Canada issued new guidance on pesticide fees

The Canadian Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has issued guidance on the fees payable in Canada for the review of applications for pest control products and for the annual charge in respect of registered pest control products as detailed in the Pest Control Products Fees and Charges Regulations.

 

 

 

For application fees where the amount due is $2,500.00 or less, the total amount (that is, 100%) is payable at the time of application. This threshold is considered after any reduction of fees, if applicable. 

 

There are three application types for which fees are over $2,500.00 that also require payment in full at the time of application: research authorizations that fit within Item 1(a) or 1(b) of Schedule 3 and an application under the importation for manufacturing and export program within item 3(a) of Schedule 3. 

 

For application fees, where the total fees are greater than $2,500.00 after any applicable reduction, the timing of payment is as follows (as per subsection 7(3) of the Fees and Charges Regulations): 

 

• 10% is payable at the time of application; 

• 25% is payable upon receipt of an invoice issued when the application has been accepted for preliminary review; and 

• 65% is payable upon receipt of an invoice issued when the application has been accepted for evaluation. 

 

When the next step in the fee payment timing listed above applies, fees are payable before the next step of the examination of the application is started. The PMRA Accounts Receivable Unit will issue an invoice as the fees are due. If a fee instalment is not received the application will be kept on hold pending fee payment.

 

Though applicants have the flexibility to pay application fees in full at the time of application, during the fourth quarter (January – March) of each fiscal year, the PMRA encourages payments in increments, upon receipt of an invoice, to ensure that revenue is applied to the services that applicants benefit from during a specific fiscal year. 

 

 

If the applicant submits a written request to withdraw an application or an application is denied by the PMRA, the required fees paid up to the point of withdrawal/denial will not be refunded. 

 

An annual charge of 4% of actual gross revenue will be applied to each registered product with a minimum payment of $100 and a maximum of $3,600 per product. All registered products including technical grade active ingredients (TGAI), import for manufacturing and export program (IMEPs), private label products and master copies must pay the annual charge. Actual gross revenues are defined as the total dollar sales of the product in Canada after all discounts (for example, volume discounts and promotional rebates). 

 

 

Under paragraph 9(2)(b) of the Fees and Charges Regulations four (4) invoices will be issued by the PMRA and sent in one mailing to each registrant for products registered in that registrant’s name on April 1 of each year. Upon receipt of the invoices, annual charges can be paid in full or in four equal instalments due on May 30, August 28, November 26, and February 24. 

 

 

If the PMRA determines, based on available information, that the certified sales records required under subsection 9(3) of the Fees and Charges Regulations, as a condition for receiving a reduced annual charge, are not adequate to determine the registrant’s actual gross revenue, the PMRA may require (under subsection 9(4) of the Fees and Charges Regulations) that the registrant provide records of the sales in Canada that have been audited by a qualified independent auditor. 

 

For any product for which a reduced annual charge is requested if the audited sales records are not provided to the PMRA, the full annual charge per product will be payable. If the sales reported on the audited sales record are higher than the sales reported on the certified sales record, the charge payable will be based on the audited sales record. 

 

Interest on amounts owing to the Government of Canada as outlined in Section 8.1 of this guide may be payable to the Government of Canada where the sales reported in the certified sales record are lower than the sales reported in the audited sales record.

 

 

Registrants in the process of transferring a product to another registrant, for whom the transfer has not been completed as of April 1 of a given year, are responsible for paying the annual charge for that product. 

 

 

The annual charge remains payable for the product as long as the product remains registered, regardless of whether the registrant has discontinued sale of the product. If a registrant wishes to discontinue the registration of a product to avoid paying the annual charge, the request to discontinue the product must be received by the PMRA prior to April 1 each year, and the registrant must not have any stock remaining. 

 

If there is stock remaining in the marketplace and the registrant wishes to discontinue the registration immediately, the registrant will have to provide a plan along with the request to discontinue the registration of the product for approval by the PMRA, on recalling and disposing of unused stock. 

 

Alternatively, the PMRA may process the discontinuation but it will not take effect until the year in which the registrant has estimated that all stock in the marketplace will be exhausted. The registrant will be assessed annual charges for this interim period; however, the registrant may qualify for a reduced annual charge based on sales for that product. 

 

It is not possible under the process for payment of the annual charge to amend the registration of products. All such proposed changes must be submitted via an application for new or amended registration or, if applicable, through the notification application process. 

 

Should a registrant have an outstanding balance for past annual charges and submits certified sales records to pay a reduced fee on a registered product, efforts will be made, consistent with Health Canada Collection Administration Procedures, to settle outstanding debt prior to processing new annual charge reductions. If the amount owing is not paid within 30 days of attempts to collect the outstanding balance PMRA may either refuse to consider applications by the registrant or may cancel or amend a registration under section 23 of the Pest Control Products Act.