Certification Services
SmartWay Certification for Carriers and Logistics Companies
SmartWay is North America’s leading freight sustainability program, helping trucking companies and logistics providers measure fuel efficiency, benchmark performance, and prove their environmental credentials to shippers. Over its first 20 years, SmartWay Partners have saved more than $55 billion in fuel costs and prevented 170 million metric tons of CO2 emissions.
AVAAL manages the entire enrollment process for you. We prepare your fleet data, complete the program tools, submit your application to the correct agency in your country, and keep your partnership in good standing year after year.
Get SmartWay Certified with AVAAL
Audit Pool Exemption
Regulatory audit relief
CBP Liaison Access
National Account Managers
Free ITRAC Data
Trade data & analysis
CBP Trusted Partner
Recognized importer status
What is C-TPAT Certification?
A Voluntary Supply Chain
Security Program by CBP
C-TPAT (Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism) is a voluntary supply chain security program led by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The program was created to strengthen the security of international trade by partnering with businesses involved in cross-border logistics, including trucking carriers, importers, customs brokers, and logistics providers.
Under the C-TPAT program, companies agree to implement strict security standards across their supply chain operations — covering areas such as cargo handling, facility security, personnel screening, transportation procedures, and information security. In return, certified businesses are recognized by CBP as low-risk, trusted trade partners.
For trucking companies operating across U.S. borders, C-TPAT certification demonstrates that your operations meet the security guidelines established by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. This recognition can help reduce inspections, improve border crossing efficiency, and strengthen your credibility with shippers and logistics partners.
Key Elements
Supply Chain Security
Implementation of best practices to prevent cargo tampering, smuggling, or unauthorized access.
Risk Assessment
Identification and mitigation of vulnerabilities within transportation and logistics operations.
Security Documentation
Development of a security profile outlining your company’s procedures and safeguards.
CBP Validation
Review and validation of your processes by CBP to confirm compliance with C-TPAT standards.
Ongoing Compliance
Continuous monitoring and improvements to maintain certification and uphold C-TPAT standards over time.
What is CSA Certification?
A Trusted Trader Program for
Cross-Border Carriers
CSA (Customs Self Assessment) certification is a trusted trader program designed to simplify customs procedures and improve compliance for businesses involved in cross-border trade. The program is administered by the Canada Border Services Agency to help approved carriers, importers, and drivers move goods more efficiently between Canada and the United States.
CSA-certified companies are recognized as low-risk and compliant with customs regulations. This allows them to benefit from streamlined reporting requirements, faster border processing, and reduced administrative work during cross-border shipments.
For trucking companies that frequently transport goods across the Canada–U.S. border, CSA certification helps improve operational efficiency, reduce delays, and strengthen compliance with customs authorities.
Key Elements
Importers
Businesses regularly importing goods across the Canada–U.S. border
Carriers
Trucking companies hauling freight across the Canada–U.S. border
Drivers
Drivers who regularly move goods between Canada and the United States
What is PIP Certification?
A Voluntary Security Program for
Cross-Border Trucking Companies
Partners in Protection (PIP) is a voluntary supply chain security program administered by the Canada Border Services Agency. The program is designed to strengthen border security and ensure the safe movement of goods by partnering with businesses involved in international trade.
Under the PIP program, participating companies commit to implementing strong security practices across their supply chains. PIP-certified companies are formally recognized as trusted partners, which helps strengthen compliance with customs authorities and improves the security of cross-border logistics operations.
For trucking companies operating across the Canada–U.S. border, PIP certification demonstrates that your business meets recognized security standards — improving credibility with customs authorities and logistics partners while supporting smoother, more reliable cross-border trade.
Key Elements
Trucking Companies
Carriers operating freight across the Canada–U.S. border
Importers & Exporters
Businesses regularly moving goods across international borders
Logistics Providers
Freight forwarders and 3PLs handling cross-border supply chains
Voluntary Import Compliance
Program
What is Importer Self-Assessment (ISA)?
The Importer Self-Assessment (ISA) program enables importers to check their internal compliance procedures and processes with CBP laws and regulations. This program was created with the intention to help support a stable CBP and importer relationship that is mutually beneficial to both parties — having a strong line of communication between the parties.
Key Elements
Who Can Participate?
Businesses that import goods into the United States and maintain strong compliance systems can apply for ISA participation.
Is it Mandatory?
The ISA program is a voluntary compliance initiative by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Participation is optional but provides significant compliance and operational benefits.
What Is SmartWay Certification?
What Is SmartWay Certification?
