Fighting Misinformation

Catalogue number: 892000062025001

Release date: December 15, 2025

In today's information environment, numbers can spread quickly, but not all data is collected or analyzed the same way. By thinking critically about data, you can avoid being misled to make smarter and more informed decisions.

Data journey step
Foundation
Data competency
  • Data ethics
  • Evaluating decisions based on data
  • Evidence based decision-making
Audience
Beginner
Suggested prerequisites
N/A
Length
7:54
Cost
Free

Watch the video

Fighting Misinformation - Transcript

Meet Robert.

He's a project manager, which means his job is to keep projects on track, creating reports, managing tasks, and leading his team. Sometimes he also needs to analyze data to make informed decisions.

Recently, Robert was asked to brief his director on food insecurity in Canada. His team brought him a report they found online. It claimed that 30% of Canadians faced food insecurity in 2024.

In today's information environment, numbers can spread quickly, but not all data is collected or analyzed the same way.

So before using the 38% figure, Robert wonders:

  • Could sharing it without checking risk spreading misinformation?
  • Who came up with this number?
  • How is it calculated?
  • Can we trust it?

Before presenting this information to senior management, Robert knows he needs to dig deeper.

Step one: Check the data source and survey design.

Robert starts by looking at where the data came from. The 38% statistic was based on an online survey which sampled 5000 people. Right away, Robert notices some red flags.

  • The report doesn't say how many people were chosen. Were they selected randomly or did they volunteer? Random selection is important for unbiased results.
  • Also, there's no breakdown of who responded. No details on their age, location, or background. This makes it unclear if they represent all Canadians.
  • The report doesn't mention the response rate either. Out of the 5000 people contacted, how many actually filled out the survey? A low response rate can make results less reliable.
  • And finally, the definition of food insecurity isn't explained. What exactly does this online survey consider as food insecurity?

To compare, Robert looks at data from Statistics Canada's Canadian Income Survey. This annual survey collects information on various topics including food insecurity in 2022. This survey used a much larger sample, 60,000 households and had a 70% response rate.

It found that 23% of Canadians experienced food insecurity. This number is much lower than the online survey, at 38%. Robert realizes he needs to find out why.

Step two: Compare how food insecurity was measured.

To understand the difference, Robert looks at how each survey define food insecurity.

Statistics Canada defines food insecurity as the ability to acquire or consume an adequate diet quality or sufficient quantity of food in socially acceptable ways, or the uncertainty that one will be able to do so.

The Canadian Income Survey asks 18 questions to measure food insecurity, such as worrying about running out of food before getting money to buy more, skipping meals due to financial constraints, and going an entire day without eating.

The online survey, on the other hand, did not provide the definition of food insecurity and used only one question to measure it in the past year.

Have you ever worried about running out of food?

So what's wrong with this one question approach?

Well, first, it only measures worry, not actual experience. So someone might fear running out of food but never actually run out.

And second, it lacks detail. It doesn't ask how often this happened or whether the person actually struggled with food insecurity.

Because of these weaknesses, Robert doesn't trust the 30% statistic. However, he still wants to make sure the 23% figure from Statistics Canada is accurate.

Step three: Check if the data is up to date.

Robert considers when the data was collected. Statistics Canada survey is from 2022, but it's now 2025. The online survey data was collected in 2024, which is more recent. That's why Robert's team wanted to use it.

But even though the stack in data is older, Robert decides to stick with it because it's based on better data. Still, he notes in his report that newer numbers will come up soon, since the Canadian Income Survey is conducted annually and those numbers should be checked once available.

Step fourLook at trends over time to get a better picture.

Robert looks at food insecurity data from past years.

  • In 2020, which was a pandemic year, 16% of Canadians experienced food insecurity.
  • In 2021, there was a slight uptick to 18% after financial aid programs ended.
  • Then in 2022, 23%, a further increase as economic challenges continued.

Since the 23% in 2022 continues a short term trend that aligns with the economic conditions Canadians have faced since the onset of the pandemic, Robert believes this estimate is reasonable.

