example, the Agency has introduced an import permit review process to ensure proper use of import permits for goods subject to Tariff Rate Quotas.

To facilitate compliance, the CBSA will continue to provide trade chain partners with timely access to laws, interpretations (including advance rulings), and information on trade-related matters. The Agency will also continue to protect Canadian industry from unfair trade practices through its administration of the Anti-Dumping and Countervailing Program, supported by increased investigative proceedings and duty enforcement under the Special Import Measures Act (SIMA). In support of these objectives, the Agency plans to accomplish the following in 2019–20:

• issue advance rulings for tariff classification and origin, as well as National Customs Rulings, within a 120-day service standard;
• complete a review of the current time period allowed for changes to import declarations; and
• complete the hiring process for up to 40 additional officers to conduct SIMA investigations and SIMA duty enforcement in response to ongoing volatility in the trade environment.

In support of Canada’s trade agenda, the CBSA will administer updated trade requirements arising from newly signed free trade agreements such as the CUSMA and the CPTPP.

Trusted Traveller and Trader programs increase processing efficiency of low-risk, pre-approved travellers and trade partners

The CBSA will work toward the second phase of a trilateral Trusted Traveller arrangement with the US and Mexico, allowing eligible Canadians to apply to Mexico’s domestic Trusted Traveller program, Viajero Confiable. Mexican nationals are already able to apply to the NEXUS program.

As part of a NEXUS modernization pilot project, the CBSA will pilot a simplified passage process by deploying facial biometric verification technology for NEXUS members using a phased-in approach, commencing with the Vancouver International Airport in 2019–20. In addition, building on the pilot conducted at the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie, Ontario, the Agency will continue to assess the viability of expanding NEXUS eGate at additional ports of entry, which will allow inbound NEXUS lane privileges to be extended during off-peak hours.

The Agency will continue to develop relationships with international partners to address challenges and identify opportunities to modernize border crossing and improve service delivery for low-risk, pre-approved traders. To this end, the Agency will continue to advance Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) negotiations with the EU, China, Hong Kong and New Zealand, and will pursue new MRAs with priority countries as existing negotiations conclude.

Building upon the expedited processing that members of the CBSA’s Trusted Trader programs currently receive, the Agency will continue to pilot the Secure Corridor Concept in the highway mode by testing technologies for remote processing, including an integrated commercial-traveller interface for BSOs. The intended goal of this pilot is to expedite processing and increase throughput at the border for pre-approved, low-risk commercial drivers and goods.

Travellers and the business community have access to timely redress mechanisms

The Recourse Program provides travellers and businesses with an accessible mechanism to seek an impartial review of CBSA decisions, as well as to voice any feedback or complaints, in accordance with policies and legislation administered by the Agency.

In 2019–20, the Recourse Program will continue to implement recommendations from the 2017 Recourse Program Evaluation^{Footnote vi} in order to maintain effective and efficient redress mechanisms. Based on a comprehensive review of the current trade appeal process, the Agency will advance its action plan consisting of 55 recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery. Specific deliverables for 2019–20 include:

• publishing Recourse statistics on the CBSA’s website, such as appeal results and average processing times; and
• improving information management by utilizing technologies as they become available, such as GCcase to replace the Recourse Content Management System.

The CBSA continues to invest in its people and infrastructure

The Agency will continue to strengthen its frontline workforce through the Force Generation Program which consolidates the recruitment, training and development of BSOs and BSO trainees. The program is not only responsible for the training and development of future BSOs, but also the job communities that use the BSO population as a feeder group across all CBSA functions.

In 2019–20, the Agency will stabilize the Force Generation Program in line with attrition trends, which is expected to deliver over 300 new recruits to the frontline. The Agency will also continue to develop targeted recruitment strategies in order to support Employment Equity objectives and attract people from across the country to join the Agency’s frontline workforce.

The CBSA will advance work with internal and external partners to build on successes and better understand potential barriers to employment within the Agency. The Agency will launch a Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) review of its Officer Induction Training Program to eliminate barriers to recruitment. The Agency will also develop a multi-year action plan to respond to the findings of the review.

