Pesticide compliance program—Marketplace inspections

Anyone distributing pesticides in Canada must comply with the requirements of the Pest Control Products Act.

The Pest Control Products Act regulates products intended to control, destroy, attract or repel pests. Products include:

• herbicides
• fungicides
• insecticides
• rodenticides
• animal and insect repellents
• material and wood preservatives
• pesticide-treated articles
• sanitizers, including pool and spa products
• devices, including devices emitting UV or ozone
• pet products (against fleas and ticks, for example)

Health Canada conducts inspections wherever pesticides are sold, in stores or online. We do this to ensure that any person or company selling pesticides complies with the Act. This means that they:

• possess, handle, store, transport, import, distribute or use pesticides that are registered in Canada
• handle, store, transport or use registered pesticides according to the label instructions
• sell pesticides in their original package or container, as it is prohibited to relabel or subdivide pesticides

How to know if the products on the shelves are registered

Pesticides registered by Health Canada have a registration number on the label. For example:

• Reg. No. 00000 P.C.P. Act
• Registration No. 00000 Pest Control Products Act

You can confirm that a product has registered status by using our "Search Product Label" online tool. You can also access this tool by typing "Health Canada pesticide labels" in a web search engine.

Advertising or selling pesticides that have not been registered in Canada, have been discontinued or their registrations have expired are common examples of non-compliance.
Non-compliance with the Act can result in enforcement measures.

For more information

Health Canada's Pesticide Compliance Program (PCP) is responsible for the enforcement of the Pest Control Products Act.