Health Canada - National WHMIS and CBI
Federal Jurisdiction - Workplace Hazardous Materials Bureau, within Consumer Product Safety Directorate, HECSB, Health Canada
Health Canada coordinates the administration of the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) and serves as the coordinator for the governance and administration of WHMIS in Canada. Health Canada also acts as the secretariat for this federal, provincial and territorial government partnership system.
When a supplier or employer wants to be exempt from having to disclose confidential business information (CBI), such as the chemical identity of one or more trade-secret hazardous ingredients, they must file a claim for exemption with Health Canada.
WHMIS Status
Current WHMIS Requirements
Acts
Hazardous Materials Information Review Act (HMIRA)
Regulations
Hazardous Products Regulations (HPR)
Controlled Products Regulations (CPR) - Repealed
Ingredient Disclosure List (IDL) - Repealed
Hazardous Materials Information Review Regulations (HMIRR) - Repealed
Status of the new WHMIS Requirements
On June 19, 2014, Royal Assent was granted for amendments to the Hazardous Products Act (HPA), enabling the Government of Canada to proceed with regulations to implement the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). On February 11, 2015, the Government released final regulations, the Hazardous Products Regulations (HPR), modifying WHMIS to incorporate the GHS for workplace chemicals. This modified WHMIS is referred to as "WHMIS 2015". The Controlled Product Regulations (CPR) and Ingredient Disclosure List have been repealed.
A transition period permits suppliers, importers and distributors of hazardous chemicals, as well as employers with such chemicals in their workplaces, to comply with either the WHMIS program first implemented in 1988 (WHMIS 1988) or the newly revised WHMIS program, incorporating the GHS (WHMIS 2015). The transition period began on February 11, 2015 and will end on December 1, 2018. To learn more about this program transition, please see WHMIS Transition.
The transition period provides time for stakeholders to adapt to the regulatory changes.
Communications
Announcement
Health Canada News Release
Health Canada WHMIS website
Protecting Confidential Business Information (CBI)
Health Canada - Frequently Asked Questions- Hazardous Products Regulations
Technical Guidance on the HPA/HPR WHMIS 2015 Supplier Requirements
Health Canada – WHMIS News mailing list
Subscribe to WHMIS mailing list – WHMIS News