Importing From Turkey to Canada: Customs Steps and Papers

Goods imported into Canada are reported to the Canada Border Services Agency (the Agency), accounted for by the importer or owner and released once the duties are paid, except where a rule lets release come first. Accounting is the importer’s or owner’s step of giving customs the details of the goods: by electronic means (Accounting Regulations s.2.2), with the invoice papers (s.6(1)) and the statistical code of the goods (Customs Act s.32.1). The tariff treatment of each country sits in a schedule of the Customs Tariff that the Justice Laws text does not carry, so no duty rate for Türkiye appears here.

Who does what, by the Act

The Customs Act puts each step on a named person. The importer or owner accounts for the goods; the person in charge of the conveyance makes the report for goods on board it; the person who exported courier or mail goods makes the report for them. In the Act, the Agency is the Canada Border Services Agency (s.2(1)).

Who makes the report, who accounts

The report

Goods in the actual possession of a person arriving in Canada, or in their baggage: that person or, in prescribed circumstances, the person in charge of the conveyance. Goods imported by courier or as mail: the person who exported the goods to Canada. Other goods on board a conveyance arriving in Canada: the person in charge of the conveyance. Any other case: the person on whose behalf the goods are imported (s.12(3)).

The accounting

The importer or owner accounts for the goods in the prescribed manner, and all duties are paid before release unless a rule lets release come first (s.32(1)).

Agents

A person duly authorized may transact business under the Act as the agent of another. An officer may refuse to deal with an agent who, on request, does not produce an authority in writing in a form the Minister approves (s.10(1)).

Customs brokers

No one transacts business as a customs broker or holds themself out as one unless they hold a licence or are qualified under the regulations and duly authorized by a licence holder. The same subsection does not prohibit anyone from transacting business on their own behalf under the Act (s.9(4)).

Non-residents

The Minister or an officer the President designates may authorize a person not resident in Canada to account for goods in place of the importer or owner, in the circumstances and under the conditions prescribed (s.32(7)).

The words

The exporter is the ihracatçı and the importer the ithalatçı.

Customs Act s.2, s.9, s.10, s.12, s.32 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Customs Act

The report, and what comes before it

Imported goods are reported at the nearest designated customs office that is open for business, or by electronic means, without delay after arrival in Canada. Before the conveyance arrives, the carrier or the freight forwarder provides the Agency with the prescribed information about the conveyance and the goods on board (Customs Act s.12.1(1)); the Reporting of Imported Goods Regulations set the data and the hours.

Where, how, and the questions

Where

The nearest customs office designated for that purpose that is open for business (Customs Act s.12(1)). A report made by electronic means is not required to be made at that office (Reporting Regulations s.7.2).

How

To the Agency by electronic means, following the Electronic Commerce Client Requirements Document, unless the regulations allow an oral report or a report in writing (Reporting Regulations s.4).

Questions

The person who makes the report answers an officer’s questions about the goods truthfully and, on request, presents the goods, removes any covering, unloads or opens the conveyance, or opens or unpacks any package or container the officer wants to examine (Customs Act s.13).

Unloading

No one unloads goods from a conveyance arriving in Canada until the goods have been reported, except where the safety of the conveyance, the goods or the persons on board is threatened, or in other prescribed circumstances (Customs Act s.14(1)).

A shipment

For the advance information a shipment is a specified good or collection of specified goods covered by a single bill of lading (konşimento), waybill or similar document that the carrier, or the freight forwarder, issues for their carriage (Reporting Regulations s.2.1).

The data

For a shipment by sea, the carrier provides the Agency, among other items, the bill of lading number, the cargo control number, the voyage number, the number, type and size of each cargo container and its seal number, the vessel name, the carrier code, the port of loading, the port of arrival in Canada, and the description, quantity and weight of the goods (Schedule 2, Part 1).