Meanwhile, the online survey doesn't provide past estimates, so there's no way to check if their 30% is part of a trend or just an outlier.

This reinforces Robert's decision to trust Statistics Canada's numbers over the online survey. Robert doesn't analyze data every day, but when it matters, he takes the time to make sure it's sensible. His critical thinking prevents misleading numbers from influencing important policy decisions.

After all, good decisions depend on good data, and good data comes from proper methods and careful analysis.

So even if you're not a project manager, you're still exposed to statistics all the time on social media, in news reports, and in school.

Not all numbers are reliable, so it's important to question where they come from and how they were obtained. Next time you see a surprising statistic, ask yourself:

  • Who conducted this survey? (Is it from a trustworthy source?)
  • How many people participated? (Was the sample large enough and what was the response rate?)
  • How were participants chosen? (Was the selection process unbiased?)
  • How were questions asked? (Did they capture the concept properly?)
  • And finally, how recent is the data? (Is it still relevant?)

By asking these questions, you can help avoid the spread of misinformation.

And remember by thinking critically about data,you can avoid being misled and make smarter, more informed decisions.

What did you think?

Please give us feedback so we can better provide content that suits our users' needs.

Canada's Economy During Recent Canada-U.S. Trade Developments

This virtual webinar provides an integrated summary of recent changes in output, employment, international trade, consumer prices and household balance sheets. It focuses on how economic conditions have changed as trade tensions between Canada and the United States continue to unfold, highlighting developments in sectors that are heavily dependent on U.S. demand.

The webinar also explores the potential implications of Canada-U.S. trade developments for longer-term trends related to competitiveness, affordability and trade diversification. The event will be hosted by Guy Gellatly, Chief Economic Advisor at Statistics Canada.

Webinar date for the English session: January 22, 2026, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Presenter – English session: Guy Gellatly, Chief Economic Advisor, Strategic Analysis, Publication and Training Division

Register for the webinar: Registration form - Canada's Economy During Recent Canada-U.S. Trade Developments

Registered Apprenticeship Information System (RAIS) Guide, 2024

Concepts used by the Registered Apprenticeship Information System (RAIS)

Designated trades

Apprenticeship training and trade qualifications in Canada are governed by the provincial and territorial jurisdictions. These jurisdictions determine the trades, for which, apprenticeship training is made available as well as the trades, for which, certificates are granted. These are referred to as designated trades. The jurisdictions also determine which of the designated trades require certification in order to work unsupervised in the trade. The list of designated trades varies considerably between the jurisdictions. Data from the Registered Apprenticeship Information System (RAIS) include those trades that are designated in at least one province or territory.

Registered apprentices are people who are in a supervised work training program in a designated trade within their provincial or territorial jurisdiction. The apprentice must be registered with the appropriate governing body (usually a Ministry of Education or Labour or a trade specific industry's governing body) in order to complete the training.

Trade Qualifiers or Trade Challengers are people who have worked in a specific trade for an extended period of time, without necessarily having ever been an apprentice, and who have received certification from a jurisdiction, usually done via a skills assessment examination in the trade.

Registrations

The total registrations in apprenticeship programs is the count of any registrations that occurred during the reporting period (from January to December of the calendar year) within one of the 13 jurisdictions (province or territories).

Total registrations = Already registered + New registrations + Reinstatements

  • Already registered - the number of registrations carried forward from the previous calendar year
  • New registrations - new entrants to any apprenticeship program that occurred during the 12 months reporting period
  • Reinstatements - registrations by people who had left an apprenticeship program in a specific trade in a previous year and had returned to the same apprenticeship program during the reporting period
Red Seal and non-Red Seal Programs

The Red Seal Program sets common standards assessing the skills of tradespersons across Canada in specific trades, referred to as the "Red Seal" trades. Tradespersons who meet the Red Seal standards, through examination, receive a Red Seal endorsement on their provincial/territorial trade certificates. The Red Seal endorsement provides recognition that your certificate meets an interprovincial standard that is recognized in each province and territory.

