Eligible applicants for an authorization

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Eligible applicants for an authorization

The following individuals and organizations are eligible to apply for and be granted an authorization as eligible persons under subsection 83.032(4) of the Criminal Code:

  1. An organization located in Canada (“organization” is included in the definition of “everyone, person or owner” in section 2 of the Criminal Code and “organization” is defined in section 2 as a corporation or an otherwise structured association of persons); or
  2. Any individual, as long as they are:
    1. Located in Canada; or
    2. Located outside Canada, but are also:
      1. a Canadian citizen; or
      2. a permanent resident within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act;
  3. A body corporate located outside Canada that is incorporated and continued under the laws of Canada or a province (see definition of “Canadian” in subsection 83.01(1) of the Criminal Code and subsection 83.032(4) that uses the term “a Canadian outside Canada”).

An application may be jointly made by eligible persons including organizations that are working together on the same activities.

Conducting activities through intermediaries known to be charitable arms of, or otherwise affiliated with, a terrorist group, would not receive an authorization and would be subject to the terrorism offences in the Criminal Code.

Where organizations are receiving funding from a Government of Canada department to carry out programming or activities, the Government department would be responsible for applying for an authorization for those activities which, once granted, would also shield the implementing organization from criminal liability. Third parties, including sub-implementing partners, would also be covered under the same authorization.

Activities and specified purposes for an authorization

Once granted, an authorization will shield eligible Canadian individuals and organizations as well as persons in Canada from criminal liability with respect to the terrorist financing offence in subsection 83.03(2) of the Criminal Code when carrying out specified activities or classes of activities for any of the following specified purposes, as long as authorization holders adhere to any stipulated terms and conditions.

The Government of Canada does not regulate these activities. Rather, the authorizations are available to shield authorization holders from criminal liability in circumstances where these activities risk violating subsection 83.03(2) of the Criminal Code due to an unavoidable benefit to a terrorist group.

Activities are shielded by an authorization if they are carried out for any of the specified purposes that provide or support the provision of:

Health services

  • Payment of healthcare workers' salaries;
  • Provision of basic healthcare services in health facilities (including community health centres, clinics, and hospitals);
  • Provision of maternal and newborn healthcare, such as antenatal care, delivery care, postpartum care, family planning, and newborn care;
  • Delivery of routine child immunization;
  • Provision of child nutrition care, such as micro-nutrient supplements and treatment of clinical malnutrition;
  • Control and treatment of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria;
  • Support for mental healthcare;
  • Support for people with disabilities, including physiotherapy integrated into primary healthcare and prosthetics;
  • Supplying essential drugs and medical supplies, as well as fuel and/or generators to ensure electricity supply to health facilities;
  • Influenza or other disease vaccination and response, including hospital beds for severe cases;
  • Support for health-related education, including social behaviour change communications (SBCC) interventions and awareness campaigns, to positively impact health and nutrition outcomes; and
  • Transactions necessary and incidental to carry out healthcare activities and/or support organizations providing healthcare services (e.g. administrative transactions such as payment of staff and contractor salaries, maintenance of bank accounts, duties and other fees, taxes, licences, etc.).

Education services

  • Payment of salaries for teachers;
  • Cash/voucher assistance for vulnerable children to access education; 
  • Establishment of temporary learning spaces for girls forced out of the formal education system (this could be in the form of temporary shelters, radio, or online schooling);
  • Provision of necessary teaching and learning materials;
  • Teacher's training on distance learning and use of technology (web-based teaching);
  • Purchase and distribution of learning materials;
  • Support of community members to establish and maintain education and community based schools;
  • Strengthening of the private education system for women and scholarship support for girl's education through private schools/universities;
  • Literacy training for women and men; and
  • Transactions necessary and incidental to carrying out education activities and/or supporting organizations providing education services (e.g. administrative transactions such as the payment of staff and contractor salaries, maintenance of bank accounts, duties and other fees, taxes, licences, etc.).

Assist individuals in earning a livelihood

  • Cash-for-work programs where individuals would construct small-scale community wells, latrines, and safe drinking water points;
  • Support for small public works efforts in an urban setting where individuals would earn a temporary basic income;
  • Provision of agricultural inputs, such as seeds, fertilizer, beekeeping supplies,  poultry and livestock, to allow vulnerable farmers to maintain their livelihoods;
  • Provision of herding inputs, such as fodder, seeds for the fast growing of animal feed, and animal health products to allow vulnerable herders to maintain their livelihoods;
  • Micro-finance support for women-led businesses;
    • Provision of vocational training to women, particularly in areas with higher income generation and where women have a comparative advantage; and
    • Inputs and market linkages for women-led businesses/entrepreneurs.
  • Transactions necessary and incidental to carry out livelihood activities and/or support organizations providing livelihood services (e.g. administrative transactions such as the payment of staff and contractor salaries, maintenance of bank accounts, duties and other fees, taxes, licences, etc.).

