Ontario Free Trade and Mobility Act, 2025

S.o. 2025, chapter 3
Schedule 5

Consolidation Period: From June 5, 2025 to the e-Laws currency date.

No amendments.

CONTENTS

 

Purpose

1 The purpose of this Act is to remove barriers to trade in goods and services, to labour mobility and to investment between Ontario and other jurisdictions within Canada.

Definitions

2 In this Act,

“authorization” means a certificate, licence, registration or other form of official recognition, granted by an authorizing body to a person or entity, permitting the person or entity to provide a service in the jurisdiction of the authorizing body; (“autorisation”)

“authorizing body” means the government of a province or territory, the Government of Canada or a government agency, or a non-governmental body that exercises legal authority delegated to it by the government of a province or territory, or by the Government of Canada; (“organisme habilité à délivrer des autorisations”)

“prescribed” means prescribed by the regulations made under this Act; (“prescrit”)

“reciprocating jurisdiction” means a jurisdiction designated by a regulation made under section 3. (“autorité pratiquant la réciprocité”)

Designation of reciprocating jurisdiction

3 The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations designating Canada or another province or territory of Canada as a reciprocating jurisdiction if the Lieutenant Governor in Council has determined that the other jurisdiction has in force legislation similar to and corresponding with this Act or has taken other satisfactory steps.

Mutual recognition

4 (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations providing that the mutual recognition rules set out in subsection (2) apply with respect to a reciprocating jurisdiction.

Same

(2) The mutual recognition rules referred to in subsection (1) are as follows, subject to the regulations:

1.  A good that has met the applicable standards and received the applicable approvals relating to the composition, performance, production, manufacture, quality, marketing, labelling, testing, certification, inspection or use of the good in a reciprocating jurisdiction,

i.  shall be treated as if the good has met the corresponding standards and received the corresponding approvals in Ontario but shall otherwise be subject to any laws applicable in Ontario, and

ii.  shall not be subject to any additional approval or testing requirements or to any fees associated with approval or testing requirements by an Ontario authorizing body.

2.  If a person or entity is required under an Ontario Act or regulation to obtain an authorization issued by an Ontario authorizing body in order to provide a service in Ontario,

i.  the person or entity is entitled to be issued such authorization if the person or entity holds an equivalent authorization issued by an authorizing body of a reciprocating jurisdiction and is in good standing with that authorizing body, and

ii.  upon being issued an authorization referred to in subparagraph i, the person or entity shall be subject to any laws applicable to providers of the service in Ontario.

Issuing authorizations

5 If a person or entity is entitled under paragraph 2 of subsection 4 (2) to be issued an authorization by an Ontario authorizing body, the authorizing body, before issuing the authorization to the person or entity, may require the person or entity to satisfy,

(a)  where applicable, any requirements that may be imposed by a regulatory authority under section 9 of the Ontario Labour Mobility Act, 2009 or by a College under section 22.18 of Schedule 2 to the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991, unless otherwise prescribed; and

(b)  any prescribed requirements.

Extinguishment of causes of action

6 (1) No cause of action arises against the Crown or an Ontario authorizing body or any current or former member of the Executive Council or employee, officer or agent of or advisor to the Crown or employee, officer, agent or director of or advisor to an Ontario authorizing body as a direct or indirect result of,

(a)  the enactment, amendment or repeal of any provision of this Act;

(b)  the making, amendment or revocation of any provision of a regulation or other instrument under this Act; or

(c)  anything done or not done in accordance with this Act, or a regulation or other instrument under this Act.

No remedy

(2) No costs, compensation or damages, including for loss of revenue or profit or any other alleged loss, whether direct or indirect, are owing or payable to any person by a person referred to in subsection (1), and no remedy, including a remedy in contract, restitution, tort, a remedy for misfeasance, bad faith or a breach of trust or fiduciary obligation, any equitable remedy or any remedy under any statute, is available to any person against any person referred to in subsection (1) in connection with anything referred to in that subsection.

Proceedings barred

(3) No proceeding that is directly or indirectly based on or related to anything referred to in subsection (1) may be brought or maintained against any person referred to in that subsection.

Application

(4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply with respect to an application for judicial review or a claim for a constitutional remedy, but do apply with respect to any other court, administrative or arbitral proceeding claiming any remedy or relief, including specific performance, an injunction, declaratory relief or the enforcement of a judgment, order or award made outside Ontario.

No costs awarded

(5) No costs shall be awarded against any person in respect of a proceeding that cannot be brought or maintained under subsection (3).

No expropriation or injurious affection

(6) Nothing referred to in subsection (1) constitutes an expropriation or injurious affection for the purposes of the Expropriations Act or otherwise at law.

Proceedings by Crown not prevented

(7) This section does not apply with respect to proceedings brought by the Crown.

Regulations

7 (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations,

(a)  determining whether a non-governmental body exercises legal authority delegated to it by the government of a province or territory or by the Government of Canada, for the purposes of the definition of “authorizing body”;

(b)  governing the application of the mutual recognition rules set out in paragraphs 1 and 2 of subsection 4 (2), including governing whether a good, person or entity has satisfied a condition specified in a paragraph of that subsection, and prescribing circumstances, conditions and limitations on the application of the rules to,

(i)  reciprocating jurisdictions,

(ii)  goods, or manufacturers, producers or sellers of goods, or

(iii)  persons, entities, authorizing bodies or sectors;

(c)  providing for exemptions from paragraph 1 or 2 of subsection 4 (2) or that the rules do not apply, and prescribing circumstances, conditions and limitations for any such exemption or non-application;

(d)  governing the issuing of authorizations under section 5 and prescribing requirements for the purposes of that section;

(e)  providing for additional measures to eliminate restrictions on labour mobility for a reciprocating jurisdiction;

(f)  prescribing anything referred to in this Act as prescribed;

(g)  defining or clarifying the meaning of any word or expression used in this Act;

(h)  providing for any transitional matters arising from the enactment of this Act;

(i)  prescribing which Act or regulation shall prevail in the event of a conflict between this Act or regulations made under this Act and other Acts or regulations, and governing the application and interpretation of such Acts or regulations, including providing that a regulation may override an Act;

(j)  respecting any matter necessary or advisable to effectively carry out the intent and purpose of this Act.

Subdelegation

(2) A regulation made under subsection (1) may authorize an authorizing body or other person or entity to require, authorize or otherwise determine any matter that may be required, authorized or otherwise determined by the Lieutenant Governor in Council under that subsection.

Rolling incorporation by reference

(3) A regulation made under subsection (1) that incorporates another document by reference may provide that the reference to the document includes amendments made to the document from time to time.

Retroactive

(4) A regulation made under subsection (1) is, if it so provides, effective with reference to a period before it is filed.

8 Omitted (provides for coming into force of provisions of this Act).

9 Omitted (enacts short title of this Act).