Canadian Government Expands Chemical Reporting Requirements For Canadian Businesses

On August 29, 2026, the Government of Canada published two mandatory notices (the notices) under paragraph 71(1)(b) of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) that establish significant reporting obligations that require businesses that manufactured, imported or used certain listed substances during the 2025 calendar year to report to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC):

Together, the notices apply to 200 substances identified by the Government of Canada as priorities for information gathering under the Chemicals Management Plan. Companies with reporting obligations include chemical producers, manufacturers, importers, distributors and retailers handling components, mixtures or products containing substances listed in the notices. The information collected is intended to assist ECCC and Health Canada understand the commercial status, facility-level releases and uses of these substances in Canada, and will inform future prioritization, risk assessment and risk management decisions, including potential regulations.

The Government of Canada has also released a guidance document for these notices (the guide), which is intended to assist in responding to the notices. The guide is a helpful tool for companies to determine whether they have an obligation to report to ECCC and, if so, to compile the information needed to meet the applicable reporting deadline.

When reporting is triggered

Subject to certain exclusions, under both notices, a report is generally required where a business carried out any of the following during 2025:

• manufactured, imported or used more than 100 kg of a substance listed in Part 1 or Part 4 of Schedule 1

• manufactured, imported or used more than 1,000 kg of a substance listed in Part 2 of Schedule 1

• imported or used more than 100 kg of a substance listed in Part 3 of Schedule 1 for one of the specific applications or uses set out beside the substance in the table

Considering the broad scope of the notices, potentially impacted businesses may include manufacturers, distributors, retailers and importers that use chemical inputs listed in the notices above the relevant thresholds. This could include businesses in, among others, sectors such as industrial products, clothing and apparel, automotive, consumer goods, cosmetics, food products and food packaging.

The substances and products covered

Companies that import listed chemicals should pay particular attention to the scope of the reporting obligation. Reporting may be triggered not only by importing a listed substance on its own, but also by importing it as part of a mixture or product, or within specified types of manufactured items. The notices identify 10 categories of manufactured items that can give rise to a reporting requirement:

• manufactured items intended for children under the age of 14 years
• manufactured items intended to come into contact with the mucosa of an individual, other than eyes
• manufactured items intended to release the substance during conditions of use such that the substance may be inhaled or come into dermal contact with an individual
• cookware or serving utensils
• food packaging material
• reusable food or beverage containers
• clothing or footwear
• bedding, sleeping bags or towels
• furniture, mattresses, cushions or pillows intended to be used in a residence, where the substance is contained in foam or leather or in a textile fibre, yarn or fabric
• residential carpet, vinyl or laminate flooring, or foam underlay for flooring

The guide defines “import” to mean the movement into Canada from another country of any reportable substance, whether alone, in a mixture, in a product or in an applicable manufactured item. Notably, the guide further explains that the importer is the company that “caused” the reportable substance to come into Canada, meaning that the substance came into Canada at its request.

Foreign suppliers, being companies that export to Canada and are not located in Canada, are not subject to the notices. However, such foreign suppliers are encouraged to work with the Canadian importer to complete the reporting file.

How to report: two phases, two deadlines

Reporting under the Phase 1 Notice opened on August 29, 2026, and closes March 3, 2027. Reporting under the Phase 2 Notice opens March 4, 2027, and closes September 8, 2027. A business subject to both notices must respond to each, and all responses must be submitted through ECCC’s online Single Window system. Reports may include, among other things

• the name and address of the business or individual
• the CRA business number
• the name, address, email and phone number of an individual authorized to act on behalf of the business or individual
• the total quantity of the substance manufactured, used or imported
• the total quantity of the substance exported or used in other activities (and a description of those activities)
• information on specified facilities where the substance may have been released into the environment

Requesting an extension or confidential treatment

Compliance with each notice is mandatory; however, the Minister of the Environment may extend the reporting deadline upon written request. The request must be submitted before the reporting deadline by email to substances@ec.gc.ca, and should set out the legal name of the party, the substance identifier for each substance the business or individual will report on and the reason for the request.

A request for confidential treatment of information submitted in response to the notices may be made under section 313 of CEPA, and the request must include the reasons for it. Under Canadian law, information can be declared confidential if

• it is a trade secret
• it is information of a financial, commercial, scientific, or technical nature that is treated consistently in a confidential manner
• its disclosure could reasonably be expected to result in material financial loss to, or could reasonably be expected to prejudice the competitive position of, the respondent
• its disclosure could reasonably be expected to interfere with contractual or other negotiations of the respondent

Companies seeking to make a confidential treatment request should determine the basis upon which the request will be made and provide a strong supporting rationale for the request.

Implications for industry

The notices establish significant reporting obligations that can be time-consuming and require collaboration with supply chain partners. Companies subject to the notices should engage early by evaluating the 200 listed substances against relevant records for 2025 to determine whether the substances were manufactured, imported or used above applicable thresholds. This may require inquiries with suppliers for composition, concentration and quantity information to meet reporting obligations. Engaging with the notices early can assist companies in identifying potential gaps and provide time to gather the relevant information.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.