Product Safety Test Methods
Regulated parties are responsible for ensuring that their products are compliant with the applicable Act and Regulations.
Health Canada's Product Safety Laboratory (PSL) test methods are developed by the Department to verify compliance of consumer products and cosmetics. While the use of these methods is not mandatory, it is the regulated parties' responsibility to ensure that their products are assessed according to the applicable requirements outlined under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act and the Food and Drugs Act and their Regulations.
The PSL only shares test methods that were developed and validated internally. These methods are made available to support industry in understanding mandatory regulatory requirements where standard test methods are not referenced in a regulation or do not exist.
In cases where a specific test method or test parameters are not set out in the applicable Act or its Regulations, a regulated party may use the test procedures or equipment of their choice, ensuring that they are suitable for determining compliance with prescribed requirements.
The following test methods are available from the PSL by completing the CPS Enquiry Form:
Under Program, select Consumer Product Safety. Then, under Enquiry Type, select Test Method Request.
The test method effective date referred to below is used for version control purposes only and indicates the most current edition of the method
- Determination of Total Lead in Surface Coating Materials in Consumer Products by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) (C02.2.2) Effective 2024-11-27
- Determination of Total Lead and Cadmium in Plastic Consumer Products by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) (C02.3.1) Effective 2021-02-22
- Determination of Total Lead and Cadmium in Metallic Consumer Products by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) (C02.4.1) Effective 2019-03-15
- Determination of Total Metals in Cosmetic Samples by Closed-Vessel Microwave Digestion and ICP-MS Analysis (C05) Effective 2022-06-08
- Determination of Total Mercury in Surface Coating Materials, Applied Coatings, and Cosmetic Samples by Direct Mercury Analyzer Wide Range (DMA 80 WR) (C07) Effective 2023-07-19
- Determination of Migratable Arsenic (As), Barium (Ba), Cadmium (Cd), Antimony (Sb), and Selenium (Se) in Applied Surface Coating Materials by ICP-OES (C08.1) Effective 2022-10-18
- Determination of Leachable Lead in Kettles by ICP-MS (C09) Effective 2024-09-27
- Determination of Migratable Lead and Cadmium from Glazed Ceramics and Glassware by ICP-OES (C10.1) Effective 2024-01-04
- Determination of α-pinene, D-Limonene and α-terpineol in Consumer Products by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) (C11.1) Effective 2020-07-08
- Determination of Ethylene Glycol and Di-Ethylene Glycol in Consumer Products by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) (C11.2) Effective 2020-08-10
- Determination of the pH of Cosmetics and Similar Consumer Products using the PC-Titrate Instrument (C13.1) Effective 2021-05-05
- Determination of Acid and Alkali Reserves of Consumer Products by Titration (C14.2) Effective 2020-06-29
- Determination of the Flame Projection and Flashback of Consumer Products Enclosed in Pressurized Containers (C23) Effective 2021-05-13
- Determination of the Flame Projection and Flashback of Consumer Products Enclosed in Pump-Spray Containers (C23.1) Effective 2021-05-13
- Determination of the Flame Projection and Flashback of Cosmetic Products (C23.2) Effective 2021-05-13
- Automatic Determination of the Kinematic Viscosity of Transparent and Opaque Liquids by miniAV Automatic Viscometer (C27) Effective 2021-04-22
- Determination of Leakage in Child Resistant Containers (C29) Effective 2021-06-09
- Determination of Boric Acid and Salts of Boric Acid in Toys by ICP-MS (C30) Effective 2019-12-13
- Determination of Phthalates in Polyvinyl Chloride Consumer Products by GC/EI-MS (C34.3) Effective 2025-01-24
- Determination of Tris (2-Chloroethyl) Phosphate (TCEP) in Polyurethane Children's Products and Similar Consumer Products by Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE) and GC-MS (C38.1) Effective 2024-06-28
- Determination of para-Phenylenediamine (PPD) in cosmetics and similar consumer products by GC-MS (C42) Effective 2023-03-16
- Flammability of toys (dolls, plush toys, and soft toys) (F02) Effective 2024-11-22
- Flammability of loose-fitting children's sleepwear (F17) Effective 2025-06-10
- Test method for lighters (F19) Effective 2025-04-11
- Small Components (consumer product including its components, parts or accessories) (M00.1) Effective 2024-02-26
- Sharp Edges (consumer product including its components, parts or accessories) (M00.2) Effective 2025-01-24
- Sharp Points (consumer product including its components, parts or accessories) (M00.3) Effective 2024-02-29
- Eye / Nose Security - Dolls, Plush Toys and Soft Toys (M00.4) Effective 2025-04-03
- Reasonably Foreseeable Use - Toys (M01.1) Effective 2024-03-11
- Flexible Film Bags (M03) Effective 2025-01-15
- Sound Level of Toys (M04) Effective 2025-07-25
- Rattles (M05) Effective 2024-04-29
- Playpens (M08) Effective 2022-01-12
- Pacifiers and Other Similar Consumer Products (M09) Effective 2025-07-11
- Cribs (M12.1) Effective 2024-09-11
- Cradles (M12.2) Effective 2023-12-28
- Bassinets (M12.3) Effective 2023-12-28
- Accessories and Stands (M12.4) Effective 2023-12-28
- Corded Window Coverings (M22) Effective 2023-10-25 (a Questions and Answers document related to the Corded Window Coverings Test Method (M22) is available upon request via email at cps-spc@hc-sc.gc.ca)