The Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) requires chemical suppliers to provide employers with information on the hazards of materials produced or used in Canadian workplaces. This information is communicated via product labels and material safety data sheets (MSDSs). Producers must disclose their products' health and safety risks, among other things, their procedures for safe handling, storage, transportation, disposal and first-aid treatment.

A supplier or employer wanting to protect confidential business information must file a claim for exemption with the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission. For the product to be legally available on the Canadian market, a registry number issued by HMIRC is required on the MSDS and, for certain claims, on the label.

A claimant may decide to withdraw a claim at any stage of the process.

Submitting a claim

Claims for exemption are submitted directly to the Commission. (For more about submitting a claim, visit HMIRC online.)

Pre-registration check

When the Commission receives a claim, staff verify that the application and accompanying MSDSs and labels are complete and contain no obvious errors. They also collect and verify fees.

Registering a claim

Once an application is complete and correct, the claim is assigned a registration number that appears on the MSDS in place of the product's confidential business information. This allows the company to import or sell its product in Canada while the decision-making process continues.

A notice of filing that outlines the basic characteristics of the claim is published in Part I of the Canada Gazette, giving anyone affected by the product the opportunity write to the Commission and advise whether the claim should or should not be judged valid.

Reviewing a claim

Using the most recent scientific information available, HMIRC 's health and safety evaluators review each MSDS against the regulatory criteria outlined in the Hazardous Product Act and the Controlled Product Regulations, advising screening officers of any errors or omissions. The screening officers then review the economic and security information provided by the claimant and determine if the claim is valid.

Rendering a decision

At the end of both the MSDS and claim reviews, decisions and a compliance undertaking are sent out to the claimant as appropriate. Once a claim is found to be valid, the claimant is granted an exemption for three years, at which point the claim will need to be refiled if the exemption is to continue.

When an MSDS does not meet the regulatory requirements, the claimant is sent an undertaking giving 30 days to make any necessary changes voluntarily and return the MSDS to the Commission. If the claimant does not make the changes or the corrections are unsatisfactory, the screening officer issues a formal Order that becomes legally binding 45 days after the publication of the deficiencies in the Canada Gazette.

If a claim is found to be invalid because the information submitted to HMIRC insufficiently supports either the economic value of the product or the need to protect its confidentiality, the claimant is required to declare all ingredients and concentrations on the MSDS and withdraw the product from the market.

Filing appeals

When a decision, order or undertaking is published in the Canada Gazette, claimants and affected parties have 45 days to file an appeal. On filing, a notice of appeal is published in the Canada Gazette to provide any other affected parties the opportunity to make representations to the appeal board. The appeal board consists of three members: one from the federal government, another from industry and a third from organized labour. The length of the appeals process varies with the complexity of each case.

The appeal board decides whether to dismiss the appeal and confirm the screening officer's decision, undertaking and order, or to allow the appeal and either vary or rescind the decision, undertaking or order. A notice of decision, including the reasons for it, is published in the Canada Gazette.

OVERVIEW OF THE CLAIM FOR EXEMPTION PROCESS