Controlled Goods Program (CGP) Registration

If your business is bidding on defence or security contracts, you'll need to register with the Controlled Goods Program before you can even look at certain procurement documents. This isn't optional. The moment you need to examine, possess, or transfer controlled goods—military equipment and dual-use technologies—you're required by law to register under the Defence Production Act and Controlled Goods Regulations.

How It Works

The Controlled Goods Directorate at Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) manages the registration process. According to their official guidelines, you must register before you can receive bid solicitation documents that contain controlled goods or controlled technology. In practice, this means you can't participate in many DND procurements without this registration already in hand.

Here's what the process involves: You'll submit a security plan for each business location where controlled goods will be handled. Your designated official must complete mandatory training. Every employee who'll access these materials needs a criminal record check. The application itself takes up to 32 business days under normal circumstances, though current processing times run longer due to increased demand. Your registration remains valid for a fixed period, then requires renewal with updated documentation—evidence of legal status, a revised security plan, and six-month reports on security-assessed individuals.

The recordkeeping requirements extend five years beyond your registration period. Working on a multi-year defence contract? You're maintaining detailed records long after project completion. These records must demonstrate compliance with the Controlled Goods Regulations throughout the entire lifecycle of any controlled goods you handled.

Key Considerations

• You need registration before bidding, not after winning a contract. Many suppliers discover this too late, scrambling to register when they've already identified an opportunity. Build the 32+ business day timeline into your business development planning.

• Registration applies to examination, not just possession. Even if you're only reviewing technical specifications in a solicitation document, you need to be registered if those specs contain controlled technology information.

• The security plan requirement is location-specific. If you operate from multiple sites and controlled goods might appear at any of them, each location needs its own approved security plan with appropriate physical and procedural safeguards.

• Criminal record checks and designated official training create internal dependencies. You can't complete your application until these elements are in place, so identify your designated official early and factor in RCMP processing times for background checks.

Related Terms

Mandatory Criteria Compliance Matrix, Security Clearance Requirements, Industrial Security Program

Sources

• Guideline on Controlled Goods Program Registration - Public Services and Procurement Canada

• Register in the Controlled Goods Program - Public Services and Procurement Canada

• Forms, Templates and Guidelines for Controlled Goods Registration - Public Services and Procurement Canada

If you're pursuing defence contracts, add CGP registration to your pre-qualification checklist alongside bonding and insurance requirements. The time to register is before you need it, not when a competitive solicitation appears with a tight deadline.