Facts about Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance)

This document was prepared to address the most common questions received by Health Canada following final publication of the Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance) [TPR (PSA)] on May 1, 2019.

Disclaimer: This document is provided to facilitate compliance with the Tobacco and Vaping Products Act (TVPA) and the TPR (PSA). It is not intended to provide legal advice regarding the interpretation or application of the legislation. In the event of discrepancy between the legislation and this document, the legislation takes precedence. If a regulated party has questions about legal obligations or responsibilities under the Act or the TPR (PSA), they should seek their own legal advice. Health Canada reserves the right to modify this document as appropriate and without notice.

General

1. When to comply with the Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance)

The TPR (PSA) comes into force in phases starting on November 9, 2019.

Cigarettes: Most requirements for cigarettes came into force on November 9, 2019. Retailers have until February 7, 2020 to comply. The remaining measures, which relate to slide-and-shell packaging and beveled edges, come into force on November 9, 2021. Retailers have to comply with all requirements for cigarettes by February 9, 2022.

Little Cigars: Requirements for little cigars came into force on November 9, 2019. Retailers have until February 7, 2020 to comply.

Cigars: Requirements for cigars other than little cigars come into force on November 9, 2020. Retailers have until May 8, 2021 to comply.

Tobacco Products Intended for Use with Devices: Most requirements for tobacco products intended for use with devices came into force on November 9, 2019. Retailers have until February 7, 2020 to comply. The remaining requirements, which relate to the appearance and filters of tobacco products intended for use with a device, come into force on November 9, 2021. Retailers have until February 7, 2022 to comply with all requirements.

Other Tobacco Products: Requirements for all other tobacco products and their packaging came into force on November 9, 2019. Retailers have until February 7, 2020 to comply.

By November 9, 2021, all provisions will be in force, other than at retail. Full implementation, including at retail, will occur on February 9, 2022. For greater detail, refer to sections 89 to 91 of the TPR (PSA).

2.  Provision of pre-approved package designs by Health Canada

Health Canada will not provide pre-approved package designs.  It is the responsibility of regulated parties to understand and comply with all applicable federal laws and regulations, including the requirements set out in the TPR (PSA). Regulated parties are invited to seek the advice of a legal counsel to assist them in interpreting legislation. Health Canada does develop and publish targeted resource materials to build awareness of the legal requirements among manufacturers and other regulated parties. Information regarding compliance promotion activities, which may include webinars or technical briefings, is shared with these parties when available.

3. Application of Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance) to tobacco products “intended for retail sale in Canada” including, duty-free shops, trans-border stores, ships’ stores, and to Canadian tobacco products sold in duty-free stores

The TPR (PSA) apply to every package that contains a tobacco product and to every tobacco product that is intended for retail sale in Canada.
Please refer to subsections 2(1) and (2) of the TPR (PSA), copied here, for information on packaging requirements:

• 2 (1) These Regulations apply to every package that contains a tobacco product and that is intended for retail sale in Canada, as well as to every tobacco product that is intended for retail sale in Canada.
• (2) These Regulations also apply to a package that does not contain a tobacco product, if the package is furnished by a manufacturer of a tobacco product so that a tobacco product, primary package or secondary package may be placed in it after the tobacco product, primary package or secondary package is sold at retail in Canada.

Further, please note that the term “retailer” is defined in section 2 of the TVPA, as follows:

• retailer means a person who is engaged in a business that includes the sale of tobacco products or vaping products to consumers.

4. Application of Tobacco Product Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance) to manufacturers, retailers, distributors, and others

As of November 9, 2019, sections 5.3 and 23 of the Tobacco and Vaping Products Act (TVPA) were in force. Transitional provisions for retailers are in place with respect to the sale of tobacco products after November 9, 2019. Please refer to section 89 of the TPR (PSA) and the definition of retailer found in section 2 of the TVPA. The sections mentioned above have been appended below.

• Tobacco and Vaping Products Act
  retailer means a person who is engaged in a business that includes the sale of tobacco products or vaping products to consumers.
• Marking
  5.3(1) No person shall manufacture or sell a tobacco product that displays a marking, unless the marking is authorised by the regulations.
• Exception
  (2) A person who manufactures or sells a tobacco product that displays a marking does not contravene subsection (1) if the marking is required under an Act of the legislature of a province.
• Additive
  (3) Despite sections 5.1 and 5.2, a manufacturer may use a prescribed additive to display on a tobacco product a marking that is authorized by the regulations or that is required under an Act of the legislature of a province and may sell a tobacco product that displays such a marking.
• Packaging
  23(1) No person shall package a tobacco product in a manner that is contrary to the provisions of this Act or of the regulations.
• Prohibition - sale
  23(2) No person shall sell a tobacco product that is packaged in a manner that is contrary to the provisions of this Act or the regulations.
• Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance)
  Transitional Provisions
  Definition of transitional period
  89(1) For the purposes of this section, transitional period means
  1. in respect of all tobacco products and packages that contain tobacco products, including little cigars but no other cigars or packages that contain other cigars, the period beginning on the day on which these Regulations come into force and ending on the 90th day after that day; and
  2. in respect of cigars and packages that contain cigars, other than little cigars, the period beginning on the day on which these Regulations come into force and ending on the 180th day after that day.
• Tobacco product or package
  (2) During the transitional period, a retailer may sell a package that contains tobacco products or a tobacco product that does not meet the requirements of these Regulations.
• Package or bag
  (3) During the transitional period, a retailer may furnish a package or bag referred to in section 60 that does not meet the requirements of these Regulations. 

