Effective April 1, 2021, Corporations Canada will be refunding fees charged for eligible services to federally-incorporated business and not-for-profit corporations and cooperatives (together “federal corporations and cooperatives”) when it fails to respond to clients within required time periods.

This new refund policy is in accordance with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada’s Service Fees Remission Policy (“Remission Policy”), which can be found online here.

Under the Remission Policy, Corporations Canada will issue reimbursements to federal corporations and cooperatives for services that cost $200 or more when it fails to respond to clients within the defined time period, being the service standard period plus a grace period.

The set service standard period will vary based on the service being provided and whether it is delivered online or not on-line:

• The service standard is one (1) business day for online services and ten (10) business days for non-online services; and
• The grace period is four (4) business days for online services and five (5) business days for non-online services.

If the client does not receive a response from Corporations Canada within the prescribed period, a remission of fifty percent (50%) of the service fee will be made to the client’s original method of payment. Examples of applicable responses to clients under the Remission Policy include Corporation Canada’s issuance of a certificate or a notice asking for additional information to make a decision.

The Remission Policy does not apply to service fees under $200 because they are considered low materiality fees and exempt from the policy. The Remission Policy also includes an exemption, and remissions will not be issued to clients if the defined time period is exceeded due to:

• An unforeseeable event (for example, an emergency situation, work stoppage, power failure, other unanticipated or unavoidable situations); or
• A system outage.

A complete list of eligible Corporations Canada services under the Remission Policy, as well as how eligible remissions will be processed, can be found here.

Carscallen LLP’s Corporate Services and Corporate Expertise

Carscallen LLP’s Corporate Services Department supports the team of corporate and commercial lawyers on a wide range of matters and transactions for Alberta and federally-registered organizations including: incorporation of business corporations including unlimited liability corporations and not for profit organizations; amalgamations, continuations, dissolutions and winding up and revivals; name changes, amendments to articles, consolidations and share splits; plans of arrangement; formation of limited partnerships; extra-provincial registrations; annual maintenance filings; registrations for trade names and partnerships; minute book maintenance; and support for due diligence in all North American jurisdictions. 

We are committed to understanding your business needs and offering timely, targeted legal advice that helps meet your requirements.