AI laws in Canada are, for now, a mix of privacy, criminal and provincial rules. Canada does not have a federal AI law. Its proposed Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA), which formed part of Bill C-27, died when Parliament was prorogued on 6 January 2025, and no replacement AI act has been introduced. Instead, a new criminal offence for sexual deepfakes, two bills before Parliament, a federal directive for government and provincial rules in Ontario and Quebec each cover part of the field.
This guide explains what applies now and what is coming. Each rule links to its entry in our Canada AI law tracker.
AI laws in Canada: the short answer
- Everyone: sharing, or threatening to share, sexual deepfakes of a person without consent has been a Criminal Code offence since 18 July 2026.
- Ontario employers: say in public job postings if AI screens applicants (since 1 January 2026).
- Businesses in Quebec: tell people when a decision about them is fully automated, and explain it on request.
- Chatbot and platform operators: watch Bill C-34, which would bring AI chatbots under a new Digital Safety Act.
What happened to AIDA, the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act
Bill C-27, the Digital Charter Implementation Act, 2022, contained AIDA as its third part. Introduced in June 2022, it also proposed a new Consumer Privacy Protection Act and a Personal Information and Data Protection Tribunal Act. Per the Justice Department, it aimed “to regulate international and interprovincial trade and commerce in artificial intelligence systems”, with common rules across Canada for the responsible development and deployment of AI systems.
Like the EU AI Act, it used a risk-based framework: it would have set rules for “high-impact” AI systems, including risk assessments, transparency duties, penalties and other enforcement mechanisms, placing duties on AI developers and deployers of AI systems, and banned some uses risking serious physical or psychological harm to individuals. It spent most of 2023 and 2024 in committee, where the government proposed amendments to AIDA, and lapsed when Parliament was prorogued. The government formed after the 2025 election created a Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation but has not reintroduced a general AI act. For now, federal AI policy runs through targeted AI legislation and voluntary measures backed by the Canadian government, such as the September 2023 Voluntary Code of Conduct on the Responsible Development and Management of Advanced Generative AI Systems.
Meanwhile, Canadian AI regulation leans on existing laws, chiefly Canadian privacy laws. PIPEDA, the federal private-sector privacy law, generally applies when Canadian businesses use personal information in an AI system, except where a province has its own similar law, as Quebec does. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada oversees it. Consumer protection, human rights and competition laws also apply to the use of AI systems.
Federal law in force
Bill C-16, the Protecting Victims Act, received Royal Assent on 18 June 2026 and most of it came into force on 18 July 2026. It expanded the Criminal Code offence of sharing intimate images without consent to cover sexual deepfakes, and made threatening to share such images an offence. The maximum sentence rose from five to ten years.
Bills before Parliament
Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, was introduced on 10 June 2026. It passed second reading on 29 October 2026 and was sent to the House of Commons heritage committee for study. It would create a Digital Safety Act and a Digital Safety Commission. Social media and AI chatbot services would have to protect children, reduce the risk of harmful content and behaviour, and put emergency measures in place for crisis situations, such as a user who mentions self-harm. The government also says it intends to use the new law to set a minimum age of 16 for social media accounts.
Bill C-36, the Protecting Privacy and Consumer Data Act, tabled on 15 June 2026, is a new privacy law for the private sector. The bill’s text defines automated decision systems and would require organisations to disclose their use where decisions could have legal or similarly significant effects on people, and to explain such decisions on request. It is awaiting second reading.
How the Government of Canada uses AI
Federal departments themselves must follow the Treasury Board’s Directive on Automated Decision-Making. Amendments that took effect in April 2023 extended it to internal services such as hiring, and require departments to complete and publish an algorithmic impact assessment before using an automated system, test for bias and explain decisions. It does not apply to private businesses, but it is a useful model of what good practice looks like.
Ontario
Under Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, as amended by the Working for Workers Four Act, 2024, employers with 25 or more employees must state in a publicly advertised job posting if artificial intelligence is used to screen, assess or select applicants. They must keep copies of postings for three years. Internal postings, general recruitment campaigns and work done entirely outside Ontario are exempt.
Ontario also passed a law in 2024 that sets out duties for public-sector bodies using AI. Those AI duties only apply once regulations are made, and none had been made by November 2026.
Quebec
Quebec’s Law 25 modernised its privacy law. Since September 2023, a business that makes a decision about someone based exclusively on automated processing of their personal information must tell the person, no later than when it informs them of the decision. On request, it must explain the personal information used and the main factors behind the decision, and let the person submit observations to a staff member who can review it. Administrative penalties can reach C$10 million or 2% of worldwide turnover.
What it means for you
Creators and everyday users
- Intimate images of real people made with generative AI tools are now treated like real ones under the Criminal Code.
- If a decision about you was made by an algorithm alone and you are in Quebec, you can ask why.
Employers
- Check whether your recruitment software or other automated tools screen or rank applicants.
- Update Ontario job ads to say so, and keep copies for three years.
- Even where it is not required, telling candidates how AI is used, and keeping human oversight of final decisions, builds trust.
AI and app builders
- Document your automated decision systems now: Quebec law already requires AI transparency, and Bill C-36 points the same way federally.
- If you run a chatbot or social platform used in Canada, follow Bill C-34: duties on child safety and crisis handling are likely.
- Use the federal AI code and the government’s own directive as best practices for responsible AI use, AI governance and AI risk management.
- Run a privacy impact assessment before deploying AI technologies on personal or health data.
Key dates
- 22 September 2023: Quebec’s automated-decision notice duty applies.
- 6 January 2025: AIDA lapses.
- 1 January 2026: Ontario AI disclosure in job postings applies.
- 18 July 2026: the sexual deepfake offence takes effect.
- 29 October 2026: Bill C-34 passes second reading and goes to committee.
- Still to come: committee study and final votes on Bill C-34, and second reading of Bill C-36.
Common questions
Is there an AI law in Canada?
There is no general federal AI statute, so the AI regulatory picture is a patchwork. AIDA lapsed in January 2025. Specific rules apply instead: the Criminal Code covers sexual deepfakes, Quebec regulates fully automated decisions, and Ontario requires AI disclosure in job postings.
Are deepfakes illegal in Canada?
Sexual deepfakes of real people shared without consent are a criminal offence since 18 July 2026, as is threatening to share them. Other deepfakes can still break laws on fraud, defamation, harassment or election communications, depending on how they are used.
Do I have to tell job applicants I use AI?
In Ontario, yes, if you have 25 or more employees and advertise the job publicly. In Quebec, you must tell people when a decision about them is made solely by automated processing. Elsewhere it is not yet required by law, but it is good practice.
Is Canada going to regulate AI chatbots?
Possibly. Bill C-34, before Parliament in late 2026, would bring AI chatbot services under a new Digital Safety Act with duties on child safety and crisis handling. It is not law yet.
What was Bill C-27?
It was a 2022 data privacy reform bill in three parts. It would have overhauled federal privacy law by repealing parts of PIPEDA and replacing them with a new act, set up a data protection tribunal and enacted AIDA. It died when Parliament was prorogued.
Does Canada have an AI minister?
Yes, a Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation, created after the 2025 election. No general AI act yet governs AI systems in Canada.
Last checked: 5 November 2026. This guide explains the law in plain English; it is not legal advice. Laws change quickly, so check the tracker entries and their official sources before you rely on them. Spotted an error? Tell us, and see how we check facts.