5. Location of the excise stamp on the package of a tobacco product

While there are new requirements for tobacco product packaging under the TPR (PSA), the Excise Act, 2001 and its regulations, which are administered by the Canada Revenue Agency, continue to apply for tobacco products. Section 4.2 of the Stamping and Marking of Tobacco and Cannabis Products Regulations prescribes manner of affixing an excise stamp to a package, that is:

• in a conspicuous place on the package;
• in a manner that seals the package;
• in a manner that the stamp remains affixed to the package after the package is opened;
• in a manner that does not interfere with the stamp's security features; and
• in a manner that does not obstruct any information that is required by or under an Act of Parliament to appear on the package.

6. Re-packaging of tobacco products that have entered the duty-paid market

Neither the TVPA nor the TPR (PSA) require a license or permit to manufacture or sell tobacco products.

Once entered into the duty-paid market, the Excise Act, 2001 does not permit “repackaging” to re-wrap and re-stamp or re-wrap and reapply tobacco markings to finished packaged tobacco products, nor does the Excise Act, 2001 provide for a refund.

7. Modifications to existing legislation to accommodate the Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance)

To support implementation of the plain and standardized appearance requirements, some amendments were made to existing legislation. For example, the following provisions of the Act to amend the Tobacco Act and the Non-smokers’ Health Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (formerly known as Bill S-5) came into force on November 9, 2019: subsection 7(2), section 8, subsection 11(2) and sections 25, 28, 31 and 57.

Schedule 1 of the TVPA, which sets out prohibited additives, is amended through the Order Amending Schedule 1 to the Tobacco and Vaping Products Act (Colouring Agents), to align the restrictions on the use of colouring agents with those set out in the TPR (PSA).

Sections 81 to 88 of the TPR (PSA) list consequential amendments made to the Tobacco Products Information Regulations and the Tobacco Products Labelling Regulations. These changes were needed to ensure proper operation of the regulations.

8. Differentiating a “little cigar” from other cigars

The requirements for “little cigars” do not come into force at the same time as those for other cigars. It is therefore important to take note that the term “little cigar” is defined in section 2 of the TVPA, copied below for convenience:

• little cigar means a roll or tubular construction that
  1. is intended for smoking;
  2. contains a filler composed of natural or reconstituted tobacco;
  3. has a wrapper, or a binder and a wrapper, composed of natural or reconstituted tobacco; and
  4. has a cigarette filter or weighs no more than 1.4 g, excluding the weight of any mouthpiece or tip.

Cigars (Other than “little cigars”)

9. Requirements of the Tobacco Product Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance) that apply to the shape or materials of a primary package that contains cigars

For a primary package that contains cigars, there are no requirements for either its shape or its materials.

10. Distinguishing between an overwrap and a primary package, where colourless transparent cellophane made of plastic or acrylic is used to hold cigars

Please note the following definition, from the TPR (PSA):

• primary package means any package – other than an overwrap – that is intended for retail sale in Canada and in which a tobacco product is directly placed.

There are no requirements for the shape and materials of a primary package that contains cigars. However, among the measures that apply to primary packages, there is a requirement in section 10 of the TPR (PSA) prescribing the colour of primary packages, which applies to all packages, including those that contain cigars.

• Standardized colour
  10(1) Except as otherwise provided by these Regulations, every interior and exterior surface of a primary package and of a secondary package must be drab brown.

The requirements for an overwrap covering more than one cigar are set out in paragraphs 24(b-d) and sections 25 and 50 of the TPR (PSA). These provisions read as follows:  

• Overwrap
  24 Except as otherwise provided by these Regulations, any overwrap that covers a primary package or secondary package must
  1. be transparent and colourless;
  2. not include any tear tape;
  3. not display any brand element;
• Overwrap – more than one primary package
  25 If an overwrap covers more than one primary package, the following information and features may be displayed on it:
  1. calibration marks that meet the requirements of section 19;
  2. a bar code, if it is displayed only once on the overwrap, meets the requirements of subsection 16(1) and paragraph 16(2)(a) and is printed directly on the overwrap or on a label that meets the requirements of section 11 and subsections 13(1) and 14(1);
  3. a solid black rectangle to cover the bar code on each primary package;
  4. the declaration of net quantity and the common name of the tobacco product, printed in white on a black rectangle, if they are oriented parallel to and in the same direction as any information that is displayed on the surface that the overwrap covers; and
  5. a health warning and any other information that is required or authorized by or under the Act, any other Act of Parliament or any Act of the legislature of a province.
• 50 (1) Any overwrap that covers a cigar must mould to the cigar and meet the requirements of paragraphs 24(b) to (d).
• (2) If an overwrap covers more than one cigar, the information and features referred to in section 25 may be displayed on the overwrap.