Non-Red Seal trades do not have interprovincial standards. Many of these trades do not have an examination requirement in order to work in the trade.

Certification

The requirements for granting a certificate varies by jurisdiction in Canada. In most instances, an apprentice is issued a certificate if he or she completes requirements such as supervised on-the-job training, technical training, as well as passing one or more examinations. Most trade qualifiers (Challengers), meanwhile, become certified once they pass an examination.

Certification terminology

There are jurisdictional differences in the names of certificates awarded.

They may include:

  • Certificate of Apprenticeship
  • Diploma of Qualification
  • Certificate of Qualification
  • Journeyperson's Certificate
  • Certificat d'aptitude
  • Certificat de compagnon
  • Certificat de compétence
  • Diplôme d'apprentissage

Federal, provincial and territorial changes pertinent to the interpretation of RAIS data

1. Revisions have been made to the Quebec 1991 to 2005 data, which also changed the previous Canada totals.

2. Prior to 1999, Nunavut was part of the Northwest Territories.

3. Starting in 2003, a change occurred in the reporting of Newfoundland and Labrador's information concerning newly registered apprentices and cancellations/suspensions.

4. The British Columbia data have been revised in 2005. This changed the previous Canada totals for 2005.

5. Starting with the 2005 reporting year, Prince Edward Island changed their information system and this may have affected historical comparisons. At the end of 2006, Prince Edward Island made some adjustments and revisions to their database which accounted for the change in the carry-over of registered apprentices for the beginning of 2007. In 2007, an increase in new registrations is, to some extent, related to a demand for skilled workers outside of the province. In 2008, due to technical difficulties during the redesign of their Registered Apprenticeship Information System, Prince Edward Island was not able to report a number of apprentices.

6. In 2006, minor trade code revisions were made to Manitoba.

7. In 2006 and 2007, differences may occur in Ontario related to the carry-over totals of active apprentices between both years. This is a result of the conversion of client data into Ontario's new database system. As a result, a clean-up of inactive clients occurred and this adjusted the active total of registered apprentices and their carry-over into 2007.

8. As of 2008, the portion of total Quebec trade information coming from Emploi-Quebec (EQ) is no longer being provided in aggregated form. The data from the province includes all trades with the exception of the automotive sector.

9. In 2008, Alberta incorrectly included the Industrial warehousing trade with the Partsperson and Partsperson (material) trades and also excluded the Construction Craft Worker trade.

10. In 2008, a distinct feature of the Rig Technician trade is that although individuals may be registered as apprentices in the trade in Ontario, their certificates are granted as trade qualifiers (challengers).

11. In 2008, Alberta reported a large number of discontinued apprentices, which was a result of them implementing a series of cancellations and suspensions of inactive apprentices.

12. In 2008 and 2009, new Quebec legislation affecting the Emploi-Quebec (EQ) sector trade was introduced. This resulted in some changes in the reporting of registered apprenticeship registrations.

13. An adjustment has been made to the Joiner trade in British Columbia, to include the trade in the Interior finishing major trade group, rather than in the previous Carpenter's major trade group.

14. In 2010, the Emploi-Quebec (EQ) data included revised trade programs where some of the trades have been segmented into several levels. This segmentation created possible multiple registrations and completions by a single individual apprentice, where previously only one registration and completion existed for this individual.

15. In 2011, the Electronics technician (Consumer Products) trade was no longer designated as a Red Seal trade.

16. In 2012, the Gasfitter - Class A and Gasfitter - Class B trades were designated as Red Seal trades.

17. In 2013, changes in provincial regulations governing drinking water related trades reported by Emploi-Quebec (EQ), have resulted in program changes, as well as the transferring of responsibility of some of these trades to the Conseil de la Construction du Québec (CCQ).

