Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act (RSC 1985, c C-38) and Regulations, s 6
For packaging and labeling teams selling in Canada working out which label information has to appear in English and French. This page covers what you need to know and ways to avoid running into issues.
What we've seen reported
Canada's bilingual labeling rules, in section 6 of the regulations under the federal "Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act" (CPLA), call for the mandatory information on prepackaged consumer product labels to appear in English and French.1,2
Last updated October 2026 · General information only, not legal advice. Sources.
What the rules cover
These are the label requirements the CPLA and its regulations describe, according to their text and the Competition Bureau's guidance, and where each is described as applying.2,3
| Requirement | Where it applies |
|---|---|
| Product identity declaration | The product's common or generic name, or its function, on the principal display panel. |
| Net quantity | The net quantity of the contents, also on the principal display panel. |
| Information required on the label | Shown in both official languages, English and French, according to section 6(2). |
| Dealer name and principal place of business | The one item that may appear in either official language, according to section 6(2). |
| Local products | Made and sold only within one local government unit: may be exempt, under conditions in section 6(3). |
| Test market products | Exempt for up to 12 cumulative months, after a notice of intention filed six weeks ahead. |
| Food, drugs, medical devices and textiles | Outside the Act, under their own labeling laws, according to the Competition Bureau. |
Where it goes wrong
One approved set of product information ends up in many channels, markets and languages. Along the way it gets shortened, translated and reworded, and some versions end up without the warnings or details these rules require.
Aria 8 filter kit label: product name, net quantity and dealer details, in English and French
How Arbitr helps
Read every version by hand? Or use AI to check what you publish against what you've already approved.
FAQ
Usually after launch. The Competition Bureau describes the product's identity, net quantity and dealer details as the core of every label,3 and we usually find one language missing on:
Treat both language versions as one approved label, not a master and a translation. When the English changes, the French changes in the same approval, and every pack, sleeve and listing image is checked against the pair. Our content localization page shows how teams track this.
Keep one record per label: the approved English and French text, the product identity and net quantity wording, the dealer details, any exemption you relied on, who approved it and every pack and listing it's printed on. When a question comes in, you can show the pair and where it ran.
How it applies to a specific label is a question for your legal adviser. Where that label appears across your markets and languages is a question Arbitr answers.
Packaging and regulatory teams usually own the label, but importers, design agencies, e-commerce and sales teams all produce versions of it. Teams selling in Quebec also work with Bill 96, and rules for other markets are on our language requirements hub.
According to its text, all information the Act and the Regulations call for on the label of a prepackaged product is shown in both official languages. The dealer's identity and principal place of business may be shown in either one.2
They're separate laws from different governments. The CPLA is a federal law covering prepackaged non-food consumer products sold in Canada, according to the Competition Bureau.3 Quebec's Charter of the French Language, amended by Bill 96, is a provincial law with its own page.
No. Your reviewers stop reading everything and read only what has been flagged, with the rule and the reason attached.