National Training Standards will be expanded beyond the frontline for the first time through a pilot in the Agency’s corporate functions. These standards are used by individuals and managers alike in performance management and business planning to guide workforce development, further ensuring that the right people are in the right place with the right skills. Building on the CBSA’s Indigenous Training Strategy and increasing awareness, the Agency will implement online training for BSOs on the processing of Indigenous travellers, including a module on sacred Indigenous goods that BSOs may come across while conducting examinations at ports of entry.

The CBSA will continue to collaborate with the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority and the Canadian Transit Corporation on the Gordie Howe International Bridge Project and the Ambassador Bridge Enhancement Project, respectively. For both projects, in 2019–20, the CBSA will work to confirm requirements with a view to ensuring that the facilities are sufficient to carry out the Agency’s mandate. In addition, the Agency will advance plans for recruitment and training of new BSOs to staff the Gordie Howe International Bridge.

The CBSA will also continue to refine its Real Property Investment Strategy which renews its real property portfolio against ongoing and new program requirements, while fostering innovation through the maintenance and modernization of the Agency’s ports of entry and business processes. In particular, the Agency will focus on the Land Border Crossing Project, which includes multi-year plans to refurbish a number of custodial land ports of entry.

Additional efforts to upgrade aging infrastructure include the planned replacement of the Canadian Automated Export Declaration system. In 2019–20, the CBSA will be implementing a new system called the Canadian Export Reporting System. Industry stakeholders will begin using the new system shortly after it becomes operational.

The CBSA will continue to collaborate with participating government departments as well as the private sector to advance the implementation of the Single Window Initiative and assist trade chain partners with their transition to the new Integrated Import Declaration service.

Border Enforcement

Description

The CBSA contributes to Canada’s security by supporting the immigration and refugee system when determining a person's admissibility to Canada, taking the appropriate immigration enforcement actions when necessary, and supporting the prosecution of persons who violate our laws.

Planning highlights

The CBSA will continue to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and integrity of its activities throughout the immigration enforcement continuum. This will involve reviewing and modernizing policies, programs, regulations and procedures to support the enforcement of Canadian laws while upholding Canadian values. The Agency will continue to review and improve its inadmissibility policies and immigration enforcement responsibilities, including identifying and removing inadmissible persons, combatting cross-border smuggling and organized crime, and ensuring a humane immigration detention system. The Agency will also continue to address regulatory gaps identified by the Standing Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations, including finalizing amendments related to seizure authorities as well as addressing concerns related to deposits and guarantees under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

In 2019–20, the CBSA plans to achieve the following results under its core responsibility of Border Enforcement:

Immigration investigations identify persons inadmissible to Canada

Recent years have seen an increase in the number of asylum seekers arriving at Canada’s border, both at and between designated land ports of entry. There are many unpredictable factors outside of the Agency’s control that will influence future fluctuations in cross-border volumes. As such, the CBSA will continue to collaborate with the RCMP, IRCC, Public Safety Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada to ensure that the CBSA is able to respond to these increasing volumes, informed by lessons learned through processing improvements made during the past two years.

CBSA detention decisions are risk-based and detention is used as a measure of last resort

In support of the Minister’s commitment to create a better and fairer immigration detention system, and in conjunction with the Ministerial Direction to the CBSA on Minors in Canada’s Immigration Detention System,^{Footnote vii} the CBSA will continue to implement measures to improve the immigration detention program in Canada through ongoing policy and programmatic changes under the National Immigration Detention Framework.

The Agency will continue to ensure that detention is used as a measure of last resort and that alternatives to detention are always considered. In support of continued efforts to reduce the number of minors detained or housed in CBSA detention facilities for immigration purposes, the Agency will finalize regulatory changes to better account for the Best Interests of the Child in an immigration detention context.

Additionally, the CBSA will open a new Immigration Holding Centre (IHC) in Surrey, British Columbia in 2019–20. The Agency will also begin the construction of a new IHC in Laval, Quebec, as well as complete the retrofit of the current IHC in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), enabling the housing of higher-risk detainees in line with commitments to reduce reliance on provincial correctional facilities. In doing so, the Agency will support efforts to ensure consistent treatment of immigration detainees by providing equal access to programs and services within IHCs across Canada.