Stowage plan

The carrier provides the Agency with the cargo and stowage plan of Schedule 3 within 48 hours after the vessel leaves the last foreign port before its arrival in Canada (s.15.1).

Short voyages

Where the voyage from the last foreign port to the port of arrival is shorter than the period that would otherwise apply, the carrier provides the information before or at the time the vessel leaves that port (s.14(3), s.15(3)).

Customs Act s.12, s.13, s.14 · Reporting Regulations s.2.1, s.3, s.4, s.7.2, s.14, s.15.1, Schedule 2 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Customs Act · Reporting of Imported Goods Regulations

The Turkish end of a sea shipment is on Ports in Turkey.

Accounting, payment and release

In the Act, «duties» are the customs duties and the taxes that other Acts put on imported goods (s.2(1)).

1. Account firstThe importer or owner accounts for the goods and pays the duties before release (Customs Act s.32(1)). The accounting is by electronic means unless the Minister requires another (Accounting Regulations s.2.2) and carries the statistical code of the goods (Customs Act s.32.1).
2. Release firstIn prescribed circumstances and under prescribed conditions goods may be released before the accounting if the importer or owner makes an interim accounting (Customs Act s.32(2)(a)). Commercial goods may be released on that interim accounting, and before payment under s.33, on condition that the importer or owner provides security and makes the interim accounting (Accounting Regulations s.9, s.11).
3. Final accountingCommercial goods released under s.32(2)(a) are accounted for, in the manner of s.32(1)(a), within five business days after release (Accounting Regulations s.10). A business day is a day other than Saturday or a holiday (s.2).
4. PaymentWhen commercial goods are released under s.33 during a period that begins on the 18th of a month and ends on the 17th of the following month, the duties are paid by the 10th weekday after the end of that period (Accounting Regulations s.10.1). A weekday is a Monday to Friday, including a holiday that falls on one of those days (s.2).
5. Casual goodsCasual goods may be released before payment of the duties if the importer or owner provides, as conditional payment, a remittance by credit card or a traveller’s cheque, money order or certified cheque; the duties are then paid within five days after release (Accounting Regulations s.5.1).

Customs Act s.2, s.32, s.32.1, s.33, s.35 · Accounting Regulations s.2, s.2.2, s.5.1, s.9, s.10, s.10.1, s.11 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Customs Act · Accounting for Imported Goods and Payment of Duties Regulations

The invoice papers, and the $3,300 line

At the time of accounting, and before release if the goods have not been released earlier, the person who accounts for the goods provides the invoice papers of the Accounting Regulations. For commercial goods the line between them is an estimated value for duty of $3,300. The value for duty is computed in Canadian currency (Customs Act s.55).

Other Acts

At the time of accounting, and before the goods are released if they have not been released before then, every certificate, licence, permit or other document and any information that the Act, the regulations or any other Act of Parliament or its regulations requires for goods whose importation it prohibits, controls or regulates (Accounting Regulations s.4(1)).

The code

At the time of accounting the person furnishes an officer with the statistical code of the goods, determined by reference to the Coding System established under section 22.1 of the Statistics Act (Customs Act s.32.1(1)).

The words

Invoice: fatura. Bill of lading: konşimento. Import: ithalat. Export: ihracat.

Accounting Regulations s.2, s.4, s.5, s.6 · Customs Act s.32.1, s.55 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Accounting for Imported Goods and Payment of Duties Regulations · Customs Act

Origin, and the tariff treatment

The duty depends on where the goods originate and on the tariff treatment they are entitled to. The Customs Tariff sets the origin test and the treatments; the Customs Act asks for proof of origin for all imported goods.

Origin

Goods originate in a country if the whole of the value of the goods is produced in that country, subject to the regulations (Customs Tariff s.16(1)).

The MFN test

For the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) Tariff, goods originate in a country that is a beneficiary of that Tariff if at least 50 per cent of the cost of production is incurred by the industry of one or more beneficiary countries, or by the industry of Canada, and the goods were finished in a beneficiary country in the form in which they are imported into Canada (SOR/98-33 s.1).