The SmartWay Transport Partnership is a voluntary program created by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in 2004 to help the freight industry move goods more efficiently while reducing fuel consumption and emissions. It operates as a single bi-national program across North America: the EPA administers SmartWay in the United States, and Natural Resources Canada has run the program in Canada since 2012.
Enrolled companies officially become SmartWay Partners. Across the industry, this status is commonly referred to as SmartWay certification. More than 4,000 carriers, logistics companies, and shippers participate across North America, and Partners earn the right to display the SmartWay logo as recognized proof of their commitment to efficient, responsible freight operations.
For trucking companies, that logo carries real commercial weight. Many major shippers now weigh SmartWay participation when awarding freight, and some restrict RFP responses to SmartWay Partners.
SmartWay Partner
Why Become a SmartWay Partner
Win more freight.
Fortune 500 shippers increasingly require or prefer SmartWay Partners in their carrier networks as part of their sustainability commitments.
Cut fuel costs.
SmartWay’s benchmarking tools show exactly where your fleet loses fuel, from idle time to aerodynamics to tire selection, so you can target the improvements with the highest return.
Benchmark against your peers.
Receive an annual report comparing your fleet’s emissions and efficiency against carriers with similar operations.
Display recognized proof.
The SmartWay logo is a government-backed credential shippers recognize across the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Access verified technology guidance.
The program identifies fuel-saving equipment and practices verified to reduce consumption in real fleet conditions.
Truck Carriers
SmartWay for Truck Carriers
Environmental performance has become a selection criterion in the transportation industry. Shippers audit the carbon footprint of their supply chains, and the carriers who can document their efficiency win the freight.
SmartWay gives carriers a standardized, government-recognized way to do exactly that. Participating carriers submit annual data on fuel purchased, distance travelled, and fleet composition. The program analyzes this data and ranks each carrier’s emissions and fuel efficiency against industry peers.
The enrollment path depends on where your company is based. US carriers enroll through the EPA SmartWay portal. Canadian carriers enroll through Natural Resources Canada. AVAAL works with both agencies and handles the correct submission for your operation, whether you run domestic lanes or cross-border.
Logistics Companies
SmartWay for Logistics Companies
Freight brokers, freight forwarders, and third-party logistics providers can also become SmartWay Partners. Logistics companies participate by reporting data on the carriers they used over the past 12 months, and the program evaluates the environmental performance of that carrier base.
For a 3PL or brokerage, SmartWay partnership answers a question shippers now ask directly: how sustainable is the capacity you sell? Partnership demonstrates that you actively select efficient carriers, and it gives you program data to back that claim in RFPs and QBRs.
Expert Guidance
How the SmartWay Program Works
SmartWay is built on a simple principle: you cannot manage what you cannot measure. Partners submit operational data annually using the program’s reporting tools. For carriers, this means fuel consumption, kilometres or miles travelled, fleet size, and equipment types. For logistics companies, it means data on the carriers hired over the past year.
The program processes this data and returns performance metrics and benchmarking reports. Partners must resubmit updated data every year to remain in good standing and retain the right to use the SmartWay logo.
The data requirements are detailed, and errors or missed deadlines can delay approval or lapse your partnership. That is the work AVAAL takes off your plate.
How AVAAL Gets You SmartWay Certified
Assessment and data preparation.
We review your operation, identify the correct partner category and agency, and compile the required fleet, fuel, and mileage data from records you already keep.
Tool completion and submission.
We complete the SmartWay reporting tools accurately the first time and submit your application to the EPA or Natural Resources Canada on your behalf.
Approval and annual maintenance.
Once approved, we track your renewal deadline and manage your annual data resubmission so your partnership never lapses.
Our fee is a professional service fee covering this preparation, submission, and ongoing compliance work, so your team stays focused on moving freight.
Choose AVAAL
Why Carriers Choose AVAAL
AVAAL has served the North American transportation industry for over 20 years, supporting thousands of carriers with compliance, permits, dispatch training, and freight management technology. SmartWay enrollment involves the same thing every government program involves: precise data, unfamiliar forms, and deadlines that do not move. We know both the US and Canadian sides of the program, we get submissions right the first time, and we keep them current every year after.
SmartWay also pairs naturally with the other credentials shippers look for. Many of our clients combine it with C-TPAT certification and operating authority services to build a complete compliance profile that wins enterprise freight.
SmartWay Certification
|
Regulatory Audit Pool |
Exempted |
|
CBP Liaison Access |
Granted |
|
ITRAC Trade Data |
Free Access |
|
Border Efficiency |
Enhanced |
|
Program Type |
Voluntary |
|
Importer Status |
Trusted Partner |
FAQ
