Canadian services

Canadian Service is a defined term used in Government of Canada procurement solicitations. It means a service provided by an individual based in Canada. The definition appears in the annex titled "Solicitation of Offers Definitions" in a CanadaBuys solicitation, where the singular form, Canadian Service, is the one defined.

The test looks at where the people delivering the work are based. When one service is provided by two or more individuals, Canada treats it as a Canadian Service when at least 80% of the total offer price for that service is provided by individuals based in Canada, as set out in the solicitation definitions. The plural, Canadian services, is used in the same procurement material.

How the 80% rule applies to a single service

The definition works at the level of the individual who performs the service. A service delivered by one person qualifies if that person is based in Canada. A service delivered by a team is measured by price. The portion of the total offer price for that service that is provided by individuals based in Canada must be at least 80%, according to the Solicitation of Offers Definitions annex.

This means a bidder with a mixed team needs to know both who will perform each part of the service and how much of the offer price each person represents.

Related defined terms in the same annex

Canadian Service is defined alongside several other terms in the annex. They are read together when a solicitation sets Canadian requirements:

• Canadian Goods, the goods counterpart to Canadian Service.
• Mix of Goods and Services, which applies when a requirement combines both.
• Canadian offeror, which describes the bidder rather than the service.
• Canadian content, a further defined term in the same material.

For a Mix of Goods and Services, the solicitation states that at least 80% of the total offer price must consist of Canadian Goods and Canadian Services. The definitions are in the CanadaBuys solicitation annex.

Canadian-only requirements and bidder certification

Canadian Service matters most when a solicitation limits eligibility. A requirement can be expressly limited to Canadian goods and Canadian services. In that case, the definitions decide whether an offer is eligible at all.

Bidders may also be required to certify that the goods and services they offer are Canadian goods and Canadian services as the solicitation's definitions describe them. The certification ties the bidder to the annex wording, so the definition is a compliance matter and not just background. Each solicitation sets its own wording, and the annex attached to the notice governs that procurement. Notices are published on CanadaBuys.

Innovative Solutions Canada and the 80% cost threshold

The term also appears outside standard tenders. Government of Canada material for Innovative Solutions Canada states that, for a particular program requirement, at least 80% of the financial proposal costs must be Canadian goods or Canadian services. The page directs suppliers to the CanadaBuys solicitation annex for the complete definitions. See the Innovative Solutions Canada page.

The Canadian Service definition is therefore not confined to one type of notice. Suppliers meet it in both solicitations and program requirements that point back to the same annex.

What it means for a supplier

Before bidding, read the Solicitation of Offers Definitions annex and confirm whether the requirement is limited to Canadian goods and services. Then take these steps:

• Determine whether each individual who will provide the service is based in Canada.
• Where several individuals provide one service, calculate the share of the total offer price provided by individuals based in Canada and compare it with the 80% threshold in the solicitation.
• Submit any required certification that the offered services meet the definition.