Before you sign up for My CFIA

All My CFIA users must create a Contact Profile to request services for business or personal use:

Once you have created a Contact Profile, you can sign up for business use:

How to sign up for a Contact Profile

Everyone who uses My CFIA must create a Contact Profile to request services for business or personal use. A Contact Profile identifies you in the system and allows others to give you access to their Party Profile. It also allows you to request services for personal use, such as requesting an import permit for a pet.

If you would like to request services on behalf of a business or for personal use, follow the steps below.

  • go to the sign in page
  • choose a secure sign-in method (sign-in partner or GCKey)
  • create a contact profile by providing your name and email

You are ready to start using My CFIA for personal use.

How to sign up for business use

Once you have created a Contact Profile, you can create or join a Party Profile that you can use to request services on behalf of a business.

What you need to sign up

Before you sign up, make sure you have the following information ready:

  • Business number: Sole proprietorships, corporations or partnerships can use their 9-digit business number issued by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Get a business number from the CRA.
  • Legal business name: You need to enter your Legal Business Name when signing up for My CFIA. This may be different from your operating name. The CFIA will use your legal business name to validate your My CFIA account, which must happen before an SFC licence or other permission can be issued to your business. You can find your legal business name on any federal or provincial document of business registration, certificates of incorporation or partnership, and official tax documents such as your T2 Corporation Income Tax Return.
  • Proof of authority form: This form provides the name of your business' profile authority and must be submitted when you sign up. The form must be signed by a current owner, partner, director or company officer of the business associated to the profile.
  • Office address: The address where records of regulated activities are kept. This address must be provided in the profile.
  • Billing address: The address where the CFIA will send invoices and/or billing communications.
  • Physical addresses: The addresses of all establishments.
  • Billing account number: If you have a CFIA billing account number, you can enter it into My CFIA. You can leave this field empty if you will be paying by credit card.

Assigning contacts in My CFIA

When creating a party profile, you will be required to designate one or more individuals in the roles described below. You may need to consult within your company before deciding which individuals to assign to these roles.

Profile authority

You are accountable for all information, records, requests, and users assigned to a party profile, as well as the actions of all party contacts. You can oversee more than one party profile and act as profile manager.

Your responsibilities:

  • Create a My CFIA profile
  • View profile information and submit service requests
  • Update party profile information
  • View and manage all service requests
  • Invite party contacts
  • View inspection reports
Profile manager

You must be authorized by the profile authority to take on this role. Profiles may optionally have an alternative profile manager.

Your responsibilities:

  • Create a My CFIA profile
  • View profile information and submit service requests
  • Update party profile information
  • View and manage all service requests
  • Invite party contacts
  • View inspection reports
Party contact(s)

Party contacts can be added at any point in time by the profile authority or profile manager and are not necessary when you sign up. Party contacts cannot be the profile authority or profile manager.

Your responsibilities:

  • Create a My CFIA profile
  • View profile information and submit service requests
  • View and manage their own service requests
Emergency contact

You are the first point of contact for the CFIA on urgent matters outside of normal business hours. You do not need to create a My CFIA profile. You cannot view or update requests or profiles within the system.

Regulatory contact

You are the primary contact for the CFIA to arrange inspection activities, provide inspection findings or work with on inspection-related issues during regular business hours. You do not need to create a My CFIA profile. You cannot view or update requests or profiles within the system.

The same individual can be designated in more than one role. For example, the profile manager can also be the profile authority and the emergency contact.

Create a single or multiple party profiles

My CFIA provides your business with the flexibility to create single or multiple profiles. It is the responsibility of business owners to decide what will work best for their particular business model.

Watch our videos on applying for permissions using single or multiple My CFIA profiles.

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Single party profile

A single party profile is most suited to businesses that want to manage all business interactions with the CFIA through a head office or a single location.

With a single party profile, your business will be able to assign a profile manager and invite other party contacts, such as employees or brokers, to sign on to the profile. All party contacts will be able to view and submit requests on behalf of your business.

Multiple party profiles

Multiple party profiles are most suited to businesses that have multiple establishments, organizational units or business divisions that want to interact with the CFIA independently. Multiple party profiles are also suitable for businesses with a large amount of staff that require access to documents such as inspection reports.

With multiple party profiles, each unit of your business can manage interactions with the CFIA and submit requests independently. Your business will be able to assign a separate profile manager and invite individuals (party contacts) to each party profile. Only the party contacts associated to a specific party profile will be able to view and submit their own requests on behalf of that party profile.

If you have questions about creating a party profile, call 1-800-442-CFIA (2342).

You're ready to sign up for business use

Now that you have all the information you need, you can sign up for My CFIA. Once the process is complete, you'll be able to request the many services and permissions available through My CFIA.

Special considerations for other Government Departments

Some other government departments or agencies may require CFIA issued permissions and, like businesses, can take advantage of requesting them through My CFIA with a party profile.

Keep in mind

When signing up for a My CFIA account as a federal or provincial government department or agency, you will reach a section titled Business Entity Information at the Party Enrolment – 10% complete stage. In this section, make sure to select "Federal Government Department or Provincial/Territorial Government Department" when selecting the business structure for your party profile. It is also important to ensure that all party contacts in your party profile have government email addresses.

When signing up for an account, you will be asked for a proof of business document. At this stage of the sign up process, you can upload a signed letter by a Procurement or Financial Officer on government letterhead. In the case of federal or some provincial governments, the letter can state that they are exempt from paying the Goods and Services Tax (GST) or the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) on purchases of taxable supplies and services. The letter may be similar in form and content to the following:

This is to certify that the property and/or services ordered/purchased hereby are being purchased by

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(Name of Provincial/Territorial Government Department)

and are not subject to the GST/HST.

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Signature of Procurement or Financial Officer

Finally, when it comes to uploading the proof of authority form, other government departments can use the same form that CFIA regulated businesses use and have it signed and dated by a member of the organization at the Director level or higher.

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