Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced that it is expanding Free and Secure Trade (FAST) benefits for members of its trusted trader programs. They also announced plans to increase the number of dedicated FAST lanes to provide low-risk, pre-approved importers, carriers and drivers with expedited clearance at the border. By the winter of 2017, Fort Erie, Ontario and Pacific Highway, British Columbia will have dedicated FAST lanes in operation. By the spring of 2018, a new FAST lane will be opened at Emerson.
Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program
Free and Secure Trade (FAST) is a joint Canada–U.S. initiative to enhance border and trade chain security while making cross-border commercial shipments simpler and subject to fewer delays. FAST gives members of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) trusted trader programs access to dedicated lanes and booths at specified ports of entry that allow them priority access to the border and expedited clearance. Currently, FAST lanes and booths are in operation in Sarnia and Windsor, ON and in Pacific Highway, BC.
The FAST commercial driver portion is a joint Canada–U.S. program, but the requirements to access the FAST lane vary between the two countries and are administered independently. Currently, to be eligible to use FAST when entering Canada, importers and carriers must both be members of the CBSA’s two trusted trader programs: Partners in Protection (PIP) and Customs Self-Assessment (CSA). Drivers must be FAST or Commercial Driver Registration Program (CDRP) approved, and the load must consist of eligible goods from the United States or Mexico.
For more information on the expansion, read the report.