WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/TBT/N/CAN/351 
8 December 2011  
 (11-6377) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English/ 
 French 
 
 
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6 
 
1. Notifying Member:  CANADA  
If applicable, name of local governme nt involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):     
2. Agency responsible:  Department of Transport 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above :  Canadian Enquiry 
Point, 200-270 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontari o, Canada, K1P 6N7 Tel.:  +1 613 238 3222, 
Fax.: +1 613 569 7808, E-mail:  enquirypoint@scc.ca  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [ X ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:   
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Built-in restraint systems 
and built-in booster seat s (ICS:  97.190, 43.040) 
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Proposed amendment 
to Certain Regulations Made under the Motor Ve hicle Safety Act (20 pages, available in 
English and French)     
6. Description of content:  Over the past two decades, the average size of children has 
increased, but the safety standards for built-in child seats have not kept pace. Recognizing this 
change, the United States has recently revised its  requirements for child seats to account for 
heavier children in order to improve safety.  
This proposal would more closely align Canadian  requirements for built-in restraint systems 
and built-in booster seats with those of the United States, with regard to both performance 
requirements and testing protocol s. Close alignment of regula tions would reduce costs to 
manufacturers, who can then pass on savings to Canadian consumers. In addition, this 
proposed amendment would align the requirements for built-in child seats with recently 
proposed amendments for removable child seats. 
The proposed amendment introduce the followi ng changes with respect to the current 
regulations: 
Motor Vehicle Saf ety Regulations 
The amendment seeks to update the Canadian sa fety standard governi ng built-in restraint 
systems and built-in booster seats, as much as  possible aligning the Canadian requirements 
more closely with those of the United Stat es and maximizing flexibility in testing. G/TBT/N/CAN/351 
Page 2  
 
  Booster cushions and stru cture of regulations  
The Canadian regulations have always used the expression “boos ter cushions” in reference to 
seats used by children to allow them to safely  use seat belts. As this term has caused 
confusion in the past, and with a view to  aligning terminology with that of the Motor Vehicle 
Restraint Systems and Booster Seats Safety Regulations , it is proposed that "booster cushion" 
be replaced with the more common expression “boo ster seat.” This would affect the title of 
the following two motor vehicle safe ty standards: standard No. 210.2, Lower Universal 
Anchorage Systems for Restraint Sy stems and Booster Cushions, and standard No. 213.4 , 
Built-in Restraint Systems and Bu ilt-in Booster Cushions, whic h would respectively become 
Lower Universal Anchorage Systems for Rest raint Systems and Booster Seats and Built-in 
Child Restraint Systems and Built-in Booster Seats.  
It is also proposed that the t itle of standard No. 210.1 become User-ready Teth er Anchorages 
for Restraint Systems and Booster Seats. 
This proposal would have the effect of restruct uring the regulations in order to clarify the 
intention behind certain requirements by adopti ng new definitions, rewriting certain parts of 
the text, replacing certain word s, adding clarifications and correcting reference errors.  
Motor Vehicle Restraint Systems and Booster Seats Safety Regulations  
A new formulation is proposed for the booster seat quasi-sta tic test in the Motor Vehicle 
Restraint Systems and Booste r Seats Safety Regulations . The test procedure and the apparatus 
would now be described in Test Method 213.2. 
Note: The Department's intention to update the child seat regul ations has been part of its 
regulatory plan since December 2006. An important  portion of the new regulations pertaining 
to child seats designed for larger children ha s been in effect in Canada since May 2007 by 
means of successive Interim Orders ( notified under G/TBT/N/ CAN/199, 199/Rev.1, 
199/Rev.1/Add.1, 199/Rev.2, 199/Rev.2/Add.1 and 199/Rev.2/Add.2). An Interim Order 
allows the Department to tempor arily align its requirements with  those of another country, in 
this case the United States. These Interim Orders have given Canadians access to child restraint products accommodating heavier child ren, which were previously prohibited in 
Canada. 
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
Protection of human safety  
8. Relevant documents:   Canada Gazette , Part I, 26 November 2011, Pages 3600-3619 
(Available in English and French)    G/TBT/N/CAN/351 
 Page 3 
 
 
  9. Proposed date of adoption:   
 
Proposed date of entry into force:    Normally within 5 to 8 months of publication in 
the Canada Gazette, Part I. 
 
On the date the measure is adopted. Transitional 
provision:  It is proposed that, until September 1, 2013, motor vehicle ma nufacturers would be 
allowed to comply either with the proposed 
requirements for motor ve hicle safety standard 
213.4 (pertaining to built-in restraint systems and built-in booster seats) or the previous requirements of that standard. 
10. Final date for comments:  9 February 2012 
11. Text available from:  National enquiry point [X], or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addres ses, if available of the other body:   The electronic 
version of the regulatory text can be downloaded at:   
http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-p r/p1/2011/2011-11-26/pdf/g1-14548.pdf   (Canada Gazette ) 
or  
http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/ p1/2011/2011-11-26/html/reg2-eng.html  (English)  
http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/ p1/2011/2011-11-26/html/reg2-fra.html   (French)