On July 18, 1994, First Ministers signed the Agreement on Internal Trade (the Agreement) which came into effect on July 1, 1995. The Agreement aims to reduce barriers to the movement of persons, goods, services and investments within Canada.

The Agreement provides for: general rules which prevent governments from erecting new trade barriers and which require the reduction of existing ones in areas covered under the Agreement; specific obligations in 10 economic sectors — such as government purchasing, labour mobility and investment — which cover a significant amount of economic activity in Canada; the streamlining and harmonization of regulations and standards (e.g. transportation, consumer protection); a formal dispute resolution mechanism that is accessible to individuals and businesses as well as governments; and commitments to further liberalize trade through continuing negotiations and specified work programs.

This site contains a summary of the Agreement, the full text of the Agreement and all amendments, studies commissioned by Industry Canada on internal trade issues, a bibliography of material published on interprovincial trade, a feedback mechanism which provides the opportunity to make comments or ask questions on interprovincial trade, and links to other related sites.

This site also provides a complete list of the federal contacts for each chapter of the Agreement.