18. Begining in 2013, Ontario's data is received from two organizations. The registration data continues to be reported by the Ministry of Advanced Education Skills Development (MASED). They are also responsible for issuing Certificates of Apprenticeships upon the completion of technical training and on-the-job hours. The Ontario College of Trades (OCOT) is responsible for reporting data on Certificates of Qualifications, which are issued to apprentices upon the completion of a certification exam. This administrative practice has affected the RAIS data in a number of different ways.

  1. On April 8, 2013, MASED awarded a Certificate of Apprenticeship to approximately 6,000 apprentices who had completed their technical training and on-the-job hours, and had not yet received a Certificate of Qualification.
  2. There are discrepancies in the number of apprentices in Ontario due to differences in how MASED and OCOT define an apprentice. OCOT considers apprentices to be their members, for whom they have received membership applications with payment of annual membership fees. MASED considers apprentices to be individuals for whom they have received signed training agreements. In the MASED registration data, apprentices can have active and inactive statuses, which can also contribute to discrepancies. Inactive apprentices are apprentices with whom MASED have not received information about their progression in their apprenticeship program for more than a certain period of time. Active and inactive apprentices are included in the RAIS data. As such, the RAIS data may include previously registered apprentices, who have since discontinued their apprenticeship program, but have not yet informed MASED that they have discontinued their program.
  3. Beginning in 2013, apprentices who discontinued from apprenticeship programs in the past, but who remained on the database as already registered apprentices began to be removed from MASED records. These removals appear in the RAIS data files in the following years. The clean-up occurred during odd years (2013, 2015, and 2017). After discussion with the Ontario data partners in 2019, it was indicated that the last of these batch discontinuations were completed in 2017. As a result, there will be less of a spike in discontinuations, and more of a normalized trend from here starting in 2018 and onwards. Normal discontinuation figures for the province will be about 5,000 to 7,000 per year.
  4. In 2014 and 2015, apprentices who did not receive their Certificate of Qualification or Certificate of Apprenticeship in the same year were classified as trade qualifiers (Challengers) rather than apprentices. To align the RAIS data with the standard definition of trade qualifier (Challengers), these records were reclassified as apprentices with the release of the 2016 RAIS data. This revision led to a decrease of about 2,600 trade qualifiers (Challengers) in Ontario in both 2014 and 2015 compared to the previously released data.

19. In 2013, a regulatory change came into effect which affects both Ornamental ironworkers and Structural steel erectors under the jurisdiction of the Conseil de la Construction du Québec (CCQ). Workers in these two trades are now considered Ironworkers. Both the 2014 and 2015 reference years were also impacted by these regulatory changes.

20. In 2013, changes were made to the Automotive Service Technician trades in British Columbia. Apprentices no longer have to complete mandatory work-based training hours at each program level before progressing to the next level of technical training. The 2014 reference year was also impacted by these changes.

21. Certificates in the Steamfitter/Pipefitter trade under the Conseil de la Construction du Québec (CCQ), also include Plumbers.

22. Since 2013, Building/Construction Metalworker are coded to Metal Workers (other) instead of being included in the 'Other' category.

23. In 2014, the Heavy Equipment Operator (Dozer), Heavy Equipment Operator (Excavator) and Heavy Equipment Operator (Tractor-Loader-Backhoe) trades were designated as Red Seal trades.

24. Trade qualifiers (Challengers) in trades governed by Emploi-Quebec (EQ) represents certificates granted to individuals who received recognition for previously completed training. Emploi-Quebec (EQ) may, for example, recognize training in the case where an individual has a certificate in other provinces, territories, countries, or if the individual received a Diploma of Vocational Studies (DVS) in Quebec. These trade qualifiers (Challengers) also represent certificates granted as part of the regular re-certification process required in certain trades.

25. In March of 2014, there were changes made to the eligibility for the Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit (ATTC) in Ontario. This may have affected registration counts in some trades including those for information technology.

26. Prior to 2014, three welder programs (level A, level B, and level C) were offered in British Columbia. Starting in 2014, these three programs began to be phased out and replaced by a single apprenticeship program for welders. This change will impact registrations and certifications in this trade for the years following 2014.

