Government of Canada removing more than half of federal exceptions to the Canadian Free Trade Agreement to strengthen Interprovincial Trade

OTTAWA, ON, Feb. 21, 2025 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Transport and Internal Trade, announced the upcoming removal of an additional 20 federal exceptions in the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), reducing the number of federal exceptions from 39 to 19. The majority of exceptions removed relate to government procurement, providing Canadian businesses greater opportunity to compete across the country.

This action builds on the federal government's demonstrated leadership in strengthening commitments under the CFTA. In July 2024, the Government of Canada announced the removal or narrowing of 17 of its CFTA exceptions. Together, these successive reviews represent the removal of 64% of the Government of Canada's exceptions in the Agreement since it launched in 2017.

The removal of these barriers comes at a critical time, as Canada positions our domestic economy to respond to the threat of tariffs from the United States. Eliminating barriers to internal trade will reduce business costs, increase productivity, and potentially add up to $200 billion to the Canadian economy.

It's more important than ever that we work together at all levels – federal, provincial, territorial – to reduce the burden on businesses in Canada. That's why the Government of Canada is encouraging all provinces and territories to take similar steps to reduce their own exceptions under the CFTA.

The Government of Canada will continue to build on these successes and collaborate with provinces and territories to accelerate efforts to enhance internal trade and labour mobility across the country.

Quotes

"One of Canada's strongest trading partners is… Canada. We are all hands on deck to promote freer trade here at home. The removal of these federal exceptions from the CFTA is yet another step towards eliminating barriers to internal trade, reducing costs for Canadian businesses, increasing productivity and foreign investment, and adding billions to the Canadian economy."

—  The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Transport and Internal Trade

Quick Facts

• Last year, more than $530 billion worth of goods and services moved across provincial and territorial borders, representing almost 20 per cent of Canada's gross domestic product.
• The Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) came into force on July 1, 2017, to reduce and eliminate barriers to the free movement of persons, goods, services, and investments within Canada and to establish an open efficient, and stable domestic market.
• The CFTA seeks to establish an open, efficient, and stable domestic market. The CFTA exceptions are portions of the agreement that can be taken by federal, provincial or territorial governments, to exclude an industry, sector, or legislation from the agreement. Canadian business and industry have expressed that these exceptions can hinder free trade by allowing for inconsistent rules, standards, and licensing requirements for goods, investments and services. Leaders, such as the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the Business Council of Canada and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, note that reducing the number of exceptions in the CFTA will help strengthen internal trade and support the productivity of Canada's economy.

Associated Links

• Internal Trade
• Federal Action Plan to Strengthen Internal Trade
• Canadian Internal Trade Data and Information Hub
• Internal Trade Results for Canadians
• Trucking pilot to improve movement of goods
• Ministers meet to drive progress on internal trade
• Committee on Internal Trade discusses bold actions to enhance Canada's internal market
• Canadian Survey on Interprovincial Trade

SOURCE Minister of Transport and Internal Trade

For more information (media only), please contact: Laura Scaffidi, Office of the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Transport and Internal Trade, [email protected]; Media Relations, Privy Council Office, 613-957-5420, [email protected]