The CBSA will continue supporting the delivery of the alternatives to detention program, resulting in effective risk-based detention decisions, and will finalize memoranda of understanding with provincial authorities to standardize the care of immigration detainees in provincial correctional facilities. Furthermore, the Agency will continue the development of a medical services program aimed at addressing the needs of detained individuals through targeted and specialized care and access to services.

To ensure ongoing transparency and accountability, the Agency will continue publishing detention statistics^{Footnote viii} on a quarterly and annual basis, as well as the annual Canadian Red Cross detention monitoring report and action plan.

CBSA admissibility recommendations and appeals are upheld at the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

The Agency will work closely with the IRB to transform the detention review process and build upon the IRB Audit on Long-term Detention Reviews.^{Footnote ix} This will be achieved by updating the Enforcement Manual section on “Admissibility, Hearings and Detention Review Proceedings.” In addition, the Agency will deliver a new Hearings Fundamentals Course to improve the development of the Minister’s representatives in their role before the IRB.

Inadmissible persons subject to removal depart from Canada (i.e., escorted or unescorted)

To ensure the departure from Canada of inadmissible persons subject to removal, the Agency will continue working to enhance its capacity to remove foreign national criminals, failed refugee claimants, and other inadmissible persons. In support of this work, the Agency will implement a National Removal Strategy, negotiate readmission arrangements, and leverage technology and partnerships in support of more effective removals.

Increased program efficiency will be achieved through greater national coordination of removal activities, supported by an augmentation of resources in Budget 2018. Together with IRCC, Global Affairs Canada and Public Safety Canada, the CBSA is working to develop engagement strategies with countries where the Agency has identified challenges in obtaining the required travel documents to remove persons from Canada.

People and businesses that are referred to Crown counsel for prosecution are convicted

The CBSA will continue to build its capacity to investigate and prosecute people and business entities that violate Canada’s border-related legislation. The CBSA will focus its efforts on complex cases of fraud, aimed primarily at individuals and organizations posing a threat to Canada’s immigration system and the Canadian economy. In the coming fiscal year, this will be accomplished through improved focus on priority cases (i.e., complex cases) over non-priority cases.

Internal Services

Description

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct services that support program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. These services are:

• Management and Oversight Services
• Communications Services
• Legal Services
• Human Resources Management Services
• Financial Management Services
• Information Management Services
• Information Technology Services
• Real Property Management Services
• Materiel Management Services
• Acquisition Management Services

Planning highlights

Support a high-performing and innovative workforce

In 2019–20, the Agency will launch the next iteration of its Mental Health Strategy to continue building awareness, reducing stigma, and providing tools, resources and training to employees at all levels. The Agency will also continue to support the wellbeing of its frontline workforce through the implementation of its Physical Wellness Program to a broader base of employees.

The CBSA will strengthen its diversity and inclusion results, and ensure that its workforce continues to reflect Canada’s evolving demographics, by conducting workforce planning and implementing employment equity strategies, with particular focus on women in law enforcement and Indigenous persons. The Agency will be launching a three-year Employment Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan in 2019–20, as well as an electronic self-identification campaign to enhance workforce analytics. By embedding a self-identification tool within its HR information system, the Agency will be better able to track and monitor the progress of its diversity and inclusion objectives.

The Agency will continue to invest in its workforce and management capacity through the implementation of its Leadership Development Strategy and the following actions:

• hardwiring management and leadership commitments into Performance Management Agreements;
• cementing character-based leadership into the HR management continuum; and
• addressing succession planning through strategic development of the Agency’s talent pool.

Cumulatively, these efforts will contribute to stronger employee engagement and morale, as well as a more dynamic and enabling environment for learning and knowledge sharing.

Advance modernization efforts

The Agency is examining all aspects of its business and identifying options for improving organizational health and sustainability. In 2019–20, the Agency will finalize the implementation of a new results-based organizational structure aligned with its Departmental Results Framework, supporting greater accountability and strategic decision-making in program management and resource allocation. From the perspectives of business, information and IT, sound Enterprise Architecture practices will support these modernization efforts and provide a better understanding of related impacts.

The Agency will also continue to enhance financial stewardship through the ongoing implementation of multi-year budget management, in support of future-oriented corporate planning, strategic procurement and effective asset lifecycle management. In addition, the Agency will move forward with long-term planning for significant investments in large-scale and long-term infrastructure projects to modernize the border experience.

