Chapter Nine – Party-Specific Exceptions

Article 900: Extent of Party-Specific Exceptions

1. Article 201 (Non-Discrimination), Article 301 (Right of Entry and Exit), Article 307 (Market Access – Services), Article 312 (Market Access – Investment), Article 313 (Performance Requirements), and paragraph 2 of Annex 309 do not apply to:
   1. any existing non-conforming measure maintained by a Party as set out in that Party’s Schedule to Annex I in Part VII (Party Schedules);
   2. any existing non-conforming measure maintained by a regional, local, district, or other form of municipal government;
   3. the continuation or prompt renewal of any non-conforming measure referred to in paragraph (a) or (b); or
   4. an amendment to any non-conforming measure referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) to the extent that the amendment does not decrease the conformity of the measure, as it existed immediately before the amendment, with Article 201, Article 301, Article 307, Article 312, Article 313, and paragraph 2 of Annex 309.
2. Article 201 (Non-Discrimination), Article 301 (Right of Entry and Exit), Article 307 (Market Access – Services), Article 312 (Market Access – Investment), Article 313 (Performance Requirements), and any other obligation as identified by a Party, do not apply to any measure that a Party adopts or maintains with respect to the sectors, subsectors, or activities set out in its Schedule to Annex II in Part VII (Party Schedules).
3. For greater certainty, any exception set out in a Party’s Schedules in Part VII (Party Schedules) with respect to any measure relating to agricultural goods or food goods does not apply to that Party’s technical regulations, conformity assessment procedures, standards, or sanitary or phytosanitary measures.
4. Notwithstanding paragraph 3, an exception set out in a Party’s Schedules in Part VII (Party Schedules) with respect to a measure relating to cannabis may apply to that Party’s technical regulations, conformity assessment procedures, standards, or sanitary or phytosanitary measures.
5. For the purposes of applying paragraphs 1 (a) and (b) to Annex 309, “existing” means a measure adopted before September 23, 2020.

Article 901: Interpretation of Annexes I and II

1. The Schedule of each Party to Annex I in Part VII (Party Schedules) sets out, pursuant to Article 900.1, the exceptions taken by each Party with respect to existing measures maintained by a Party that do not conform with Article 201 (Non-Discrimination), Article 301 (Right of Entry and Exit), Article 307 (Market Access – Services), Article 312 (Market Access – Investment), Article 313 (Performance Requirements), or paragraph 2 of Annex 309.
2. The Schedule of each Party to Annex II in Part VII (Party Schedules) sets out, pursuant to Article 900.2, the exceptions taken by each Party with respect to specific sectors, subsectors, or activities for which it may maintain existing measures or adopt new measures that do not conform with Article 201 (Non-Discrimination), Article 301 (Right of Entry and Exit), Article 307 (Market Access – Services), Article 312 (Market Access – Investment), Article 313 (Performance Requirements), or other obligations as identified by a Party.
3. Each exception sets out the following elements:
   1. Sector refers to the general sector in which the exception is taken;
   2. Sub-Sector refers to the specific sector in which the exception is taken;
   3. Industry Classification refers, where applicable, to the activity covered by the exception, as classified in the CPC;
   4. Type of Exception specifies the obligations, referred to in Article 900.1 or Article 900.2, against which the exception is taken;
   5. Measures, in the case of Annex I in Part VII (Party Schedules), identifies the laws, regulations, or other measures (as qualified, where indicated, by the Description element) for which the exception is taken. A measure cited in the Measures element means the measure as amended, continued, or renewed, as of the effective date. Notwithstanding Article 900.1, or the conformity of the subordinate measure with the obligations against which the exception is taken, the exception will also include any subordinate measure that may be adopted or maintained under the authority of the listed measure, provided that the subordinate measure is consistent with the listed measure; and
   6. Description, in the case of Annex I in Part VII (Party Schedules), sets out the non-conforming aspects of the measure for which the exception is taken, and, in the case of Annex II in Part VII, sets out the sector, sub-sector, or activities covered by the exception.
4. Notwithstanding paragraph 3 (c), for the purposes of the Parties’ cannabis-related exceptions, or any subsequent amendment thereof, the following is a list of cannabisrelated codes that have been and are to be exclusively used in the Industry Classification and Sub-Sector elements:

• A – Cannabis.
• B – Services incidental to the production of cannabis plants.
• C – Manufacture of cannabis
• D – Wholesale trade services, including on a fee or contract basis.
• E – Retailing services, including on a fee or contract basis.
• F – All other cannabis-related services not covered by B, C, D, and E.
• G – Cannabis accessories.

For purposes of interpreting Parties’ cannabis-related exceptions, the Parties intend that the above provides an exhaustive list of all cannabis-related codes, and notwithstanding any subsequent future developments regarding the classification of cannabis or cannabis accessories under the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System.

5. In the interpretation of an exception, all elements of the exception shall be considered and:
   1. the exception shall be interpreted in light of the relevant obligations against which the exception is taken;
   2. in the case of an exception in Annex I in Part VII (Party Schedules), the Measures element shall prevail over all other elements, unless any discrepancy between the Measures element and the other elements considered in their totality is so substantial and material that it would be unreasonable to conclude that the Measures element should prevail, in which case the other elements shall prevail to the extent of that inconsistency; and
   3. in the case of an exception in Annex II in Part VII (Party Schedules), the Description element shall prevail over all other elements.
6. For greater certainty, exceptions set out in a Party’s Schedules in Part VII (Party Schedules) do not limit the ability of a Party to adopt or maintain any measure pursuant to Chapter Eight (General Exceptions).

Article 902: Cannabis-Related Party-Specific Exceptions

1. Notwithstanding Article 1212 (Amendments) and Article 1213 (Modifications to Party-Specific Exceptions) , if any amendment to the Cannabis Act (Canada), the Food and Drugs Act (Canada), or any regulations under these Acts, results in the narrowing of the definition of cannabis or cannabis accessory, as defined in Chapter Thirteen, the Parties may amend their cannabis-related exceptions in Part VII, provided that a notice of intent to amend a Party’s cannabis-related exceptions is given to the Secretariat within 60 days of the entry into force of the revised definition.
2. Any future amendment shall not decrease the modifying Party’s conformity with Article 201 (Non-Discrimination), Article 301 (Right of Entry and Exit), Article 307 (Market Access – Services), Article 312 (Market Access – Investment), Article 313 (Performance Requirements), or any other obligation as identified by the modifying Party in its cannabisrelated exceptions, as that conformity existed immediately before the amendment to the federal definition of cannabis or cannabis accessory.