BSF947, BSF831 and other CBSA forms: which ones still exist
Search for a CBSA form number and you often land on a form that no longer exists. The BSF947 and BSF948 were stop-gap forms for RM accounts, used for a few months in 2024. Here is what the common BSF forms are for, and what to use today.
- BSF947 and BSF948retired
- BSF831current, for exporters
- BSF946emergencies only
In short
Why a BSF947 search leads nowhere
On May 13, 2024 the CBSA took over from the CRA the job of issuing and maintaining import-export program (RM) accounts. The CARM system that would automate it was not live yet, so Customs Notice 24-18 set up an interim process: form BSF947, Request for a CBSA Import/Export Program Account, for a new account, and form BSF948 for changes, including reactivating an expired account. Both were emailed to the CBSA's CARM RM support team.
Read the details
CARM opened to importers on October 21, 2024. Since then, a business with a nine-digit business number (BN9) registers its RM account directly in the CARM Client Portal and changes the account's name or address there too. The BSF947 and BSF948 are no longer on the CBSA's forms list.
Other BSF forms are still current. The ones importers and exporters ask about most are in the table below.
Getting an RM account without the BSF947
Get a business number
Get a nine-digit business number (BN9). Since October 21, 2024 most new resident importers can get it inside the CARM Client Portal. [[/import/non-resident-importer|Non-resident importers]] and some entity types, such as trusts, must get it from the CRA first.
Register in CARM
Register the business in the CARM Client Portal. The importer has to do this itself: a customs broker cannot register a client's business.
Enrol in the program
Enrol in the import-export program. Your first program account is numbered RM0001, and further accounts follow in sequence.
Approve where records are kept
If your records will not be kept at your place of business in Canada, complete form BSF900 in the portal. The CBSA does not issue the RM account until it is approved.
Delegate your broker
If a customs broker will file for you, give them a delegation of authority in the portal.
Common CBSA forms and their status
Checked against the CBSA forms list on October 14, 2026.
- BSF947
- What it is forRequest for a new import-export program (RM) accountStatus todayRetired. Register in the CARM Client Portal
- BSF948
- What it is forChanges to an RM account, including reactivationStatus todayRetired. Change the name or address in the portal; ask the CARM help desk to reactivate a closed account
- BSF900
- What it is forAgreement to keep records somewhere other than your place of business in CanadaStatus todayCurrent. Submitted through the CARM Client Portal
- BSF831
- What it is forExporter reporting application, to file export declarations by G7 EDIStatus todayCurrent. Emailed to the CBSA export program
- BSF844
- What it is forExporter contingency formStatus todayCurrent
- BSF911
- What it is forEDI application for release and accounting declarationsStatus todayCurrent
- BSF946
- What it is forException Commercial Accounting Declaration, a paper CADStatus todayCurrent, only for CARM outages, disasters or other circumstances beyond your control
Don't email a BSF947 now
A BSF947 sent today goes to a process that ended in October 2024. Register in the CARM Client Portal instead. Non-residents need their business number from the CRA before they start: trying to register without it causes a registration error that only the CARM help desk can clear.
Common questions
Where can I download the BSF947 form?
It is no longer published. It was an interim form, used between May 13, 2024 and the launch of CARM on October 21, 2024. Register for an RM account in the CARM Client Portal instead.
What is form BSF831?
The Exporter reporting application form. An exporter, or a service provider acting for one, uses it to register for filing export declarations by G7 EDI, with the software and connection details. It is emailed to the CBSA's export program. See [[/export/g7-edi-vs-cers|G7 EDI vs CERS]] for the difference with the CERS portal.
How do I reactivate an expired RM account?
Send a request to the CARM client service and help desk. Name and address changes, and cancelling the program, you do yourself in the CARM Client Portal.
Can my customs broker get the RM account for me?
No. The importer registers the business in the CARM Client Portal itself. The broker can act for you once you delegate authority to them in the portal.
- Sources:
- Customs Notice 24-18: Changes to the registration and maintenance of RM accounts (CBSA, May 13, 2024, archived copy)
- Register for or modify an import-export program account (CBSA)
- Forms list (CBSA)
- BSF831: Exporter reporting application form (CBSA)
- Memorandum D17-1-21: Maintenance of Records in Canada by Importers (CBSA, PDF)
Check where you stand
See which import requirements apply to your shipments.
Keep reading
The next steps most people take from here.
Importing
The whole path to importing commercial goods into Canada, in order.
Read →Import/export number (RM)
The import/export account number the CBSA needs before your first shipment.
Read →Non-resident importer
Importing into Canada as a business based outside Canada.
Read →G7 EDI vs CERS
The two ways to file an export declaration, and which one fits you.
Read →