Bill C-68 received Royal Assent on 21 June 2019, with the shark fin import and export prohibitions taking immediate operational effect under CBSA and DFO authorities. CBSA Customs Notice 21-02 (February 2021) confirmed that shark fins not attached to shark carcasses are prohibited from import into or export from Canada, with the only exception being ministerial permits for qualifying scientific research related to shark conservation. Importers are required to declare the scientific or taxonomic names of all sharks and shark products at the border; CITES permitting requirements continue to apply for listed shark species. The Rob Stewart Sharkwater Foundation and Humane Society International reported the passage as the culmination of multiple years of legislative and advocacy efforts. Chinese-language reporting cited Canadian business stakeholders noting that while import and export of detached fins were prohibited, domestic sale and consumption of existing fin stocks within Canada were not banned. No court decisions overturning or suspending the shark fin provisions have been documented in sources consulted. Canada’s support for CITES Appendix II listing of shortfin mako in August 2019 indicates alignment between domestic and international shark trade measures.

Anticipated Effects

If implemented as written and enforced by CBSA at the border, the prohibition on importing and exporting shark fins not attached to carcasses would be expected to eliminate legal commercial importation and exportation of detached shark fins into and out of Canada, removing Canada as a destination or transit market for the global shark fin trade.

If the statutory prohibition on shark finning is implemented and enforced in Canadian-regulated fisheries, the practice of removing fins and discarding carcasses at sea would be constrained, with vessels required to land sharks with fins naturally attached.

Whether the Canadian ban produced a measurable reduction in global shark exploitation — versus redirection of fin supply to other markets — is not established in available sources; the measure removes Canada’s role in the trade without directly regulating fin supply chains in other jurisdictions.

Significance Rationale

Assigned Reduces Exploitation (impact direction) because the law prohibits all commercial import and export of shark fins not attached to carcasses — removing the legal basis for detached fin trade into and out of Canada — and codifies a statutory prohibition on shark finning in Canadian-regulated fisheries. Where enforced, the measure directly removes commercial cross-border trade channels for detached shark fins.

Assigned Alters Legal Basis (impact type) because the primary mechanism is the statutory redefinition of what is legally permissible: shark finning is defined and prohibited in the Fisheries Act; the import and export of detached shark fins and derivatives is prohibited in WAPPRIITA. The scientific research permit exception is narrowly defined in statute. This changes the legal basis for the trade and finning practices, not merely their conditions of operation.

Assigned Moderate significance because the measure applies nationally within Canada and targets a specific subset of global shark exploitation — Canadian-regulated finning practices and cross-border detached fin trade into and out of Canada. Canada was a major importer of shark fins, giving the trade measure meaningful geographic weight. However, the law does not directly regulate domestic consumption of existing fin stocks, global shark exploitation, or fin trade in other countries, and quantified reductions in Canadian shark fin import volumes or shark numbers are not documented in sources consulted.

The duration and persistence of the scale change in shark fin trade through Canada is not established in available sources; no quantified data on pre- and post-2019 import volumes are reported in sources consulted.