The Saint Lawrence Seaway SLSMC/CBSA/CBP Compliance Guide — 2025 Edition

SLSMC · CBSA · CBP · Dual-Customs · 10 chapters · Instant PDF

What's inside

1. 1 Seaway overview — Saint Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) jurisdiction, the 15-lock system from Montreal to Lake Erie, seasonal operating window (late March to late December)
2. 2 SLSMC pre-clearance — mandatory transit booking via ECOS (Electronic Clearance Online System), required vessel data, booking windows, and cancellation penalties
3. 3 Seawaymax dimensions — maximum LOA (225.5m), beam (23.8m), draft (8.08m), air draft (35.5m) at Seaway locks, and how oversized vessels are handled
4. 4 CBSA 96-hour advance reporting — Canada Border Services Agency pre-arrival notification requirements, crew/cargo declarations, and penalties for non-compliance
5. 5 CBP eNOA/eNOD — U.S. Customs and Border Protection electronic Notice of Arrival / Departure, filing deadlines, and dual-customs coordination when transiting Canada-US waters
6. 6 Ballast water management — Transport Canada BWM requirements for Great Lakes entry, mid-ocean exchange vs. treatment, sampling and enforcement
7. 7 Cargo and crew declarations — customs cargo manifests, crew list requirements for both CBSA and CBP, dangerous goods notification
8. 8 Common rejection reasons — CBSA/CBP data mismatches, missing SLSMC pre-clearance, Seawaymax violations, BWM non-compliance, inspection deficiencies
9. 9 Sample ECOS booking submission — annotated example of a correctly filed SLSMC transit booking with dual-customs notification
10. 10 12-point compliance checklist — the minimum verification list before entering the Saint Lawrence Seaway system