Behind the scenes at the CBSA's Cargo Services facility

Transcript

Visual description: Trucks crossing a bridge.

Narration: Just like you need to cross the border on your way into Canada, so do personal and commercial shipments. The Canada Border Services Agency is responsible for screening and processing all goods coming into Canada.

Visual description: Sign for the Ottawa Cargo Services. Shot of a border services officer.

Border Services Officer: Here at Ottawa Cargo Services, located just a few minutes from Ottawa's Macdonald-Cartier International Airport we screen personal and commercial shipments.

Visual description: Packages moving on a conveyor belt. Border services officers and postal workers are inspecting packages.

Border Services Officer: It's a busy place as we clear roughly 2,200 shipments each week.

Visual description: Postal workers are moving and scanning packages. A trucks pulls into the warehouse.

Border Services Officer: In addition to that, every day we process about 2,700 low-value shipments, that is shipments under $3,300, from courier companies belonging to our Courier Low Value Shipment Program.

Visual description: A border services officer examines packages going through an X-Ray machine. Shot of the X-Ray machine screen. Shot of a border services officers moving packages into the X-Ray machine.

Narration: Border services officers determine whether a shipment should be released or subject to a physical examination. Keep in mind that an examination is not an accusation of wrong-doing. We screen commercial and personal shipments for several reasons.

Visual description: Shot of houses near a body of water. Shot of an apartment building with Canadian flag waving in the wind.

Narration: To protect our communities and stop prohibited goods, such as firearms, weapons and drugs from coming into Canada;

Visual description: Shot of farm works moving tomatoes. Shot of a tractor harvesting grains. Shot of a logging truck on a road. Shot of trucks on a highway.

Narration: To make sure no food, plant, animals or animal products that may cause harm to ecosystems or the health of Canadians enter the country; and to enter proper accounting of goods so that the correct duties and taxes are collected.

Visual description: Trucks crossing a bridge.

Narration: A personal shipment is anything being imported into Canada for your own use.

Visual description: Aerial shot of trucks on highway.

Narration: A commercial shipment is anything being brought in for business use or resale.

Visual description: A plane on the tarmac getting ready to be unloaded. Shot of a container being unloaded. Shot of a small truck moving the container into the warehouse.

Narration: When a cargo plane lands, the containers are offloaded and transported into a sorting area in a sufferance bonded warehouse.

Visual description: Postal workers hauling container into the warehouse. Shot of postal workers sorting packages.

Narration: This is a warehouse that has put down a security deposit to hold 'bonded' and 'not customs cleared' goods until the importer of record clears customs. The barcode on each individual shipment is scanned, indicating if the parcel can be released for delivery or if it requires a secondary examination.

Visual description: Border services officer standing in front of conveyor belt.

Narration: Border services officers are notified of all shipments.

Visual description: Skids of goods being moved in a warehouse. Shot of an border services officer looking at an X-ray machine.

Narration: Some of the shipments are really big and are offloaded on skids into a separate area of the warehouse.

Visual description: Shoulder flash of border services officer standing in front of conveyor belt.

Narration: When these oversized shipments require inspection, officers are notified by the warehouse operator so that we can attend to them.

Visual description: Detector dog indicating on a package.

Narration: Here we see a detector dog indicating on a package.

Visual description: X-Ray machine screen. Shot of X-Ray machine. Shot of Border Services officers looking at the X-Ray machine.

Narration: Based on the x-ray results and other indicators, the shipment is either released for delivery or subject to further examination.

Visual description: Packages moving on a conveyor belt into the X-Ray machine. Shot of X-Ray machine screen. Shot of packages moving on a conveyor belt.

Narration: An x-ray image that does not match the description of the contents; the weight of the shipment not matching the description of goods; or suspicious shape of the goods.

Visual description: Border services officer opening a package with a knife. Shot of two officers inspecting packages.

Narration: When a shipment is sent for further examination, a border services officer will carefully open the package and examine the contents.

Visual description: Border services officer placing packages through the X-ray machine. Shot of packages on a conveyor belt.

Narration: If no inadmissible goods are found, the item will be repacked and released for delivery. Our role is to facilitate the entry of legitimate trade, while protecting the safety and security of Canadians.

Visual description: Shot of workers scanning package labels. Shot of workers in the warehouse.

Narration: When inadmissible goods are discovered in a shipment, they are transferred to the proper authority.

Visual description: Photo of a border services officer in front of drug seizures. Photo of drug seizures in front of a CBSA vehicle and flags. Shot of a police car with a yellow tape.

Narration: For example, when drugs are seized, the border services officers inform and turn over the drugs to its law enforcement partners.

Visual description: Aerial view of an port of entry.

Narration: Couriers belonging to the Low Value Shipment Program have their shipments streamlined at the border.

Visual description: Shot of packages moving on a conveyor belt. Aerial view of an port of entry and trucks.

Narration: When shipments are not selected for examination, they are released upon arrival and can be delivered to the importer. For goods subject to duties and/or taxes the importer has the option to either pay duty, taxes and administrative fees to the carrier at time of delivery, or refuse delivery of the shipment and self-account for their goods.

Visual description: Aerial view of an port of entry and trucks.

Narration: Should an importer wish to self-account for their goods, they need to provide the shipment identification/ tracking number, the commercial invoice, and personal identification to an officer.

Visual description: Shot of packages moving on a conveyor belt while a dog handler and detector dog are inspecting them.

Narration: This information can be obtained from the courier. Of course, everything needs to be properly declared.

Visual description: Shot of border services officers inspecting packages.

Narration: For shipments referred to the secondary area, an officer will inform the carrier when the shipment is released.

Visual description: A border services officer looks at a package and places a stamp on it. Shot of a border services officer taking packages out of a bin. Shot of border services officer moving packages on the conveyor belt.

Narration: There are a number of reasons why the Canada Border Services Agency might detain, ranging from errors on declaration to suspicion of illicit activity. We will detain until we are satisfied that all import requirements are met.

Visual description: Time-lapse of trucks crossing the border.

Narration: A cargo control document is valid for 40 days. After that, we issue an E44 for unclaimed goods. E44 gives the importer an additional 30 days to account for their shipment.

Visual description: Packages moving on conveyor belt.

Narration: If goods remain unclaimed, they are considered forfeited to the Crown.

Visual description: Shot of a detector dog indicating on packages.

Narration: Seizures, such as prohibited weapons, alcohol, or narcotics, have no terms of release.

Visual description: Truck driving out of the warehouse.

Narration: I hope I've shed some light on what we do here at the Canada Border Services Agency Cargo Services facility.

Visual description: Packages on a conveyor belt.

Text on screen: CBSA-ASFC.GC.CA

Narration: For more information, please visit our website at cbsa-asfc.gc.ca.

Visual description: Sign for the Ottawa Cargo Services.

Narration: Thanks for watching.

Visual description: Outro for Government du Canada appears.