Carter Customs · Professional plan
Canadian customs, read as of the entry date.
Canadian customs research for Claude and ChatGPT: the Customs Tariff with its legal notes, the vintages over the prescription window, sixteen federal Acts, advance rulings and CITT case law. It classifies, computes duties and GST, drafts the request for review and the correction — reasoned from the dated text, never merely searched.
Who Carter Customs is for
For those who sign the entry, and for those who defend it afterward. Each asks their own question, and the answer comes back sourced — in the language of their choice.
At the entry
Customs brokers. Classification and the clearance file, advance rulings and D-memoranda in one place — reasonable care, on the record. “We have filed 8703.10.00 for three years; an advance ruling issued to a competitor classifies the goods elsewhere — correct, or wait?”
Trade compliance officers. Screening, forced-labour exposure and the dated tariff stack, read before the goods move. “A shipment risks detention for forced labour — which law applies at the border, and what must we present?”
Control and dispute
Import and export managers. One connector, from customs value to origin, from refund to appeal. “A tariff line removed since our 2024 entry — on which vintage is the duty computed, and what refund?”
Customs advisers and counsel. The request for review (s. 60), the appeal to the CITT, precedent weighed side by side. “Transaction value rejected under s. 48: how far down does the cascade go, and what must the record prove?”
What the corpus serves
The raw material the method works: the tariff, the dated measures, the vintaged laws, the body of decisions. Every answer cites the text in the version in force at the entry date — and both official versions, French and English, are equally authoritative.
- The Customs Tariff, at its current revision 10,992 lines with dated treatments, the full hierarchy with its Section and Chapter notes; the duty is decided at the eight-digit item — the last two are statistical.
- The tariff vintages The prescription window spans six years: a line dropped from the current tariff is still served at its date, description and treatment included.
- Sixteen federal Acts The Customs Act, the Customs Tariff, SIMA, the Excise Tax Act, the Excise Act, 2001; and the third-party laws enforced at the border: forced labour, cultural property, copyright and trademarks, export and import permits, special economic measures.
- The administrative practice 1,197 advance rulings on classification, 574 D-memoranda and notices, 63 SIMA measures in force — each cited to the source.
- The single window and its agencies CFIA, Health Canada, Transport Canada, Natural Resources Canada, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Global Affairs Canada — read for the actual goods.
- The case law and the fourteen jurisdictions The CITT’s decisions — the step before the Federal Court of Appeal (s. 68), after the review (s. 60) and the appeal (s. 67); the federal order, the provinces and territories — 4,704 provincial sections, 12,409 for Québec alone, served with attribution and a notice of non-official status.
Questions the way they land
Six working-week situations, to type as they come once the connector is added: the answer comes back with its citations — tariff item, Act and section, dated measure, decision.
A broker, on reasonable care
“Our importer has filed the same tariff item for three years; an advance ruling issued to a competitor classifies it elsewhere. Voluntary correction, or wait for a review?”
Once there is a “reason to believe”, section 32.2 of the Customs Act requires the declaration to be corrected within ninety days; the adjustment reaches back four years, and the deadline is read from the served text, never from memory.
Citations Customs Act, s. 32.2 90 days
A compliance officer, on origin
“Aluminum extrusions finished in Vietnam from Chinese billets: does the transformation hold against a SIMA measure?”
The SIMA measure in force is identified and dated, origin assessed against the applicable rules, and circumvention exposure flagged — each state dated and cited.
Citations SIMA, dated measure origin rule
An import manager, on a refund
“Goods entered in March 2024 under a tariff line since removed: on which text is the duty computed?”
The line is read at its March 2024 vintage — the description and treatment of that time — and the gap with the current tariff is dated and cited, so the two states can be compared over the prescription window.
Citations Tariff, vintaged line March 2024
An adviser, on valuation
“Successive sales on a three-tier chain: which value applies, and how far down does the cascade go?”
Value is determined in cascade, from the transaction value (s. 48) through the subsequent methods to section 53; each method set aside is justified, and what the record must prove is named.
Citations Customs Act, ss. 48-53
An importer, on a penalty
“The CBSA has issued us a penalty: can we settle it by transaction, as elsewhere?”
In Canada there is no customs transaction: the penalty falls under the administrative monetary penalty system (C### codes), with correction of the file and, where warranted, a request for review under section 60.
Citations AMPS, C### code s. 60
An exporter, on permits
“A dual-use good is bound for a country under sanctions: which text applies on the way out?”
The Export and Import Permits Act and the Special Economic Measures Act are read together: the permit requirement and the applicable prohibition are identified and dated.
Citations Export and Import Permits Act Special Economic Measures Act
Add Carter Customs to Claude or ChatGPT
Three moves, about two minutes: the connector opens prefilled in Claude — or pastes into ChatGPT, same address.
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Click “Add to Claude”
The button opens claude.ai with the connector prefilled: the name, Carter Customs, and the connector URL are already in place.
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Confirm the connector in Claude
On claude.ai or in Claude Desktop, approve the connector Claude shows; it joins your list. Your free trial starts right there — no card during launch.
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Ask your first question
Take one of the sample questions: the answer cites the tariff item, the Act and section, the dated measure and the decision.
Prefer to do it by hand? Paste the connector URL into Claude (Settings → Connectors → “Add custom connector”) or into ChatGPT (Settings → Connectors → “Create”):
https://carter-customs.147-93-52-143.nip.io/mcp
Carter Customs runs inside Claude — claude.ai or Claude Desktop — and the same way inside ChatGPT. Answers do their best work with a capable model such as Claude Opus — or GPT-5 Thinking in ChatGPT.
The limits, stated plainly
- Carter is a research aid: it is neither legal advice nor customs advice.
- Texts are served in their dated versions; the tariff vintages cover the prescription window — six years.
- There is no customs transaction in Canada: penalties fall under the administrative monetary penalty system (C### codes), and recourse runs through the review (s. 60), the CITT (s. 67), then the Federal Court of Appeal (s. 68).
- Always verify the citation given: drafts ship for professional review, and reasonable care remains with the filer. Québec sources are reproduced with attribution and a notice of non-official status.
For the full framework: frequently asked questions and legal notice.
The tariff is open
The connector opens prefilled in Claude; the first answer comes back with its citations. In ChatGPT: same address, under Settings → Connectors.
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