As of 1^st January 2023, Canada forbids the purchase of residential assets from foreign buyers.

The related ban is stated in the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act, which defines:

a) as non-Canadian, an individual without Canadian citizenship, or not registered as Indian under the Indian Act, or not permanently resident in Canada; a corporation established according to a different law from the Canadian one; a corporation established according to the Canadian law whose shares are not listed in the Canadian stock exchange and which is controlled by non-Canadian entities; individuals indicated by the law;

b) as residential properties, all the assets located in Canada which consist of detached houses, including up to three dwelling units, with annexed plots of land and appurtenant buildings for residential purposes, or parts of structure belonging to semi-detached houses, terraced houses, residential blocks of flats and annexed appurtenances. 

Notwithstanding the prediction included in article 34 Citizenship Act, the direct or indirect purchase of residential properties from non-Canadians is therefore forbidden.

 Nevertheless, such a prohibition is not effective in the following cases:

1) purchase from a temporarily resident person in possession of refugee or protected status according to the Refugee Protection Act;

2) purchase jointly with a Canadian spouse or partner;

3) purchase in the cases provided for by law;

4) purchase from a foreign Country for diplomatic or consular purposes;

5) purchase after a preliminary agreement or other settlement issued before the entry into force of the above-mentioned law.

 The Canadian Governor in Council is going to implement further measures aiming to detail the notions of "control", "purchase" and all that is "required" or "indicated" by the law to apply the provision in question. 

The coming into effect of the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act, from 1^st January 2023, bears the need to check whether the purchases of residential buildings in Italy by Canadian individuals and entities could fulfil the “condition of reciprocity”.

In this regard, it is appropriate to point out that only the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can supply the data related to the verification of the reciprocity under paragraph 1 of article 1 d.p.r. 31^st August 1999 no. 394 but, even before the Ministry takes an express position on this point, it cannot be ignored that, starting from 1^st January 2023, the subsistence of the reciprocity with Canada, save the above exceptions, can be seriously questioned.

Studio Notarile Associato Gambacorta

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