New Thresholds Announced for Canadian Merger Reviews
On February 10, new thresholds for Canadian merger reviews under the Competition Act and Investment Canada Act came into effect.
What You Need To Know
- The threshold for merger notification under the Competition Act has increased from $88 million to $92 million for 2018.
- The 2018 threshold for reviews of direct investments by state-owned or influenced enterprises under the Investment Canada Act has increased from $379 million to $398 million.
The Details
Competition Act Thresholds
Pre-merger notification under Canada's Competition Act is generally required for transactions where the target has either assets in Canada or revenues in or from Canada generated from those assets of $92 million or more and where the parties to the transaction have Canadian assets in Canada or revenues from sales in, from or into Canada of $400 million or more. In some cases, additional share or partnership interest ownership levels must also be satisfied.
Investment Canada Act Thresholds
The Investment Canada Act generally requires that a non-Canadian investor proposing to acquire direct control of a Canadian business receive approval that the investment is of "net benefit" if enterprise value of the Canadian business exceeds at least $1 billion or $1.5 billion in the case of investors from the United States, European Union, and certain other countries. A lower threshold of $398 million, based on the book value assets of the Canadian business, applies to acquisitions by state-owned or influenced enterprises.
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