Federal Government Proposes Revisions to Recently Enacted Greenwashing Provisions

On November 18, 2025, the federal Minister of Finance introduced Bill C-15 (Bill) in the House of Commons for first reading. Among other items, the Bill proposes two key amendments to the Competition Act’s (Act) recently enacted greenwashing provisions by:

1. Removing the “internationally recognized methodology” standard for substantiating environmental claims made in respect of a business or business activity (business activity provision)
2. Excluding private parties from bringing applications to the Competition Tribunal (Tribunal) for claims under the business activity provision

These proposed amendments mark a substantial reversal in the approach to addressing greenwashing concerns under the Act. These changes are expected to be welcomed by the broader business community, as the introduction of the business activity provision in June 2024 generated significant uncertainty regarding its application and enforcement by the Commissioner of Competition (Commissioner) and by private parties. For a discussion of the Act’s greenwashing provisions, please see our bulletin, Canada’s New Greenwashing Laws Enacted.

Removal of the International Recognized Methodology Standard

Under the Act, business activity claims must be “based on adequate and proper substantiation in accordance with internationally recognized methodology.” The Act does not define “internationally recognized methodology,” which has created uncertainty regarding the scope and application of the business activity provision that was not resolved in the Competition Bureau’s (Bureau) greenwashing guidelines. For a discussion of the Bureau’s guidelines, please see our bulletin, Competition Bureau Releases Guidelines on Environmental Claims.

The Bill is intended to address this uncertainty by revising the applicable standard for business activity claims to require only that they be “based on adequate and proper substantiation.” However, it remains unclear how the business activity provision will be applied in practice. For example, there is no similar “substantiation” requirement for any other provision of the Act, unlike the standard for environmental claims in respect of a product (product benefit provision) that must be “based on an adequate and proper test,” which is analogous to the standard that has long been applicable to performance claims under the Act.

While the Tribunal or the courts will ultimately still need to address the meaning of “substantiation,” the removal of the reference to “internationally recognized methodology” is likely to provide at least some comfort for the business community in satisfying the requirements of the business activity provision.

Exclusion of Private Claimants From Business Activity Provision

As of June 2025, private parties (in addition to the Commissioner) are able to bring applications to the Tribunal in respect of civil misleading representations claims. Where successful, the Tribunal is able to impose significant administrative monetary penalties of up to three times global revenues. In removing the prospect of private parties bringing an application for business activity claims, the Bill removes a significant source of uncertainty and risk for businesses, though the Commissioner may still bring such claims. However, the Bill does not entirely remove the ability of private parties to bring environmental claims under the Act; such claims may still be brought under the general misleading advertising provision or under the product benefit provision. For a discussion of the expanded private access regime under the Act, see our bulletin, Canada Expands Private Litigation Regime Under Competition Act: Expanded Scope and New Monetary Compensation.

Key Takeaways

• Bill C-15 reduces the risk of businesses contravening the greenwashing provisions of the Competition Act in respect of environmental claims regarding their business or business activities.
• Bill C-15 eliminates the risk of private litigation arising from alleged contraventions of the business activity provision.
• Businesses would still be liable and subject to litigation in respect of the business activity provision if the Commissioner brought an application to the Tribunal.
• Bill C-15 does not make any changes to the other greenwashing provisions of the Act.

For more information, please contact any member of our Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment group.