Canada Border Services Agency 2025 to 2026 Departmental Plan at a glance

Departmental results

The CBSA's Departmental Results Framework sets out the following results to be achieved for its core responsibility of border management. A summary of planned achievements in 2025 to 2026 is provided for each.

• The CBSA's intelligence, threat and risk assessment activities contribute to the identification, mitigation and neutralization of risks and threats to the safety, security and prosperity of Canadians and Canada
  
  • Support the implementation of Canada's Border Plan, including a key focus on detecting and disrupting the fentanyl trade, enhancing tools for law enforcement, improving operational coordination, and expanding information sharing with key partners.
  • Combat the cross-border movement of illicit drugs and precursor chemicals, especially synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, through an array of measures to intercept illegal substances at ports of entry.
  • Combat the illegal importation of firearms and the threat of gun and gang violence through the Agency's Firearms Strategy, enhancements to detection capabilities, and collaboration with law enforcement partners.
  • Support the Federal Action Plan on Combatting Auto Theft through enhanced detection tools and collaboration with port authorities, rail carriers and law enforcement partners to expand export examination capabilities.
  • Contribute to collective law enforcement efforts to combat human smuggling, including identifying instances of cross-border human smuggling, supporting the investigation and prosecution of offenders, and helping potential victims by referring them to appropriate government services.
  • Continue efforts to enhance the Agency's Immigration National Security Screening Program to strengthen the identification of inadmissible persons seeking entry into Canada.
  • Conduct regime reviews for potential designation by the Minister of Public Safety in order to expand the Agency's ability to identify and prevent travel to Canada by persons who are in service of regimes that engage in terrorism, war crimes, genocide, or other international human rights violations.
  • Protect the integrity of Canada's participation in international trade through ongoing efforts to detect potential abuse of the customs process for the movement of illicit financial flows to and from Canada.
• Admissible travellers are processed in an efficient manner
  
  • Continue implementing the multi-year Traveller Modernization initiative, encompassing a series of improvements to infrastructure and processes at Canada's ports of entry that will expand the availability of digital technology and tools in order to expedite the movement of admissible travellers across the border and provide more capacity to focus on risks.
• Travellers and their goods are compliant with applicable legislation
  
  • Conduct a land preclearance operation in a co-located facility in the United States, with the aim of streamlining border processes for legitimate travellers and identifying inadmissible travellers prior to their arrival in Canada. This operation is taking place over a two-year period at the Covey Hill/Cannon Corners border crossing between Quebec and New York State.
• Admissible commercial goods and conveyances are processed in an efficient manner
  
  • Continue work to expand eManifest system capabilities for targeting officers and border services officers to process commercial shipments more efficiently.
  • Advance the Agency's E-Commerce Customs Strategy to keep pace with the continual rise in e-commerce importation volumes.
• Traders are compliant with applicable legislation and requirements
  
  • Continue working with Employment and Social Development Canada to identify and interdict goods that may have been produced by forced labour.
  • Conduct a cargo preclearance proof-of-concept in the air mode to inform the potential expansion of commercial preclearance operations in the United States.
• Importers comply with revenue requirements
  
  • Continually improve the CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) system following its successful launch in October 2024 as the official system of record to assess and collect duties and taxes for commercial goods imported into Canada. The CBSA will also use CARM and engage industry to work toward better compliance through greater accuracy of duty and tax submissions.
  • The CBSA is committed to delivering additional CARM functionality as part of future releases to build upon ongoing efforts to improve and streamline business processes and increase Government of Canada revenues. With systems such as CARM and eManifest, the CBSA enhances its ability to interdict contraband and manage approximately $40 billion a year in revenue for Canadians, which makes it the second-largest revenue collector behind the Canada Revenue Agency.
• Canadian producers are protected from unfairly dumped and subsidized imports
  
  • Conduct anti-dumping and countervailing investigations pursuant to the Special Import Measures Act to guard against unfair trade practices, defend domestic producers, and protect Canadian jobs.
  • Advance the Agency's E-filing Solution project to digitalize its Anti-dumping and Countervailing Program in support of Canada's obligations under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).
• Trusted Traveller and Trader programs increase processing efficiency of low-risk, pre-approved travellers and traders
  
  • Continue administering the bilateral NEXUS program between Canada and the United States, as well as the Agency's Partners in Protection and Customs Self-Assessment programs, which support communities and economic interests on both sides of the border by expediting the crossing of pre-approved travellers and traders.
• Travellers and the business community have access to timely redress mechanisms
  
  • Continue providing individuals and businesses with an accessible mechanism to seek an impartial review of CBSA decisions taken under border legislation.
  • Support the function of the Public Complaints and Review Commission, which will serve as an independent review body for the CBSA following the Royal Assent of Bill C-20.
• Other planned achievements
  
  • Advance the Gordie Howe International Bridge Project and the Land Border Crossing Project as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen border infrastructure.
  • Continue to implement the Agency's Indigenous Framework and Strategy to guide reconciliation efforts with Indigenous Peoples.

More information about border management can be found in the full plan.

Departmental results

The CBSA's Departmental Results Framework sets out the following results to be achieved for its core responsibility of border enforcement. A summary of planned achievements in 2025 to 2026 is provided for each.

• Immigration investigations identify persons inadmissible to Canada
  
  • Focus inland investigative resources on high-risk immigration cases, while maintaining the Agency's warrant management strategy to enhance immigration enforcement operations.
• Persons are in the most appropriate alternative to detention or detention facility according to their risk profile
  
  • Continue ensuring that detention is used as a measure of last resort; that placement within a CBSA facility or other location is based on a sound risk assessment framework; and that newly expanded alternatives to detention are leveraged appropriately throughout the entire enforcement continuum in accordance with risk mitigation strategies.
• The Minister's positions are appropriately represented in immigration and refugee decision-making processes
  
  • Continue ensuring the effective management of the Agency's hearings-related activities through the development of updated training materials and guidelines with regard to hearings before the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada.
• Inadmissible foreign nationals are prioritized and removed expeditiously from Canada
  
  • Continue to effect removals based on a robust risk management regime, with cases involving security, organized crime, human rights violations and criminality considered the highest priority for the safety and security of Canada and its citizens. The CBSA will increase the number of removals from 16,000 to 20,000 (a 25% increase) for fiscal years 2025 to 2026 and 2026 to 2027.
• People and businesses that are referred to Crown counsel for prosecution are convicted
  
  • Focus on investigating and prosecuting people and businesses that violate Canada's border-related legislation, with a focus on complex cases of fraud involving individuals and organizations posing a threat to Canada's immigration system, economy and communities.

More information about border enforcement can be found in the full plan.

In addition to the planned achievements for its core responsibilities outlined above, the CBSA will take further steps to improve its internal services in 2025 to 2026. For example, the CBSA will:

• Continue strengthening procurement practices through senior oversight of all contracting activities with a focus on delivering value for money, while also reducing reliance on external consultants.
• Enhance the Agency's cyber security framework to ensure a secure information technology environment and support effective delivery of the Agency's mandate.
• Provide reliable and accessible communications to a wide array of stakeholders, including travellers, businesses, parliamentarians, media, and the Canadian public, to address the information needs of diverse audiences at home and abroad.

More information about internal services can be found in the full plan.