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1.25.15. Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT)

  1. The Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) is a comprehensive agreement on Canadian internal trade in recognition of the need to reduce barriers to trade within Canada.
  2. Chapter Five - Procurement of the AIT, Procurement, is intended to "establish a framework that will ensure equal access to procurement for all Canadian suppliers in order to contribute to a reduction in purchasing costs and the development of a strong economy, in a context of transparency and efficiency".
  3. In the following sections on determining AIT coverage, all references to an "Annex" are to the annexes to Chapter Five, Procurement, of the AIT.
  4. If all of the following AIT criteria are met, the procurement is subject to AIT:
    1. Determine the value of the requisition. A procurement may be subject to AIT if the requisition value is:
      1. $25,000 or greater, in cases where the largest portion of the procurement is for goods;
      2. $100,000 or greater, in cases where the largest portion of the procurement is for services, except those services excluded by Annex 502.1B Services Covered by Chapter Five; or
      3. $100,000 or greater, in the case of construction.
    2. Determine the coverage by client. Entities listed in Annex 502.1A Government Entities Covered by Chapter Five, are subject to the AIT procurement procedures. Entities listed in Annex 502.2A are excluded from Chapter Five of the AIT.
    3. Determine the coverage by the type of requirement:
      1. all requirements for the purchase, lease or rental of goods are covered;
      2. all services are covered except for those listed in Annex 502.1B Services Covered by Chapter Five; and
      3. all construction procurement is covered.
    4. Determine if an exception should be invoked for the requirement or if the requirement is excluded from the agreement. See Article 507: Non-Application; Article 1802: Aboriginal Peoples; Article 1803: Culture; and Article 1804: National Security.
  5. Under Article 1802: Aboriginal Peoples, the AIT does not apply to any measure adopted or maintained with respect to Aboriginal peoples.
    1. There are two ways in which Comprehensive Land Claims Agreements (CLCAs) and AIT interact:
      1. If a procurement is reserved for CLCA beneficiaries because of a right of first refusal under that CLCA, then the contracting authority must indicate in the solicitation document and any tender notice that the procurement is set aside from AIT. In this case, the entire procurement process is not subject to AIT, and the procurement no longer falls under the jurisdiction of the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT). This situation does not eliminate the requirement to comply with the Government Contracts Regulations. For more information on CLCAs, see 9.35 Comprehensive Land Claims Agreements (CLCAs).
      2. For a procurement that is subject to AIT but not to any international trade agreements, any measure for Aboriginals, including CLCA evaluation criteria, is not subject to CITT review, although the rest of the procurement process must be conducted in compliance with the AIT provisions and is reviewable by CITT.
    2. When the procurement has been set aside for Aboriginal business under the Procurement Strategy for Aboriginal Business (PSAB), the entire procurement process is not subject to AIT and the procurement no longer falls under the jurisdiction of CITT. For more information on PSAB, see 9.40 Procurement Strategy for Aboriginal Business.
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