Not counted

Outside packing, the gross profit of the manufacturer or exporter and the profit or remuneration of any trader, broker or other dealer, royalties, customs or excise duty or tax on imported materials, carriage and insurance from the place of production to the port of shipment, and any cost incurred after the manufacture is completed (SOR/98-33 s.2).

Shipped directly

Goods are entitled to the Most-Favoured-Nation Tariff only if they are shipped directly to Canada, with or without transhipment, from a country that is a beneficiary of that Tariff (SOR/98-33 s.3). Goods are shipped directly to Canada from another country when they are shipped from it in accordance with the regulations (Customs Tariff s.17(1)).

Customs Tariff s.16, s.17 · SOR/98-33 s.1 to s.3 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Customs Tariff · Most-Favoured-Nation Tariff Rules of Origin Regulations

Proof

Proof of origin, in the prescribed form with the prescribed information, is furnished for all goods that are imported, by the importer or owner of the goods (Customs Act s.35.1(1), (3)).

When

Whenever the goods are accounted for under s.32(1), (3) or (5); when an application for a refund in respect of origin is made; at any time an officer asks (Proof of Origin Regulations s.13).

MFN forms

When the MFN Tariff is claimed, the importer or owner furnishes the prescribed form, completed in English or French by the vendor or the transferee in the country of export (Proof of Origin Regulations s.5(2)). Instead of that form, one of these is enough, each completed in English or French and showing that the goods originate in the beneficiary country: a Canada Customs invoice completed by the importer or owner; where that does not show it, a commercial invoice completed by the vendor or the transferee in the country of export; or any other document (s.5(3)).

Treatment

Goods get a tariff treatment other than the General Tariff only with proof of origin under the Customs Act, and only if they are entitled to that treatment under the regulations or orders that the Customs Tariff names; an order or a tariff item can say otherwise (Customs Tariff s.24(1)).

Customs Act s.35.1 · Customs Tariff s.24 · Proof of Origin Regulations s.5, s.13 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Customs Act · Customs Tariff · Proof of Origin of Imported Goods Regulations

From the Turkish side

The Ministry

Ministry of Trade of Türkiye (Ticaret Bakanlığı), customs questions on origin, page dated 20.01.2025.

The certificate

A certificate of origin (menşe şahadetnamesi) is a document that proves the non-preferential origin status of goods. Issuing one on export is not compulsory; it is issued when the importing country asks for a certificate of origin for the goods.

Duty and tax, as the Acts set them

Customs duty is levied on all goods set out in the List of Tariff Provisions, at the time they are imported, at the rates set out in that List, the “F” Staging List or section 29 that apply to them (Customs Tariff s.20(1)). Goods and services tax is a separate charge under the Excise Tax Act.

The rate by item

The rates are set out in the List of Tariff Provisions in the schedule of the Customs Tariff, the “F” Staging List or section 29 (s.20(1)).

The value

The value for duty is computed in Canadian currency (Customs Act s.55).

Paid

Before release for goods accounted for first (Customs Act s.32(1)(b)); after release, within the prescribed time, for goods released before payment (s.33(2)).

Customs Tariff s.20, s.29, s.30 · Excise Tax Act s.212 · Customs Act s.32, s.33, s.55 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Customs Tariff · Excise Tax Act, section 212 · Customs Act

Goods with their own rules, and where they sit

Some goods carry rules in other Acts. At the accounting, and before release, the certificate, licence, permit or other document those Acts require is provided (Accounting Regulations s.4(1)).