27. Starting in 2017, changes were made to the Automotive Service Technician program in British Columbia. The program was restructured to align with other Canadian jurisdictions Automotive Service Technician Red Seal programs. These changes impacted reinstatement totals for 2017 and registrations counts for the years following 2017.

28. In July 2018, Manitoba announced that it will perform a data clean-up every two years, starting with the 2019 reporting year. This clean-up resulted in lower numbers for both registrations and certifications for the 2019 reporting year.

29. In 2013, the structural steel erector trade and locksmith trade merged to become the ironworker trade. Transitional measures were put in place for journeypersons in these trades, which ended in July 2018.

30. British Columbia has some broad categories of trades where it is possible to receive a certificate after each level is completed, while other jurisdictions only certify apprentices after completing the final level.

  1. In 2019, the Industry Training Authority (ITA) made a decision to group some of their trades under one general trade. For example, Automotive Service Technician 1, Automotive Service Technician 2, and Automotive Service Technician 3 were combined into Automotive Service Technician.
  2. All the trades under Welder were not consolidated, but a general version of the Welder trade was created in 2019.
  3. Also, some apprenticeships were deactivated for certain trades and replaced by Challenge Pathway only, which is for trade qualifiers. Rig Technician, Petroleum Equipment Service Technician, and Water Well Driller are examples of these trades.

31. In June 2021, the Rig Technician trade was de-designated as a Red Seal trade due to low industry demand. Red Seal endorsements will no longer be issued.

32. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led several provinces to cancel or postpone in-class training sessions, examinations, and apprenticeships. As a result, key performance indicators for that year, such as registrations, certifications, and discontinuations, reflect historically low figures. These disruptions contributed to significant deviations in the RAIS 2020 data compared to previous years.

33. In 2024, Ontario’s apprenticeship data was updated to better reflect how certifications are issued in certain trades. Previously, all Certificates of Apprenticeship were counted as non–Red Seal certifications. However, in trades where the main credential is a Certificate of Qualification (with or without a Red Seal), apprentices automatically receive a Certificate of Apprenticeship when they finish their training.To align with Skilled Trades Ontario (STO), these Certificates of Apprenticeship will no longer be counted as certifications on their own. Apprentices who receive only this certificate will now be reported as still progressing toward full certification.

Statistics Canada 2SLGBTQI+ data, analysis and access

Statistics Canada is pleased to host a virtual webinar on data analysis and access related to 2SLGBTQI+ data, in support of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's (CIHR) "Advancing 2SLGBTQI+ Health Through Research" funding opportunity.

Participants will hear directly from Statistics Canada's subject matter, access, and methodology experts, who will discuss approaches to measuring and reporting on the 2SLGBTQI+ population. Topics will include key variables, data sources, terminology, and existing data gaps. The session will also provide guidance on options for accessing both aggregate data and microdata.

Webinar date for the English session: January 14, 2026, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

To register for the webinar, fill out the following form: Registration Form - Statistics Canada 2SLGBTQI+ data, analysis and access

Wholesale Trade Survey (monthly): CVs for total sales by geography - October 2025

Wholesale Trade Survey (monthly): CVs for total sales by geography - October 2025
Geography Month
202410 202411 202412 202501 202502 202503 202504 202505 202506 202507 202508 202509 202510
percentage
Canada 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.5 0.9 1.2 0.9 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5
Newfoundland and Labrador 1.3 1.5 1.1 1.4 0.8 0.7 1.8 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.7
Prince Edward Island 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Nova Scotia 6.2 9.5 12.0 7.0 3.8 3.8 7.1 10.7 2.8 2.8 1.6 1.2 1.4
New Brunswick 3.4 2.7 2.3 3.3 1.8 1.4 4.3 1.5 1.0 0.8 1.0 0.7 0.7
Quebec 4.3 4.8 4.4 4.5 5.5 3.7 4.3 3.1 1.3 1.8 1.3 2.0 1.6
Ontario 2.2 2.2 2.4 2.7 3.2 1.7 2.3 1.6 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.9 1.0
Manitoba 2.9 1.9 2.3 0.9 1.1 1.3 1.3 1.2 0.8 0.8 1.1 0.4 0.3
Saskatchewan 1.5 1.0 1.4 1.6 0.7 0.8 1.6  0.5 0.4 0.9 0.6 1.0 0.3
Alberta 1.3 1.9 1.2 1.4 1.2 0.8 0.6 0.7 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5
British Columbia 3.1 2.7 2.2 2.6 2.9 1.9 1.8 2.2 0.8 1.1 1.6 1.8 2.7
Yukon Territory 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Northwest Territories 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Nunavut 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Monthly Survey of Manufacturing: National Level CVs by Characteristic - October 2025

