G/LIC/N/2/CAN/1  
 
14 September  2018 
(18-5665) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Import Licensing  Original: English  
 
 AGREEMENT ON IMPORT LICENSING PROCEDURES  
NOTIFICATION UNDER A RTICLE 5.1 -5.4 OF TH E AGREEMENT1 
CANADA  
 
The following notification, dated 29 August 2018  is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of Canada . 
 
1. (a) Title / number / date of the law or regulation establishing / changing the 
import licensing procedure:   
On 15 January 2019, the Safe Food for Canadians Act  (SFCA) and the Safe Food 
for Canadians Regulations  (SFCR) will come into effect.    
(b) If the notif ied measure refers to a change in an already notified import 
licensing procedure, please indicate the document symbol of the 
notification to which change(s) has(ve) been introduced. (In this case 
please also indicate in Section 3, below, the nature of the changes (i.e. inclusion 
or exclusion of some goods and a list thereof; contact point for information and/or 
administrative body(ies) for submission of applications, etc.)):    
SFCR will incorporate 14 existing regulations into a single, more outcome based 
regulation. This includes the incorporation of the Fish Inspection Regulations, 
Licensing and Arbitration Regulations, and Dairy Products Regulations previously 
notified in G/LIC/N/3/CAN/16.  
2. Information  concerning the institution / change of import licensing procedure:  
(a) List of products subject to the licensing procedure  (Exact name of the 
products and/or whenever possible HS code and indication of the exact HS 
Nomenclature (i.e.  1996; 2002 or 2007).  Abbreviations should be avoided.  In 
the case of a long list of products, please attach the list as an Annex in Microsoft 
Word or compatible software.  Please do not use PDF, or photocopies. )  
  Under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, the import licensing procedure 
will apply to all imported food other than food additives, beverages that contain 
more than 0.5% absolute  ethyl alcohol by volume and foods used as a grain, oil, 
pulse, sugar or beverage (listed in Schedule 1 of the regulations) that meet 
specific conditions specified in section 11 of the regulations.  
To learn more about the requirements please visit 
http:// inspection.gc.ca/food/sfcr/imports/eng/1526656151226/1526656151476   
(b) Contact point for information on eligibility   
Canadian Food Inspection Agency  
Address:  1400 Merivale Road, Nepean, Ontario Canada K1A 0Y9  
Telephone:  +1-800-442-2342 (Canada and  US only)  
Website:  http://inspection.gc.ca/about -the-cfia/contact -
us/eng/1299860523723/1299860643049  
Contact officer: [] Mr. [] Mrs. Name:   G/LIC/N/2/CAN/1  
 
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  (c) Administrative body(ies) for submission of applications  (If more than one 
please include the same information for each body.)  
Canadian Food Inspection Agency  
Address:  1400 Merivale Road, Nepean, Ontario Canada K1A 0Y9  
Telephone:  +1-800-442-2342 (Canada and US only)  
Website:  http://inspection.gc.ca/about -the-cfia/my -
cfia/eng/1482204298243/1482204318353  
Contact officer: [] Mr. [] Mrs. Name:   
(d) Date and name of publication where licensing procedures are published  
Date of publication:  13/06/2018   
Source of publication (Official Gazette /journal/ website):   
Safe Food for Canadians Act (http://laws -lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/S -
1.1/index.html)  
 
Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp -
pr/p2/2018/2018 -06-13/html/sor -dors108 -eng.html )  
  
(e) Indication of whether the licensing procedure is   
[] automatic.   If so plea se indicate: (f) the administrative purpose: []  
[X]  non-automatic.   If so please indicate: (g) the measure being 
implemented through the import licensing procedure:  The licensing system 
is not intended to restrict the quantity or value of imports.  
The purpose of licensing is to ensure that importers understand their responsibility 
for ensuring that the food they import is safe for consumption, and that it will 
meet all the applicable Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) regulatory 
requirements. Licens ing will enable the CFIA to identify food safety risks, 
communicate food safety information directly to food businesses, and take 
enforcement actions when regulatory requirements are not met.   
(h) Expected duration of the licensing procedure if this can b e estimated with 
some probability, and if not, reason why this information cannot be 
provided  
The import licensing requirement will be ongoing.  
The CFIA expects that most import licences will be issued upon application. In 
some cases,  in order to secure the import licence, an assessment may need to be 
conducted by the CFIA to verify that the conditions specified in section 29 of the 
regulations are being met.    
3. Other relevant data or information:  (i.e. complete title and data conc erning the 
legislation, inclusion or exclusion of certain products from the import licensing regime and 
list thereof; changes related to t he administrative body(ies) for submission of 
applications, etc. ) 
SFCR will incorporate 14 existing regulations into a  single, more outcome based 
regulation. This includes the incorporation of the Fish Inspection Regulations, Licensing 
and Arbitration Regulations, and Dairy Products Regulations previously notified in 
G/LIC/N/3/CAN/16.  
A CFIA import licence will apply to importers of most food into Canada (as described in 
2(a)).  Once the SFCR come into force on January 15, 2019, some requirements will have 
to be met immediately. Other requirements will b e phased in over a period of 
12-30 months based on food commodity, ty pe of activity and business size.  
For example, importers of some foods will not require an import licence until July 2020.  
Please review the following website for important timeline information:  G/LIC/N/2/CAN/1  
 
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  http://inspection.gc.ca/food/sfcr/timelines/eng/1528199762125/1528199763186  
SFCR was  previously notified to the following WTO Committees:  
• Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade in G/TBT/N/CAN/394 (19 July 2013), 
G/TBT/N/CAN/394/Rev.1 (6 June 2014), G/TBT/N/CAN/394/Rev.1/Add.1 (15 July 
2014), G/TBT/N/CAN/394/Rev.2 (25 January 2017), and 
G/TBT/N/CAN/394/Rev.2/Add.1 (15 June 2018) . 
• Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  in G/SPS/N/CAN/700 (8 July 
2013), G/SPS/N/CAN/700/Rev.1 (5 June 2014), G/SPS/N/CAN/700/Rev.1/Add.1 
(15 July 2014), G/SPS/N/CAN/700/Rev.2 (24 January 2017) , and 
G/SPS/N/CAN/700/Rev.2/Add.1  (14 June 2018).  
 
 
__________  
 
 
                                                
1 "Members which institute licensing procedures or changes in these procedures shall notify the 
Committee of such within 60 days of publication [...]" (Art. 5.1) .