Canada announces extension of measures to support the people of Syria

From: Global Affairs Canada

News release

September 10, 2025 – Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced the extension of measures to allow Canadians and persons in Canada to make more humanitarian-related transactions with Syrian institutions that would be otherwise prohibited under the Special Economic Measures (Syria) Regulations.

Today’s announcement pertains to the extension of the General Permit Allowing Specific Activities and Transactions that Are Prohibited Under the Special Economic Measures (Syria) Regulations (the “General Permit”) for a period of 6 months. The extension will support the delivery of assistance in Syria during this important period of political transition.

After decades of oppression and 13 years of conflict, the majority of Syrians now live below the poverty line, with millions in need of humanitarian assistance. The extension of the General Permit will allow Canadians, including the Syrian diaspora, civil society, non-profit, and charitable organizations to undertake humanitarian and stabilization activities and make transactions with sanctioned banks, including the Central Bank of Syria.

These measures are consistent with Canada’s commitment to supporting an inclusive and peaceful political transition in Syria, to ensure that the Syrian people have a future where everyone can live with dignity and security.

Quick facts

  • On March 12, 2025, Canada announced that it had issued a General Permit under the Special Economic Measures Permit Authorization Order, which came into force on February 28, 2025. The permit temporarily allows any person in Canada, as well as Canadians outside Canada, to carry out a specific set of activities and transactions in support of democratization, stabilization and the delivery of humanitarian assistance to, and within, Syria that were otherwise prohibited under the Special Economic Measures (Syria) Regulations (the “Syria Regulations”).

  • Canada currently imposes sanctions on 56 entities and 225 Syrian individuals, including senior officials of the former Assad regime and close associates and family members of Assad. The list of entities includes state-affiliated entities and bodies and entities owned or controlled by listed individuals or linked to repression, arms proliferation, or financial support for the Assad regime.

  • Between 2016 and 2025, Canada committed more than $4.7 billion in funding for Syria and countries hosting Syrian refugee populations, including Iraq, Jordan, and Lebanon. This funding includes significant humanitarian, development, and stabilization assistance. Canada has also resettled more than 100,000 Syrian refugees since 2015. 

  • Canada remains committed to holding the state of Syria accountable through ongoing proceedings before the International Court of Justice that began in 2023 for the torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment of its own people.

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