The CBSA will actively support Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) throughout the planning phase for the Federal Science and Technology Infrastructure Initiative, which will enhance scientific capabilities through the provision of modern infrastructure. Additionally, the CBSA has partnered with PSPC to modernize the Agency’s office accommodations and reduce its back office footprint, with regional consolidation projects in Niagara Falls, Ontario and Halifax, Nova Scotia scheduled for completion in 2019–20.

A review of the Agency’s existing technology ecosystem, including our national computing platform as well as operational technology at ports of entry, is underway to optimize functionality and performance, reduce duplication, eliminate low-usage technology, and upgrade aging systems and equipment. Additionally, the Agency will explore ways to address increasing demand, including enhancing the capacity of the technology ecosystem to facilitate national collaboration and increased knowledge sharing. These improvements will support efficient processing of travellers and goods, reduce critical system outages and related operational impacts, and strengthen cyber security defence mechanisms. They will also address the Agency’s enterprise risk relating to IT system resilience and will strengthen the Agency’s ability to respond to evolving business needs through timely and accurate access to data and information.

Concurrently, the Agency is undertaking a proof of concept on enterprise data quality, data visualization, and geospatial analytics to support data-driven decision-making. This work will serve to streamline manual processes through mechanized data capture. In addition, the establishment of cloud contracts with Shared Services Canada will support the Agency’s transition to cloud computing in accordance with the Government of Canada’s Cloud Adoption Strategy.^{Footnote x}

Spending and human resources

Planned spending

Departmental spending trend graph

Due to the introduction of the CBSA’s Departmental Results Framework in 2018–19, the Agency’s planned and actual spending is now reported on the basis of its two Core Responsibilities and its Internal Services. In support of this change in the Agency’s reporting framework, the Agency has realigned its Internal Services allocations to better reflect the attribution of costs to direct and indirect programming. This realignment contributed to lower planned spending for Internal Services beginning in 2018–19 and onward.

For 2018–19, the Agency forecasts to spend approximately $400 million more than in 2017–18. The vast majority of this increase is due to economic increases, including retroactive payments for the signed collective bargaining agreements of the Border Services (FB) group in 2018–19. Through prudent planning, the Agency had set aside funding in its budget to address the resulting in-year and retroactive liability.

The remaining increase in forecast spending for 2018–19 is attributable to the Agency’s role in supporting several high-priority initiatives, including:

• supporting the 2017–20 Immigration Levels Plan;
• enhancing the Passenger Protect Program;
• managing irregular migration across the Canada-US border;
• taking action against guns and gangs; and
• addressing the opioid crisis.

Planned spending for 2019–20 and beyond is lower than in 2018–19 as several major projects will come to completion and approved funding for the Agency’s core operations will decrease going forward.

Planned human resources

For 2018–19, the CBSA forecasts a total of 14,072 FTEs, which represents 544 more FTEs than in 2017–18. This increase in FTEs is attributable to the Agency’s role in supporting several high-priority initiatives, including:

• supporting the 2017–20 Immigration Levels Plan;
• advancing the CARM project;
• administering the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the International Mobility Program;
• strengthening capacity for investigations and compliance management under the SIMA;
• enhancing the Passenger Protect Program;
• managing irregular migration at the Canada-US border;
• taking action against guns and gangs;
• addressing the opioid crisis;
• supporting the legalization of cannabis; and
• detecting signs of impaired driving at ports of entry.

Starting in 2020–21, the Agency’s planned FTEs are expected to decrease slightly year-over-year and stabilize in 2024–25 at 14,046. This is due to the completion of several major project milestones as well as a decrease in approved funding for the Agency’s core operations.

Estimates by vote

For information on CBSA’s organizational appropriations is available in the 2019–20 Main Estimates.^{Footnote xiii}

Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations

The Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations provides a general overview of the CBSA’s operations. The forecast of financial information on expenses and revenues is prepared on an accrual accounting basis to strengthen accountability and to improve transparency and financial management. The forecast and planned spending amounts presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan are prepared on an expenditure basis; as a result, amounts may differ.

