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Canada Organic Regime import requirements

Anyone who imports organic products must be able to present a valid organic certificate when requested at any time, including at the time of import.

The organic certificate must be issued by a certification body that is accredited by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), or by an accredited certification body recognized under an existing organic equivalency agreement between Canada and a foreign country.

The organic product certificate must include the name of the product being imported, be issued by the Certification Body that certified the product as organic and, must accompany each shipment of organic products.

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

The format of organic product certificates can vary depending on where the product is imported.

Latest updates for importers and brokers of organic products

April 5, 2023

The import and admissibility requirements for all the end uses of organic feed products from chapters 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 21, 23, 32, 33 and 35 were incorporated into AIRS, in March 2023, as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

The new other government department (OGD) codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes in AIRS and comply with the import requirements.

At this time, importers/brokers will be required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID).

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in AIRS. From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

If you have any questions, please contact the Canada Organic Regime team at OPR-RPB@inspection.gc.ca.

January 30, 2023

The import and admissibility requirements for all the end uses of organic Seed products from chapters 7, 9, 10 and 12 were incorporated into AIRS, in January 2023, as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations .

The new other government department (OGD) codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes in AIRS and comply with the import requirements.

At this time, importers/brokers will be required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID).

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in AIRS. From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

If you have any questions, please contact the Canada Organic Regime team at OPR-RPB@inspection.gc.ca.

August 11, 2022

The import and admissibility requirements for all the end uses of organic dairy products from chapters 4, 9, 18, 19, 21, 22 and 35 were incorporated into AIRS, as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

The new other government department (OGD) codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes in AIRS and comply with the import requirements.

At this time, importers/brokers will be required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID).

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in AIRS. From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

If you have any questions, please contact the Canada Organic Regime team at OPR-RPB@inspection.gc.ca.

July 7, 2021

On June 30, 2021, the import and admissibility requirements for organic grain products from chapter 10 for all the remaining end-uses were incorporated into AIRS, as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes and end-uses in AIRS and to comply with the import requirements.

At this time, importers/brokers will be required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID).

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

If you have any questions, please contact the Canada Organic Regime team at OPR-RPB@inspection.gc.ca.

June 16, 2021

On June 10, 2021, new harmonized system/other government department (HS/OGD) extension codes for organic grain products from chapter 10 with the end use "Human consumption" were published in AIRS. Additionally, the organic import admissibility requirements for these products have been incorporated into AIRS as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

At this time, importers/brokers will be required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID).

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

The new OGD codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes in AIRS and comply with the import requirements.

December  24, 2020

On December 16, 2020, new HS/OGD extension codes for organic processed products from chapter 20 were published in AIRS. Additionally, the organic import admissibility requirements for these products have been incorporated into AIRS as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

At this time, importers/brokers will be required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID).

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

The new OGD codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes and comply with the import requirements.

List of the new OGD codes for processed products.

September 16, 2020

On August 27, 2020, new HS/OGD extension codes for organic eggs and shell egg products were published in AIRS. Additionally, the organic import admissibility requirements for these products have been incorporated into AIRS as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

The new OGD codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes and comply with the import requirements.

List of the new OGD codes for eggs and shell egg products.

September 8, 2020

On June 10, 2019, the new OGD extensions codes for organic fresh fruits and vegetables were implemented in the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) database. The list of new OGD extensions codes was shared on May 22, 2019 with stakeholders prior to AIRS publication.

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

Please continue to use AIRS to verify the import admissibility requirements for fresh fruit and vegetables, including any organic requirements.

April 22, 2020

On April 16, 2020, new HS/OGD extension codes for organic honey and maple products were published in AIRS. Additionally, the organic import admissibility requirements for these products have been incorporated into AIRS as per part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

Importers will be notified once all import requirements are incorporated in Automated Import Reference System (AIRS). From that time onwards importers of organic commodities will be required to submit a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products online using the Integrated Import Declaration system.

The new OGD codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes and comply with the import requirements.

List of the new OGD codes for honey and maple products.

April 7, 2020

On March 4, 2020, new HS/OGD extension codes for organic seeds and grains from chapter 7 were published in AIRS. The chapter covers dried leguminous vegetables. Organic stakeholders were informed on February 21, 2020 prior to publication.

The new OGD codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes and comply with the import requirements.

The list of the new OGD codes for organic seeds and grains from chapter 7 are available in the table.

June 10, 2019

On June 10, 2019, the new OGD extension codes for organic fresh fruits and vegetables have been implemented in the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) database. The list of new OGD codes was shared on May 22, 2019 with stakeholders prior to AIRS publication.

The new OGD codes will differentiate organic products from conventional products. It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes and comply with the import requirements.

The list of the new OGD extension codes for organic fresh fruits and vegetables is available in the table below.

April 17, 2019

The organic import requirements in part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations will be incorporated into the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS).

To implement the import requirements into AIRS, CFIA will use a phased-in approach which will involve creating new commodity identifiers (OGD extension codes) for organic products by commodity type.

The fresh fruits and vegetables will be the first commodity group to be implemented starting Spring 2019. CFIA will provide detailed information on each phase throughout the implementation process.

We encourage you to sign up for AIRS email notification and visit this page regularly for updates.

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