Promote and protect other civil, political, economic, social and cultural human rights

  • Support for vulnerable groups subject to discrimination, including but not limited to: women and girls; human and women's rights defenders, and their allies; human and women's rights groups; religious, ethnic, and cultural minorities; 2SLGBTQI+ persons; persons with disabilities; children and youth; displaced persons; and those living in poverty. Through activities such as, but not limited to:
    • Provision of salaries for operational human and women's rights organizations; 
    • Emergency temporary relocation; 
    • Digital security support/training and other capacity building to operate in the new environment;
    • Micro-grants to human and women's rights organizations to support their own priority needs;
    • Support to safe houses;
    • Convening of community leaders, including women leaders (e.g. ulemas or Muslim scholars with special knowledge of Islamic sacred law and theology);
    • Advocacy activities, including with community members;
    • Support for groups and individuals doing human rights monitoring; and
    • Response to the needs of survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) through: strengthening referral mechanisms for GBV survivors to psycho-social, legal, and medical services; providing services to GBV survivors (legal, medical, psychological); and supporting women's shelters and family response units to continue operations.
  • Support for organizations and individuals working to promote and protect other civil, political, economic, social and cultural human rights, including but not limited to:
    • Freedom of expression, assembly and association;
    • Media freedom, civic space, and safety of journalists; and
    • Rule of law, freedom from arbitrary detention, torture, cruel and/or unusual punishment, and equality before the law.
  • Transactions necessary and incidental to carrying out human and women's rights activities and/or supporting organizations providing human and women's rights activities (e.g. administrative transactions such as the payment of staff and contractor salaries, maintenance of bank accounts, duties and other fees, taxes, licences, etc.).

Services related to immigration, including resettlement and safe passage

  • Transactions and activities necessary and incidental to carrying out immigration and passport services, such as program integrity activities to assess the eligibility and admissibility of applicants, including but not limited to:
    • Collection of biometrics to establish identity and support the veracity of immigration claims and to support security screening; and
    • Courier services for Canadian passport and travel document services and delivery.
  • Transactions and activities necessary and incidental to facilitating safe passage of vulnerable persons pertaining to movement operations and other logistical support prior to departure, including but not limited to:
    • Provision of security for ground transportation to a point of departure (e.g. land border or airport);
    • Provision of security for air transportation, including the arrangement of seats on commercial flights or charter flights (this includes on airlines operating for the purpose of facilitating safe passage);
    • Pre-departure temporary accommodation and sustenance needs (e.g. meals);
    • Health checks and services;
    • Payment of local staff to provide assistance with immigration applications, to liaise with host governments or agencies, to obtain necessary travel documents and permission to exit, and/or liaise with third country governments or agencies to obtain necessary documents for entry;
    • Payment of fees associated with passports / travel documents;
    • Payment of local staff for in-country coordination, planning, security, intelligence gathering, and reporting; and
    • Fees, including government fees or fees paid to the airport authority.
  • Additional transactions and activities necessary and incidental to the above services, including but not limited to:
    • Office space lease and provision of furnishings and supplies;
    • Payment of salaries for local personnel (clerical, back office, front desk, security, etc.);
    • Hiring and payment of sub-contractors;
    • Payment for translation and interpretation services;
    • Payment for translation and the printing of handouts for clients;
    • Payment for utilities such as telephone, internet services, bandwidth; and
    • Withholding income tax and remitting it to a foreign government.
  • Any other transaction or activity necessary to fulfill the stated purpose of facilitating the immigration processing and safe passage of vulnerable individuals. The transactions and activities above may need to be performed either by the Government of Canada directly or with the assistance of external partners, such as non-governmental organizations, private sector companies, international organizations, or foreign governments.

Operations of a federal minister, department, or agency of the government of Canada

  • Activities carried out by the federal Public Service and its Ministers as a result of its abilities to undertake functions for the required operation of their department, that could otherwise be prohibited by section 83.03, including those activities carried out by service providers or other organizations at the direction of, in association with, or on behalf of the Public Service and Ministers.
  • This category excludes government transfer payments and activities included in the other purposes for which an authorization can be obtained under the regime. A transfer payment is defined to mean: a monetary payment, or a transfer of goods, services or assets made on the basis of an appropriation to a third party, including a Crown corporation, that does not result in the acquisition by the Government of Canada of any goods, services or assets. Transfer payments are categorized as grants, contributions, and other transfer payments and they do not include investments, loans or loan guarantees.

An authorization cannot be issued retroactively. An applicant is not shielded from criminal liability for conducting eligible activities until the application process is completed and they have received an approved authorization.

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