Recourse - Appeals/Reviews
How to file a review for: A review of a penalty or warning under the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act
Requesting a Review
Requesting a third-party review
Requesting an extension of time review
Related Information
Who may request a review?
The person who is the violator identified in the Notice of Violation (NOV), or a representative on their behalf, may request a review to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness (the Minister) or the Canada Agricultural Review Tribunal (the Tribunal).
Note
You cannot appeal a monetary penalty that has already been paid. Please refer to Penalties and Fines to see your payment options if you do not wish to appeal.
Review by Minister of a Notice of Violation
If you wish to contest a NOV, you can submit a written request for a review by the Minister.
Within 30 calendar days of the date stated on the NOV or date of service of the NOV, you may request a review by submitting a request to the Canada Border Services Agency in one of the following ways:
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File an E-Appeal
You can request a review of a CBSA decision online.
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Send your request by mail to:
Recourse Directorate
Canada Border Services Agency
333 North River Rd, Tower A, 11th Floor
Ottawa, ON K1A 0L8
Note
Your request for review should include all of the reasons why you believe the violation was not committed or why the penalty amount is incorrect.
The review by the Minister is conducted by an impartial official within the CBSA's Recourse Directorate. The review will consider whether the person cited in the NOV committed a violation and, where a monetary penalty was imposed, whether the penalty was assessed and established in accordance with the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Regulations. All evidence must be provided to the Recourse official in writing. It is important to note that the penalty amounts are fixed by the Regulations and cannot be reduced or substituted for a warning for any reason relating to humanitarian or financial situations.
Once the decision has been made, a letter will be mailed to you that will confirm or deny the violation, explain the reasons for the decision and, where applicable, explain any further appeal options. It is important to remember that, once a decision has been made by the CBSA, neither the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness nor CBSA officials have the authority to act further in the matter.
Review by Tribunal of a Minister's Decision
If you are not satisfied with a decision after a review by the Minister, you may request a further review of the decision by the Canada Agricultural Review Tribunal (Tribunal) within 15 calendar days of being served the Minister's decision. The Tribunal, in this case, will conduct a review of the Minister's decision.
The Tribunal is an independent quasi-judicial body appointed by the Governor-in-Council to hear appeals of warnings or administrative monetary penalties issued under the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act.
For more information on how to appeal a Minister's decision to the Tribunal, please visit the Tribunal's website.
Review by Tribunal of a Notice of Violation
If you wish to contest a NOV, you may forego the ministerial review and submit a written request for a review directly to the Tribunal. The Tribunal is an independent quasi-judicial body appointed by the Governor-in-Council to hear appeals of warnings or administrative monetary penalties issued under the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act.
Similar to the Ministerial review, the review by the Tribunal will consider whether the person cited in the NOV committed a violation and, where a penalty was imposed, whether the monetary penalty was assessed and established in accordance with the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Regulations.
For more information on how to appeal a NOV to the Tribunal, please visit the Tribunal's website.
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