Porn sites must verify age in Canada

Summary#

This bill would make it an offence for organizations to let people under 18 access pornographic material online for commercial purposes. It creates fines, a notice-and-court order process, and rules for privacy‑preserving age checks. It also requires the government to report yearly on enforcement. If enacted, it would take effect one year after Royal Assent.

• Websites that make porn for commercial purposes must use a prescribed age‑verification or age‑estimation method to keep out users under 18 (s.5; s.7(1); s.12(1)(b)).
• Fines up to CAD $250,000 for a first offence and $500,000 for later offences (s.5).
• An enforcement authority can issue a 20‑day non‑compliance notice; if ignored, the Federal Court must order Internet service providers (ISPs) to block access in Canada (s.9; s.10(4)).
• Court orders may also block other material from that site, and may block adult access if needed to stop access by young persons (s.10(5)(a)-(b)).
• Age‑check methods set by regulation must be highly effective, run by an independent third party, and include strict privacy and data‑deletion rules (s.12(2)).
• Annual public report: number of notices, number of court applications, and outcomes (s.11).

What it means for you#

• Households and adults

  • Expect age checks before accessing commercial porn sites. Methods will be set by regulation and must minimize data, protect privacy, and delete data after use (s.12(2)).
  • If a site does not comply after notice, ISPs can be ordered to block it in Canada. This may also block some non‑porn content from that site, and can affect adult access if the court finds it necessary (s.10(5)(a)-(b)).
  • Takes effect one year after Royal Assent.

• Young persons (under 18)

  • Access to commercial porn sites would be blocked by age‑verification or age‑estimation systems (s.7(1); s.12(1)(b)).
  • ISP‑level blocking could further prevent access in Canada when sites do not comply (s.10(4)).

• Website operators and app platforms

  • If you make porn available online for commercial purposes in Canada, you face fines unless you implement a prescribed age‑check method (s.5; s.7(1); s.12(1)(b)).
  • “Commercial purposes” will be further defined by regulation, including when free content counts as commercial (s.12(1)(a)).
  • After a non‑compliance notice, you have 20 days to take steps the enforcement authority sets out; if not, the authority may seek a court order for ISP blocking (s.9(2)(c)-(e); s.10(1)).
  • Defences include using a prescribed age‑check, acting for a legitimate purpose in science, medicine, education, or the arts, or complying with a notice on time (s.7(1)-(3)).

• Internet service providers (ISPs)

  • If the Federal Court finds the conditions are met, it must order you to prevent access in Canada to the porn in question (s.10(4)).
  • Orders can require broader blocking if needed to stop access by young persons, including blocking non‑porn content or adult access (s.10(5)(a)-(b)).
  • ISPs can be named as respondents in court applications (s.10(2)).

• Search, hosting, and email services

  • If you only incidentally provide services used to search for, transmit, download, store, or access content, you are not considered to be making porn available for commercial purposes for the offence provision (s.6).
  • You may still be subject to court‑ordered blocking if named as an ISP (s.10(2); s.10(4)).

• Government and regulators

  • A federal minister and an enforcement authority will be designated to administer notices and court applications (s.3; s.9).
  • The minister must table an annual report with enforcement statistics (s.11).

Expenses#

Estimated net cost: Data unavailable.

• No appropriation or program funding is specified in the bill. Data unavailable.
• Administration and enforcement costs for the designated authority and Federal Court proceedings. Data unavailable.
• Penalty revenue: fines up to $250,000 (first offence) and up to $500,000 (subsequent) per organization (s.5). Number of cases and revenues: Data unavailable.

Proponents' View#

• Reduces youth exposure to harmful content by requiring effective age checks and enabling blocking when sites do not comply (Preamble; s.7(1); s.10(4)-(5)).
• Uses independent, privacy‑protective age‑verification or estimation methods, with limits on data collection and mandatory deletion, addressing privacy concerns (s.12(2)(b)-(f)).
• Creates meaningful deterrence through fines of up to $250,000/$500,000 and the risk of ISP blocking, pushing commercial sites to comply (s.5; s.10(4)).
• Provides a clear, quick enforcement path: 20‑day notice, then a summary court process to secure orders (s.9(2)(d); s.10(3)).
• Improves transparency with required annual reporting on notices, applications, and outcomes (s.11).

Opponents' View#

• Key details are left to regulations, including what counts as “commercial purposes” for free sites and which age‑check methods qualify, creating uncertainty for compliance planning (s.12(1)(a)-(b)).
• Court orders may over‑block by necessity, limiting adult access to lawful content and potentially blocking non‑porn content from the same site (s.10(5)(a)-(b)).
• Even with privacy rules, age checks involve third‑party verification and some data handling; risks remain if implementation falls short of “highly effective” best practices (s.12(2)(a)-(g)).
• Tight timelines and a summary process could lead to errors. Orders can issue based on “reasonable grounds to believe,” which is a lower threshold than a criminal conviction, raising a risk of mistaken blocking (s.10(4)(a); s.10(3)).
• Compliance burdens for websites and ISPs may be significant, including building or integrating age‑check systems and implementing network‑level blocking after court orders. Data on costs is unavailable (s.7(1); s.10(4)).