On June 12, 2026, the Government of Canada introduced Bill C-35, “An Act respecting the prohibition of the importation of goods produced by forced labour” (the “Bill”), which, if it becomes law, will establish a new enforcement framework prohibiting the importation of goods that are produced wholly or in part by forced labour.  The Bill represents a considerable change in Canada’s existing forced labour import prohibition, with important implications for importers and customs enforcement.

As currently drafted, the Bill authorizes the Minister of Foreign Affairs (the “Minister”) to establish, by regulation, a list of goods in respect of which there are reasonable grounds to suspect are produced wholly or in part by forced labour. Importers of listed goods may be required to provide information to the Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA”) upon request. While the Bill does not create an equivalent regime to the United States’ Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”), it imposes targeted reverse-onus compliance obligations. Importers dealing with listed goods will need to provide enhanced supply chain tracing information to CBSA. A failure to provide requested information would result in the goods being deemed prohibited from importation.  

Canada currently prohibits the importation of goods manufactured or produced wholly or in part by forced labour through amendments to the Customs Tariff implemented in 2020 to comply with the Canada-United States Mexico Agreement (“CUSMA”). In 2023, Parliament expanded the prohibition to include goods produced wholly or in part by forced labour and child labour through the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act. Although dozens of imports have been detained under these measures, fewer than 10 shipments have been denied entry, and Canada has faced criticism regarding the effectiveness of enforcement.

A Ministerial List of Suspected Goods

Section 6 of the Bill authorizes the Minister to establish, by regulation, a list of goods in respect of which there are “reasonable grounds to suspect” are produced wholly or in part by forced labour. The Minister must specify the producer, and/or the country or region in which the listed goods are produced. The “reasonable grounds to suspect” standard sets a low threshold for inclusion on the list.

Information Requests and Targeted Compliance Obligations

Section 8 of the Bill introduces a new information-production requirement. Where goods appear on the ministerial list, importers must provide, upon request by a customs officer, information required by the regulations. Under section 9 of the Bill, if an importer fails to provide the required information, the goods are deemed prohibited from importation. While not a strict reverse-onus provision like that in the U.S. UFLPA, this nonetheless places a burden on the importer to satisfy the CBSA as to the information required or lose access to the Canadian market for the goods in question. According to the Government, importers of listed imports will have the responsibility to to give evidence that these products were produced in places with fair labour standards, and they will need to take steps “proactively”.

Detention and Review Framework

Subsection 5(5) provides that “[a]ny power, duty or function exercised or performed under this Act” is not subject to any appeal, review, re-determination, or further re-determination under the Customs Act. Instead, affected parties would be limited to seeking judicial review before the Federal Court.

Section 5 of the Bill provides that CBSA officers may detain a shipment for up to 90 days for the purposes of determining whether they are produced “in whole or in part” by forced labour. Furthermore, if goods are determined to be prohibited and the importer chooses to challenge the determination by way of judicial review, this could lead to goods being detained while the judicial review is decided for months or years. Detention for such long periods could have significant effects on importers, including loss of market share and severe impacts to operations.

Businesses with international supply chains should monitor the Bill’s progress and potentially forthcoming regulations carefully. Tereposky & DeRose can help you evaluate your supply chain compliance processes and prepare for or respond to CBSA enforcement action.

Authors: Stephanie Desjardins, Benedict S. Wray, Denyses Barthelemy Giron

Should you have any questions regarding these developments or compliance with Canada’s forced labour import prohibitions generally, please contact: