Residency
Residency is the primary factor that determines who is obligated to report on designated packaging and paper materials supplied to consumers in each province; it is closely tied to a producer’s/steward’s responsibility as a brand holder/owner, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor.
Each province has specific guidelines for determining residency, which must be reviewed when assessing obligations, as a producer/steward may be obligated in one province but not in another. Some regulations make a producer/steward obligated if they supply materials to a province and operate anywhere in Canada.
Typically, although not fully determinative, an organization is considered resident in any province in which it is required to pay provincial income taxes. In some jurisdictions, a non-resident organization can register as a voluntary producer/steward to take on the responsibility for their supplied packaging and paper products.
Determining residency can be complex, and you may need to seek advice before confirming your status. If you have questions with respect to determining residency, please contact our Customer Relations producer onboarding team at 1-877-667-2626.
Circular Materials is pleased to assist companies in determining their residency; however, it is ultimately the producer’s/steward’s responsibility to understand their obligations in each province. The information below details residency requirements for each province.
Under Nova Scotia’s Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging, Paper Products and Packaging-Like Products Regulations, residency requirements are based on the type of producer.
The obligated producer is the business that supplies designated materials to consumers in Nova Scotia in the following order:
- Brand holder: If the brand holder is resident in Canada, they are the obligated producer.
- First importer: If the brand holder is not resident in Canada, the obligation shifts to the importer resident in Nova Scotia who imports and supplies the packaging and paper within the province.
- Retailer: If neither the brand holder nor importer meet their respective residency requirements, the retailer who supplies designated materials to the consumer becomes the obligated producer.
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in Nova Scotia, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Affiliated entities, whereby one controls another, or two or more are controlled by the same organization, can impact a producer’s residency status. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand holder, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility Hierarchy page.
Under New Brunswick’s Designated Materials Regulation - Clean Environment Act, residency requirements are specific to the various types of producers. The obligated producer is the business that supplies designated materials to consumers in the province in the following order:
- Brand holder/owner: If the brand holder/owner is resident in Canada, they are the obligated producer.
- First importer: If the brand holder/owner is not resident in Canada, the obligation shifts to the importer resident in New Brunswick who imports and supplies the packaging and paper within the province.
- Retailer: If neither the brand holder/owner nor importer meet their respective residency requirements, the retailer who supplies designated materials to the consumer becomes the obligated producer.
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in New Brunswick, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Residency can be impacted by a company’s affiliations. If a parent company has a permanent establishment in New Brunswick, then it is obligated for all its subsidiaries, including those subsidiaries that do not have a permanent establishment but directly or indirectly supply designated materials in the province. A subsidiary cannot extend residency to its parent company. Similarly, sister companies do not make each other resident. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand holder/owner, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility hierarchy page.
Under Ontario’s Blue Box Regulation, residency requirements are based on the type of producer. The obligated producer is the business that supplies designated materials to consumers in Ontario in the following order:
- Brand holder: If the brand holder is resident in Canada, they are the obligated producer.
- First importer: If the brand holder is not resident in Canada, the obligation shifts to the importer resident in Ontario who imports and supplies the packaging and paper within the province.
- Retailer: If neither the brand holder nor importer meet their respective residency requirements, the retailer who supplies designated materials to the consumer becomes the obligated producer.
- Marketplace facilitator: If the retailer is a marketplace seller, and the marketplace seller has a contract with a marketplace facilitator, the marketplace facilitator is the obligated producer.
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in Ontario, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Affiliated entities, whereby one controls another, or two or more are controlled by the same organization, can impact a producer’s residency status. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand holder, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility Hierarchy page.
Residency requirements for brand owners and first importers
An organization that supplies packaging and paper to residential consumers in Manitoba is obligated to report and pay fees on the supplied materials if it has residency in the province, whether as a brand owner or first importer.
Typically (although not fully determinative), an organization is considered resident in Manitoba if it is required to pay provincial income taxes. Some common examples of residency are provided below to help guide you in determining your organization’s residency status:
- When an organization or company has any of the following (owned, rented, and/or leased) in a province with stewardship obligations then it may be considered to be resident in the province for the purposes of the provincial PPP program:
- Office (please see below for further clarification on what activities in an office constitute residency)
- Workshop
- Factory
- Warehouse
- Any type of fixed place of business such as a home office
- If an organization or company has individuals (i.e., employees or agents who are acting on the organization or company’s request) who can contract (i.e., authorized to sign) on the organization’s or company’s behalf in a province with stewardship obligations, then it has residency in that province.
- When an organization or company owns land in a province with stewardship obligations, then it has a permanent establishment.
- When an insurance company is licensed/registered to do business in a province, then it has a permanent establishment in that province.
- When an organization or company conducts any physical activity in a province, then it has a permanent establishment there. These activities include:
- Manufacturing
- Packing
- Mining
- Growing
- Creating
- Constructing anything in whole or in part
- If an organization uses substantial machinery or equipment (owned, rented, and/or leased) in a province, then it is deemed to have a permanent establishment in that province.
Residency can be impacted by a company’s affiliations. If a parent company has a permanent establishment in Manitoba, then it is obligated for all its subsidiaries, including those subsidiaries that do not have a permanent establishment but directly or indirectly supply designated materials in the province. A subsidiary cannot extend residency to its parent company. Similarly, sister companies do not make each other resident. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Below are examples of what does not constitute a permanent establishment and is considered non-residency:
- An organization or company only has a Post Office box in the province where stewardship obligations exist.
- An organization or company only does business through a commissioned agent (i.e., an individual who does not receive salaried compensation from the company, other than commission).
A non-resident brand owner has the option of applying for voluntary stewardship to assume the reporting responsibilities from the first importer.
For further guidance, we have provided scenarios to help illustrate the criteria for determining residency.
Residency requirements for franchisors
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in Manitoba, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand owner, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility Hierarchy page.
Residency requirements for brand owners and first importers
An organization that supplies packaging and paper to residential consumers in Saskatchewan is obligated to report and pay fees on the supplied materials if it has residency in the province, whether as a brand owner or first importer.
Typically (although not fully determinative), an organization is considered resident in Saskatchewan if it is required to pay provincial income taxes. Some common examples of residency are provided below to help guide you in determining your organization’s residency status:
- When an organization or company has any of the following (owned, rented, and/or leased) in a province with producer obligations then it may be considered to be resident in the province for the purposes of the provincial PPP program:
- Office (please see below for further clarification on what activities in an office constitute residency)
- Workshop
- Factory
- Warehouse
- Any type of fixed place of business such as a home office
- If an organization or company has individuals (i.e., employees or agents who are acting on the organization or company’s request) who can contract (i.e., authorized to sign) on the organization’s or company’s behalf in a province with producer obligations, then it has residency in that province.
- When an organization or company owns land in a province with producer obligations, then it has a permanent establishment.
- When an insurance company is licensed/registered to do business in a province, then it has a permanent establishment in that province.
- When an organization or company conducts any physical activity in a province, then it has a permanent establishment there. These activities include:
- Manufacturing
- Packing
- Mining
- Growing
- Creating
- Constructing anything in whole or in part
- If an organization uses substantial machinery or equipment (owned, rented, and/or leased) in a province, then it is deemed to have a permanent establishment in that province.
Residency can be impacted by a company’s affiliations. If a parent company has a permanent establishment in Saskatchewan, then it is obligated for all its subsidiaries, including those subsidiaries that do not have a permanent establishment but directly or indirectly supply designated materials in the province. A subsidiary cannot extend residency to its parent company. Similarly, sister companies do not make each other resident. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Below are examples of what does not constitute a permanent establishment and is considered non-residency:
- An organization or company only has a Post Office box in the province where producer obligations exist.
- An organization or company only does business through a commissioned agent (i.e., an individual who does not receive a salaried compensation from the company, other than commission).
A non-resident brand owner has the option of applying for voluntary stewardship to assume the reporting responsibilities from the first importer.
For further guidance, we have provided scenarios to help illustrate the criteria for determining residency.
Residency requirements for franchisors
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in Saskatchewan, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand owner, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility Hierarchy page.
Under Alberta’s Extended Producer Responsibility Regulation, residency requirements are based on the type of producer. The producer obligated is the business that supplies designated materials to consumers in Alberta in the following order:
- Brand holder: If the brand holder is resident in Canada, they are the obligated producer.
- First importer: If the brand holder is not resident in Canada, the obligation shifts to the importer resident in Alberta who imports and supplies the packaging and paper within the province.
- Retailer: If neither the brand holder nor importer meet their respective residency requirements, the retailer who supplies designated materials to the consumer becomes the obligated producer.
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in Alberta, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Affiliated entities, whereby one controls another, or two or more are controlled by the same organization, can impact a producer’s residency status. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand holder, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility Hierarchy page.
Residency requirements for brand owners and first importers
An organization that supplies packaging and paper to residential consumers in British Columbia is obligated to report and pay fees on the supplied materials if it has residency in the province, whether as a brand owner or first importer.
Typically (although not fully determinative), an organization is considered resident in British Columbia if it is required to pay provincial income taxes. Some common examples of residency are provided below to help guide you in determining your organization’s residency status:
- When an organization or company has any of the following (owned, rented, and/or leased) in a province with producer obligations then it may be considered to be resident in the province for the purposes of the provincial PPP program:
- Office (please see below for further clarification on what activities in an office constitute residency)
- Workshop
- Factory
- Warehouse
- Any type of fixed place of business such as a home office
- If an organization or company has individuals (i.e., employees or agents who are acting on the organization or company’s request) who can contract (i.e., authorized to sign) on the organization’s or company’s behalf in a province with producer obligations, then it has residency in that province.
- When an organization or company owns land in a province with producer obligations, then it has a permanent establishment.
- When an insurance company is licensed/registered to do business in a province, then it has a permanent establishment in that province.
- When an organization or company conducts any physical activity in a province, then it has a permanent establishment there. These activities include:
- Manufacturing
- Packing
- Mining
- Growing
- Creating
- Constructing anything in whole or in part
- If an organization uses substantial machinery or equipment (owned, rented, and/or leased) in a province, then it is deemed to have a permanent establishment in that province.
Residency can be impacted by a company’s affiliations. If a parent company has a permanent establishment in British Columbia, then it is obligated for all its subsidiaries, including those subsidiaries that do not have a permanent establishment but directly or indirectly supply designated materials in the province. A subsidiary cannot extend residency to its parent company. Similarly, sister companies do not make each other resident. Please see the Affiliations page to learn more.
Below are examples of what does not constitute a permanent establishment and is considered non-residency:
- An organization or company only has a Post Office box in the province where producer obligations exist.
- An organization or company only does business through a commissioned agent (i.e., an individual who does not receive a salaried compensation from the company, other than commission).
A non-resident brand owner has the option of applying for voluntary stewardship to assume the reporting responsibilities from the first importer.
For further guidance, we have provided scenarios to help illustrate the criteria for determining residency.
Residency requirements for franchisors
If an organization operates wholly or in part as a franchise with one or more franchisees in British Columbia, the franchisor is obligated for all their locations, regardless of whether the franchisor is resident in the province.
Learn more about determining whether your organization is responsible as a brand owner, first importer, retailer and/or franchisor by visiting the Responsibility Hierarchy page.