A more detailed Future-Oriented Statement of Operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations to the requested authorities, are available on the CBSA’s website.^{Footnote xiv}

Additional information

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister: The Honourable Ralph Goodale, P.C., M.P.
Institutional head: John Ossowski
Ministerial portfolio: Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Enabling instruments: Canada Border Services Agency Act^{Footnote xv}; Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Act^{Footnote xvi}
Year of incorporation / commencement: 2003

Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do

The CBSA’s raison d’être, mandate and role are available on the Agency’s website.^{Footnote xvii} For more information on the Agency’s organizational mandate letter commitments, see the Minister’s mandate letter.^{Footnote xviii}

Reporting framework

The CBSA’s Departmental Results Framework and Program Inventory of record for 2019–20 are shown below.

Supporting information on the Program Inventory

Supporting information on planned expenditures, human resources, and results related to the Agency’s Program Inventory is available in the GC InfoBase.^{Footnote iv}

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on the Agency’s website:^{Footnote xix}

• Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy
• Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+); and
• Status report on transformational and major Crown projects.

Federal tax expenditures

The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures.^{Footnote xx} This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs, as well as evaluations, research papers and gender-based analysis. The tax measures presented in this report are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.

Organizational contact information

The CBSA’s contact information is available on the Agency’s website.^{Footnote xxi}

Appendix: definitions

appropriation (crédit)

Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)

Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

Core Responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)

An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a Core Responsibility are reflected in one or more related Departmental Results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (plan ministériel)

A report on the plans and expected performance of an appropriated department over a three-year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

Departmental Result (résultat ministériel)

Any change that the department seeks to influence. A Departmental Result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by Program-level outcomes.

Departmental Result Indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)

A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a Departmental Result.

Departmental Results Framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)

The department’s Core Responsibilities, Departmental Results and Departmental Result Indicators.

Departmental Results Report (rapport sur les résultats ministériels)

A report on the actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

evaluation (évaluation)

In the Government of Canada, the systematic and neutral collection and analysis of evidence to judge merit, worth or value. Evaluation informs decision making, improvements, innovation and accountability. Evaluations typically focus on programs, policies and priorities and examine questions related to relevance, effectiveness and efficiency. Depending on user needs, however, evaluations can also examine other units, themes and issues, including alternatives to existing interventions. Evaluations generally employ social science research methods.

experimentation (expérimentation)

Activities that seek to explore, test and compare the effects and impacts of policies, interventions and approaches, to inform evidence-based decision-making, by learning what works and what does not.

full-time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)

A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person year charge against a departmental budget. Full time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) (analyse comparative entre les sexes plus [ACS+])

An analytical process used to help identify the potential impacts of policies, Programs and services on diverse groups of women, men and gender-diverse people. The “plus” acknowledges that GBA goes beyond sex and gender differences. We all have multiple identity factors that intersect to make us who we are; GBA+ considers many other identity factors, such as race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)

For the purpose of the 2019–20 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2015 Speech from the Throne, namely: Growth for the Middle Class; Open and Transparent Government; A Clean Environment and a Strong Economy; Diversity is Canada's Strength; and Security and Opportunity.

horizontal initiative (initiative horizontale)

An initiative where two or more departments are given funding to pursue a shared outcome, often linked to a government priority.

non-budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)

Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement)

What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)

A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, Program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

Performance Information Profile (profil de l’information sur le rendement)

The document that identifies the performance information for each Program from the Program Inventory.

performance reporting (production de rapports sur le rendement)

The process of communicating evidence based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision making, accountability and transparency.

plan (plan)

The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.

planned spending (dépenses prévues)

For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts presented in the Main Estimates.
A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

priority (priorité)

A plan or project that an organization has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired Departmental Results.

Program (programme)

Individual or groups of services, activities or combinations thereof that are managed together within the department and focus on a specific set of outputs, outcomes or service levels.

Program Inventory (répertoire des programmes)¹²

Identifies all of the department’s programs and describes how resources are organized to contribute to the department’s Core Responsibilities and Results.

result (résultat)

An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, Program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, Program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization’s influence.

statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)

Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

sunset program (programme temporisé)

A time limited program that does not have an ongoing funding and policy authority. When the program is set to expire, a decision must be made whether to continue the program. In the case of a renewal, the decision specifies the scope, funding level and duration.

target (cible)

A measurable performance or success level that an organization, Program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées)

Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The Vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.

Date modified:

2021-03-19