Canadian sanctions - Export and import restrictions

Export and import restrictions made under Canadian sanctions legislation prohibit exporting, importing, buying, selling, or shipping identified goods, commodities or technologies to or from a targeted country, as well as providing any financial, technical or other services related to such goods.

The United Nations Act (UNA) and the Special Economic Measures Act (SEMA) have specific restrictions to control the export or transfer of military, dual-use and other strategic goods and technologies, as well as certain other goods controlled for economic reasons, to targeted countries.

There are various lists of goods that may be consulted in the process of verifying if an export or import activity is prohibited under Canadian sanctions.

Sanctions - export and import restrictions

Regulations under the Special Economic Measures Act and the United Nations Act may include various prohibitions on exports and imports of certain goods. It is important to review the regulations under each sanctions regime which can be found on the respective act webpage, as well as on the country-specific sanctions pages.

Luxury Goods list

The Luxury Goods list found in the SEMA Russia Regulations prohibits the export or import, selling, purchasing or acquiring, as well as the supplying or shipping of any luxury good listed.

Restricted Goods and Technologies List

The Restricted Goods and Technologies List includes a broad range of items in the areas of electronics, computers, telecommunications, sensors and lasers, navigation and avionics, marine, aerospace and transportation goods that are prohibited for export to Russia under section 3.06 of the SEMA Russia Regulations, and to Belarus under section 3.6 of the SEMA Belarus Regulations. These goods do not have HS Codes associated with them.

Common High Priority List

The Common High Priority List (CHPL) was developed by the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and Japan, and endorsed by the Global Export Control Coalition (GECC) and the Export Enforcement Five (E5), both of which Canada is a member. This list ensures goods critical to Russian weapons development do not arrive in Russia. Notably, Canada has prohibited all the goods identified in the SEMA Russia Regulations, which includes goods other than the CHPL as well. The E5 continue to update the list and Canada is committed to ensuring those goods are prohibited for export to Russia.

Arms embargoes

Canada’s sanctions apply an arms and related materials embargo on a number of countries and entities.

An arms embargo aims to prevent weapons and military equipment from leaving or reaching a targeted country. It prohibits exporting and importing arms and related materials to and from the targeted country and may also prohibit communicating technical data or financial transactions related to military activities.

Export Control List

While the Export Control List (ECL) does not pertain to obligations under Canada’s sanctions legislation, you may want to consult this list in conjunction with screening for sanctions prohibitions. ECL refers to the obligations under the Export and Import Permit Act (EIPA), which are complementary to Canada’s sanctions export prohibitions.

In some cases, permits may be required under the EIPA, as well as under the SEMA and/or the UNA. While the EIPA is a separate legislation, the covered items may significantly overlap with those covered by sanctions legislation.