Amendments to Human Rights Benefit Regulations

Summary#

These are final federal regulations titled Regulations Amending and Repealing Certain Regulations Made Under the Canadian Human Rights Act (Miscellaneous Program) (SOR/2022-150). They were registered on June 21, 2022 and published in the Canada Gazette on July 6, 2022. The rules repeal two old investigation regulations and update wording in the Canadian Human Rights Benefit Regulations to reflect modern family and benefit arrangements.

What it does#

• Repeals the Immigration Investigation Regulations and the Customs and Excise Human Rights Investigation Regulations, because they are considered obsolete and replaced in practice by the Canadian Human Rights Commission’s complaint rules.
• Updates the Canadian Human Rights Benefit Regulations by:
  • Removing some old definitions and adding clearer ones for benefit types, including disability income insurance plan and health insurance plan.
  • Replacing the old wording for “child” to include children of an employee or of their spouse or common‑law partner and any child as defined by the benefit plan.
  • Adding a clear definition of common-law partner (people who have lived together in a conjugal relationship for at least one year before the qualifying event).
  • Adjusting several provisions so they refer to “spouse or common‑law partner” where relevant and to allow certain actuarial differences in contribution or benefit rates for particular situations (for example, survivor or dependent benefits).

Who's affected#

• Employees and employers who use or offer workplace benefit plans (pension, life, health, disability), since the definitions affect who counts as a spouse, child or common‑law partner under those rules.
• People filing or involved in human-rights complaints about immigration or customs officers. The practical investigation rules they would rely on are now the Commission’s complaint rules rather than the repealed regulations.
• Canadian Human Rights Commission and legal advisers who handle human-rights complaints and benefit-related cases.
• The Regulatory Impact Analysis states no new costs for government or stakeholders and that small businesses are not affected.

Why it matters#

• The changes modernize legal language so benefit rules line up with contemporary family situations (for example, recognizing common‑law partners). That can affect who is eligible for survivor, dependent or spouse benefits.
• Removing the two investigation regulations reflects that complaint-handling is now governed by flexible procedural rules, which may simplify how complaints about immigration or customs officers are processed.
• For most people, the change is about clarity and consistency: it reduces outdated terms and makes it clearer who qualifies for benefits covered by human-rights rules.