Canada has not signed the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts.

Canada has adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Commerce.

Canada has not adopted national legislation based on or influenced by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic Signatures.

While specific complaints for the trade of goods and services fall under provincial and territorial jurisdiction, Canada maintains a national consumer protection legislative framework, which encompasses laws surrounding competition, product and user safety, environmental concerns, and financial regulations.

It is reported that the de minimis threshold, that is the minimum value of goods below which customs do not charge duties, is USD 15, below the 200 USD threshold recommended by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

Parties wishing to obtain a ".ca" domain name will need to satisfy the Canadian Internet Registration Authority's Canadian Presence Requirements, which reserves ".ca" domain names for Canadian citizens, permanent residents, companies incorporated in a Canadian jurisdiction, partnerships registered in Canada, and entities with Canadian trademarks. Domain names can be licensed to by the registrant either through a stand-alone licence agreement or as part of a larger transaction.

Industry Canada (IC) establishes the compliance regulations for radios, digital devices and other unintentional radiators. Certification is required according to some typical emissions standards such as ICES-003 (ITE) and ICES-001 (ISM equipment). Some applications of digital devices are exempted from IC technical standards. In many cases, such exempted equipment falls under the jurisdiction of other authorities. Results from accredited laboratories in countries with which Canada has a Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) are accepted. Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity (SDoC) accepted within the telecommunications sector since 2002.

The Radiocommunication Act of 1985 requires a Technical Acceptance Certificate (TAC) for broadcasting transmitters, portable radio transmitters, digital scanner receivers, cellular phones, remote car alarms and starters, garage door openers, and wireless computer links. Testing in an accredited laboratory is obligatory. Recertification is required for any product changes, and demands the involvement of local authorities.

It has been reported that the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) imposes quotas that determine both the minimum Canadian programming expenditure (CPE) and the minimum amount of Canadian programming that licensed Canadian broadcasters must carry (Exhibition Quota). Regarding the latter, the current primetime (6-11pm) Exhibition Quota rests at 50 percent Canadian content.
For cable television and direct-to-home broadcast services, more than 50% of the channels received by subscribers must be Canadian channels. Non-Canadian channels must be pre-approved (“listed”) by the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC). Upon an appeal from a Canadian licensee, the CRTC may determine that a non-Canadian channel competes with a Canadian pay or specialty service, in which case the CRTC may either remove the non-Canadian channel from the list (thereby revoking approval to supply the service) or shift the channel into a less competitive location on the channel dial. Alternatively, non-Canadian channels can become Canadian by ceding majority equity control to a Canadian partner, as some U.S. channels have done.
The CRTC also requires that 35 percent of popular musical selections broadcast on the radio qualify as “Canadian” under a Canadian Government-determined point system.
The CRTC’s Wholesale Code entered into force in January 2016 and governs certain commercial arrangements between distributors (e.g., cable companies) and programmers (e.g., channel owners). The Code is binding for vertically integrated suppliers in Canada (i.e., suppliers that own infrastructure and programming) and applies as guidelines to foreign programming suppliers (who by definition cannot be vertically integrated, as foreign suppliers are prohibited from owning video distribution infrastructure in Canada).

As has been reported, the federal Broadcasting Act provides that broadcasting licences may not be issued to non-Canadians or to companies that are effectively owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by non-Canadians. It is not clear if this applies to online companies.

The Copyright Modernization Act establishes a safe harbour regime beyond intermediaries for copyright infringements. According to Section 31.1(1), internet service providers (ISPs), provided that they are content-neutral, cannot be held liable for providing any means for Internet access.

An organisation must make publicly available the name (or title) and the address of the person who is accountable for the organisation’s privacy policies and practices and to whom complaints or inquiries can be forwarded, based upon the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).

Canada's signal intelligence agency, the Communications Security Establishment (CSE), does not have explicit powers to demand disclosure of personal information under the Communications Security Establishment Act. However, the Minister of National Defence can issue an authorisation to the CSE permitting it to "gain access to a portion of the global information infrastructure" to carry out any activity authorised in the furtherance of the active cyber operations aspect of its mandate (Sections 30 and 31). This authorisation could include a demand for access to personal information held by an organisation. Authorisations are time-limited, must have the consent of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and be based on reasonable grounds to believe that the objective of the cyber operation could not be reasonably achieved by other means (Sections 33(4) and 34(4)).

The Copyright Modernization Act establishes a safe harbour regime for intermediaries for copyright infringements. According to Section 31.1(1), internet service providers (ISPs), provided that they are content-neutral, cannot be held liable for providing any means for Internet access.

Canada has joined agreements with binding commitments to open transfers of data across borders: the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, Art. 14.11), and the United States - Mexico - Canada Agreement (Art. 19.11).