Overwraps must also comply with the packaging and stamping requirements of the Excise Act, 2001 and its regulations.

11. Provisions of the Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance) that permit cigar companies to indicate the size of the cigar on their packages (e.g. 5 x 40)

There is no provision in the TPR (PSA) that prescribes how cigar sizes are to be declared.

12. Printing of both the brand name and the variant/denominator on the tipping paper for cigars

Neither the brand name nor the variant name can be printed on the tipping paper of cigars. Pursuant to subsection 5.3(1) of the TVPA, “no person shall manufacture or sell a tobacco product that displays a marking, unless the marking is authorized by regulations .”

However, paragraph 71(1)(a) of the TPR (PSA ) sets out how the brand name may be displayed on a cigar band:

• Information on cigar band
  71 (1) The following information may be displayed on a cigar if it is displayed on a band that is fitted around the circumference of the cigar and meets the requirements of this section:
• (a) a brand name that is not prohibited by the TVPA and does not evoke a colour or a characteristic of a filter .

13. Importation of premium cigars with branded packaging

As of November 9, 2020, all cigars need to comply with the requirements of the TPR (PSA) before they are released into the Canadian market.

The Excise Act, 2001 requires all imported tobacco products for the Canadian market be stamped prior to importation or before release under the Customs Act for entry into the duty-paid market. For questions about the excise stamp, please email the Canada Revenue Agency at excise.stamp@cra-arc.gc.ca

14. Labels affixed to the front of otherwise unmarked packages or overwrap

The requirements regarding the information that may be included on a sticker, and the requirements regarding the sticker’s appearance, can be found at section 22 of the TPR (PSA):

• Sticker and tab
  22 (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (5), the interior and exterior surfaces of a primary package and of a secondary package must not include any sticker or tab.
• Exception — required information
  (2) An exterior surface of a primary package and of a secondary package may include an irremovable sticker that displays information required by or under the Act, any other Act of Parliament or any Act of the legislature of a province, if the sticker is placed on the package in such a manner that it does not conceal or obscure any such information on the package.
• Sticker — surface
  (3) The sticker is deemed to form a part of the surface on which it is placed.
• Sticker — requirements
  (4) However, only the requirements of sections 9 to 12, subsections 13(1) and 14(1) and sections 17 and 20 apply to the sticker.
• Exception — pouch or soft package
  (5) An interior and exterior surface of a primary package that is a pouch or a soft package may include a rectangular tab for resealing the package after opening if the tab
  1. does not conceal or obscure any information required by or under the Act, any other Act of Parliament or any Act of the legislature of a province; and
  2. does not display any brand element or any information.
• Tab — requirements
  (6) Only the requirements of subsection 10(1) and sections 11 and 12, subsections 13(1), 14(1) and 17(1) and section 20 apply to the tab.
• Transparent and colourless sticker or tab
  (7) Any tab or sticker that covers any information required by or under the Act, any other Act of Parliament or any Act of the legislature of a province must be transparent and colourless.

15. Ensuring that cigars are not impacted by the colouring agents used on the interior of cardboard packaging

It is the manufacturer’s and importer’s responsibility to speak with their supplier or packaging material provider to determine if the colouring agent used to provide compliant colour for the interior of the package will negatively impact the cigars. Regarding the specific colouring requirements for packages made of cardboard, please refer to subsection 10(1) of the TPR (PSA) and the definition of “drab brown” in subsection 1(1) of the TPR (PSA). Additionally, a lining that meets the requirements of paragraphs 23(a) to (c) and section 52 of the TPR (PSA) may be used in packages containing cigars. These provisions read as follows:

• drab brown means the colour known as Pantone 448 C.
• 10 (1) Except as otherwise provided by these Regulations, every interior and exterior surface of a primary package and of a secondary package must be drab brown.
• Lining
  23 Except as otherwise provided by these Regulations, any lining that is placed in a primary package must
  1. be white or drab brown;
  2. have a matte finish and no variations in colour tone;
  3. not display any brand element or any information; and
  4. have a smooth texture, without any raised features, embossing, decorative ridges, bulges or any other irregularities aside from embossed dots or squares that are required for the automated manufacturing process and that are uniform in size and equidistant.
• Lining (Cigars)
  52 Any lining that is placed in a primary package that contains cigars must
  1. have a smooth texture, without any raised features, embossing, decorative ridges, bulges or other irregularities, unless such features are necessary to hold the cigar in place or to remove it from the lining; and
  2. meet the requirements of paragraphs 23 (a) to (c)

The Tobacco Product Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance) can be found at https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-2019-107/FullText.html