Inside the Detroit warehouse where America’s ‘Fast and Furious’ tariffs go into effect

Skids of motor vehicle parts sit ready for inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection inside a warehouse near North America’s busiest border crossing.

These are the thousands of truck shipments entering the United States from Canada that cross the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario every day.

Grabbing a steel rod taken out of a cardboard box, import specialist Mark Bailey believes he’s found a problem.

“They’ll classify it as an auto part but it’s a steel tube,” Bailey said.

Whether it is considered a steel product or an auto part can make a big difference, because there is a Tariff on steel 50 percentBut Auto parts made in Canada are exempt From tariff.

Bailey will now begin an investigation process that could lead to appropriate tariffs as well as financial penalties, which could be a costly surprise to the company’s bottom line.

Canadian companies dealing with tariffs say the paperwork that import specialists face on both sides of the border was once a routine administrative task.

Taking up space on the desks of the most senior employees is now a high-level priority.

Tariff paperwork is becoming a full-time job

KC Vasudeva owns automotive parts maker Ultra-Form Manufacturing and blames the economic slowdown caused by tariffs for losing customers.

This has forced him to lay off a dozen employees as well as create two new jobs at his company to clear the paperwork.

“If I’m shipping it directly to the United States, and that’s what we often do, that’s where it becomes a headache for us,” said Vasudeva, who has been making auto parts for 30 years.

He said the new roles are requiring new costs “to make sure we really understand every line we put on the custom papers, matching what is required.”

Apart from the expenses, there is also the headache and stress that comes from trying to get clarity on what is the correct classification of a product crossing the border, Vasudev said.

“This is the first time we are facing the challenge of tariffs and customs people harassing us,” Vasudeva said.

In between checking dipsticks and slipping other automotive parts, Bailey and his colleagues will take calls from people in the office who are trying their best to get it right.

“I’ve had companies that will call me and say, ‘Hey, what’s the classification for this? That’s how we currently classify it,'” Bailey said.

He will file paperwork with the company and many times he has corrected classifications which saved the company money.

“So instead of paying 25 percent, they only have to pay 15 percent.”

Judy Stoudt is the assistant director of CBP’s Automotive and Aerospace Center of Excellence and Expertise.

“The additional tariffs are escalating rapidly, OK? So some of this is a real mistake,” Stoudt said.

“But then, you know, there’s outright fraud going on, too.”

Trade data released by US CBP shows that while the number of trade penalties issued has remained stable, the amount of money recovered has increased from $667.55 million in fiscal year 2024 to $32.95 billion in fiscal year 2025.

Canadian companies shipping to the United States have recovered from the “shock and awe” of the initial waves of tariffs, according to trade experts CBC News spoke with.

Now it’s about finding ways to properly price the products they’re shipping, reduce tariffs, and make sure the paperwork is filled out properly.

“I’ve really noticed recently that there’s a lot more scrutiny on customs paperwork by customs officials on both sides of the border,” said Ray Fisher, senior manager of customs and global trade at Don Grant Thornton.

Cross-border shipping is no longer a low-risk event

He said customers who have been shipping cross-border for years have been asking questions about country-of-origin certificates.

“They said, ‘Well, we’ve been doing it that way for years. We’ve never had any problems,'” Fisher said.

“Well, that’s true. You never had a problem because it was never questioned.”

He said these are complex trade agreements that require experts in the field to understand, not a quick online search or a bot with artificial intelligence.

“It’s not that the rules have changed. It’s just that the declarations are being scrutinized not only in the US, but also by Customs.”

These conditions are a major change from what companies have faced in Canada’s automotive industry for decades, said Joey Knott, partner in trade and customs at KPMG.

“There was no risk associated with the border. And if someone made a mistake on the form, it was an administrative error,” Knott said.

“That environment has changed a lot and it really needs to be assimilated. And will it go away soon? I don’t think it has. I think it will remain very low for the next few years.”