Modernized domestic plant movement rules

Summary#

These are final rules that change the Plant Protection Regulations to make domestic movement controls easier to update and to reduce paper paperwork. The changes took effect on the day they were registered: November 21, 2025 (published in the Canada Gazette on December 3, 2025).

What it does#

• Moves the domestic movement prohibitions and restrictions out of Schedules I and II and into a single document called Movement prohibitions and restrictions in Canada under the Plant Protection Act that is incorporated by reference. This lets the government update those rules without a formal regulation change.
• Removes the automatic requirement to send an original paper document when the same document was already submitted electronically. The government can still ask for an original in specific cases.
• Changes text that blocked some forms of electronic certificate exchange so future government-to-government electronic phytosanitary systems can work. It allows an inspector to accept a certificate number (so the certificate can be verified electronically).
• Repeals Schedules I and II of the Regulations and makes small related housekeeping edits (for example, moving an inspector’s authority to require a thing to be moved into a clearer place in the rules).
• The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will publish and maintain the new IBR document on its website and follow a risk-based process, including stakeholder consultation, when updating it.

Who's affected#

• Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) — administers and updates the new document and guidance.
• Businesses and people who move plants, plant products, soil, firewood, vehicles, or equipment within Canada.
• Sectors that rely on plant movement rules: forestry; fruit and vegetable growers; nursery, landscape and horticulture businesses; grain and oilseed industries.
• Importers and foreign plant health authorities that send phytosanitary certificates.
• Provincial and territorial governments and international trading partners who work with federal plant protection rules.

Why it matters#

• Faster updates: the CFIA can change domestic movement controls more quickly when science or risk changes. That can stop outdated restrictions from imposing unnecessary costs.
• Less paperwork: many businesses no longer need to print, mail, or store original paper documents. The government estimates an annualized administrative saving of $21,451.19 across about 2,250 Canadian businesses, roughly $9.53 per business.
• Prepares for electronic trade tools: removing wording that blocked some electronic exchanges helps Canada adopt a government-to-government electronic system for phytosanitary certificates, which can reduce fraud and speed trade.
• Plant health protection: more agile rules help the CFIA respond faster to emerging pests and reduce risk to crops, forests, and the environment.