Safe Food for Canadians Regulations s.11, s.26, s.29 · Plant Protection Regulations s.29 · Export and Import Permits Act s.5, s.8, s.14 · Customs Tariff s.136 · Textile Labelling Act s.2, s.3 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, section 11 · Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, Part 3 · Plant Protection Regulations, section 29 · Export and Import Permits Act · Customs Tariff · Textile Labelling Act

Small parcels, courier and mail

Goods that a courier carries or that arrive by mail follow some rules of their own. The person who exported them to Canada makes the report (Customs Act s.12(3)(a.1)). A courier is a commercial carrier engaged in scheduled international transportation of shipments of goods other than goods imported by mail (Courier Imports Remission Order s.2).

The $20 line

Courier

Customs duties and excise taxes paid or payable are remitted on imported goods that a courier transports, with a value for duty of $20 or less, other than goods imported from Mexico or the United States (Courier Imports Remission Order s.4).

Mail

The same remission for goods imported by mail with a value for duty not exceeding $20 (Postal Imports Remission Order s.4).

The claim

If the benefit is not received at the time of importation, a claim is made to the Minister of National Revenue within two years after the date of importation (s.5 of each order).

Not covered

Goods bought from a retailer in Canada and shipped to the purchaser directly from outside Canada; goods purchased or ordered through an address, post office box or telephone number in Canada; goods imported by a person other than the person in Canada who ordered or purchased them (s.3 of each order).

Excluded

Goods that section 2 of each order excludes, for example cannabis products, vaping products, cigars, cigarettes and manufactured tobacco.

Release

Goods imported by courier may be released under s.32(4) of the Act before accounting and before payment if their estimated value for duty does not exceed $3,300, no Act of Parliament prohibits, controls or regulates them, they are released at a customs office the Minister designates for that purpose, and the courier is a bonded carrier (Accounting Regulations s.7.1).

Courier Imports Remission Order s.2 to s.5 · Postal Imports Remission Order s.2 to s.5 · Accounting Regulations s.7.1 · Customs Act s.12, s.32 · current to 30.09.2026 · checked 02.11.2026 · Courier Imports Remission Order · Postal Imports Remission Order · Accounting for Imported Goods and Payment of Duties Regulations · Customs Act

Orders from Turkish online shops are on Turkey Online Shopping & International Shipping.

Canada and Türkiye, in figures

The 2025 figures for merchandise trade between the two countries are on the consultation page of Global Affairs Canada, modified 31.07.2026. The same figures are in a notice of the department in the Canada Gazette of 01.08.2026.

What the notices say

Top imports

Pharmaceutical products, fishing vessels, rugs and textiles, and components for turbine engines (Canada Gazette, Part I, Volume 160, Number 31, 01.08.2026).

The talks

On 07.07.2026 the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of Türkiye announced the launch of negotiations toward a free trade agreement. Exploratory discussions had been announced on 08.06.2026.

The consultation

The views of Canadians on a potential free trade agreement were invited from 31.07.2026 to 14.09.2026. The consultation has closed.

Next

In the coming months the technical teams of both governments are to define the scope and ambition of the agreement and prepare for the first round of negotiations (joint statement of 07.07.2026).

checked 02.11.2026 · Global Affairs Canada · Canada Gazette · Prime Minister of Canada

The same subject for another country: Importing From Turkey to the USA.

Words on the papers

ithalat

import

ihracat

export

gümrük

customs

gümrük beyannamesi

customs declaration

fatura

invoice

menşe şahadetnamesi

certificate of origin

konşimento

bill of lading

hava konşimentosu

air waybill

çeki listesi

packing list

teminat

security, bond

ithalatçı

importer

ihracatçı

exporter

bitki sağlık sertifikası

phytosanitary certificate

Quick answers in plain words

Sources and limits

Not stated: a rate for any tariff item, and the tariff treatment of goods from Türkiye. The List of Tariff Provisions and the List of Countries and Applicable Tariff Treatments are in the schedule of the Customs Tariff, which the Justice Laws text of the Act does not include.

Rules and pages: Acts and regulations current to 30.09.2026, Global Affairs Canada page modified 31.07.2026, checked 02.11.2026.