CUSMA entry tied to Act coming into force

Summary#

This order ties the start date of the trade agreement known as the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States (often called CUSMA) to the day most of the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement Implementation Act comes into force. The order was made on April 3, 2020 and published in the Canada Gazette on April 29, 2020. It does not bring a set of specific sections of the Act into force on that day.

What it does#

• Says the entry into force of the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States will be the same day that most of the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement Implementation Act comes into force.
• Lists parts of the Act that are excluded and will not come into force on that same day (specific sections and subsections are named in the Order).
• The Act itself had already received royal assent on March 13, 2020; this Order links the timing of the Act and the international Agreement rather than specifying a calendar date for them.

Who's affected#

• Businesses and workers involved in trade between Canada, the United States and Mexico — exporters, importers, and firms in cross-border supply chains.
• Specific sectors mentioned with potential impacts include the dairy, poultry and egg sectors.
• Federal departments and officials who handle trade rules and dispute settlement (for example, the role for the Minister of Labour and powers related to dispute panels).
• Laws that will be changed or used to implement the Agreement, for example the Criminal Code, Export and Import Permits Act, and Customs Act.
• Provinces and territories may be affected, especially where provincial regulations interact with trade commitments.

Why it matters#

• This action helps put in place the domestic legal framework needed for CUSMA to take effect and replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) when the Agreement’s own conditions for entry into force are met.
• Practical effects that flow from the Act include updated criminal rules for trade secret theft, new trade-monitoring steps for certain milk products, and changes to customs and duty-evasion cooperation — all of which can affect companies, farmers, and customs agents.
• The government says it consulted widely during negotiations (over 1,100 meetings with more than 1,300 stakeholders and over 47,000 written submissions), and some sectors expressed concern about specific outcomes; this order is a step toward implementing those agreed changes.