Trade and Policy

The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) understands the key relationship between trade, standardization and conformity assessment. Consequently, a significant amount of its work focuses on trade-related issues, within Canada and internationally.

Nationally, the SCC works to keep the lines of communication open with provincial and territorial representatives to ensure the effectiveness of national standards and trade across the country.

On the global stage, the SCC plays an important role on Canada's behalf as the National Enquiry Point for information from around the world concerning upcoming regulatory and standardization changes impacting trade. This service is a requirement of Canada's membership in both the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

The SCC also offers technical support and advice to government and industry on trade issues related to standardization. It assists International Trade Canada (ITCan) in formulating Canadian policy positions on standards issues in the WTO, as well as other trade agreements and partnerships. As Canada's national accreditation body, the SCC is also involved in helping to negotiate both voluntary and formal  recognition agreements for conformity assessment practices with trading partners.

This includes supporting the International Accreditation Forum (IAF), Cross Frontier Policy for accreditation bodies. The policy aims to increase cooperation among national accreditation bodies in order to facilitate the goal of a global accreditation system that would eliminate the need for duplicative testing of products and services and reduce unnecessary barriers to international trade.

The SCC is committed to helping developing countries build their own standardization systems and meeting the requirements set out in international trade agreements through cooperation with national and international partners.