National Level CVs by Characteristic, October 2025
Table summary
This table displays the results of Monthly Survey of Manufacturing: National Level CVs by Characteristic. The information is grouped by Month (appearing as row headers), and Sales of goods manufactured, Raw materials and components inventories, Goods / work in process inventories, Finished goods manufactured inventories and Unfilled Orders, calculated in percentage (appearing as column headers).
Month Sales of goods manufactured Raw materials and components inventories Goods / work in process inventories Finished goods manufactured inventories Unfilled Orders
%
October 2024 0.76 1.11 1.87 1.25 1.52
November 2024 0.70 1.11 1.81 1.25 1.64
December 2024 0.63 1.06 1.89 1.26 1.45
January 2025 0.67 1.11 1.71 1.25 1.45
February 2025 0.72 1.14 1.85 1.33 1.46
March 2025 0.72 1.18 1.77 1.38 1.49
April 2025 0.75 1.16 1.78 1.41 1.52
May 2025 0.78 1.20 1.87 1.45 1.51
June 2025 0.81 1.19 1.77 1.43 1.43
July 2025 0.74 1.21 1.82 1.41 1.42
August 2025 0.77 1.23 1.84 1.37 1.39
September 2025 0.78 1.30 1.91 1.47 1.32
October 2025 0.75 1.22 1.85 1.44 1.38

User guide for data processing, quality and limitations - 2023

Introduction

The Canadian Housing Statistics Program (CHSP) aims to provide detailed insights on residential properties in Canada and their owners. However, certain estimates are subject to limitations or may not be available for some jurisdictions or variable types because of differences in data sources, regional coverage and processing steps.

The purpose of this document is to help the reader interpret and use data from the CHSP. It outlines key data quality considerations and specific limitations affecting the availability and comparability of estimates across some domains.

To consult changes that are specific to a given reference year, please refer to the Summary of changes - Surveys and statistical programs - Canadian Housing Statistics Program (CHSP).

Data processing

  • Random rounding is applied to all raw counts to protect the confidentiality of owners in the totals. Totals and subtotals may not equal the sum of components.
  • Percentages are calculated from rounded counts.
  • Averages and medians are calculated using only non-missing, non-null, and values greater than zero for the variables of interest (for example, assessment value, total living area and total income).
  • Assessment value per square foot refers to the assessment value of a property divided by its total living area.
  • Some property or owner characteristics are in the "unspecified" category either because the corresponding information was not received from the data provider or because there is no identifiable link connecting the property to the owner information. Therefore, users must take this limitation into account when interpreting the data.
  • Previous reference period estimates are subject to revision.
  • Each year, geocoding is updated based on the best available location information, which may result in slight variations in the counts of census subdivisions from one year to the next.

Universe of property tables

The tables 46-10-0093, 46-10-0094 and 46-10-0095 are restricted to residential properties in Canada. The geographic location of a property is determined by its physical address. Mixed-use properties (e.g., residential and commercial) are included, but the property characteristics reported in the tables reflect only the residential portion of mixed-use properties. The universe covers residential properties across Canada. However, it does not cover residential properties located on reserves or collective dwellings. It also excludes commercial, industrial, and institutional properties.

Universe of owner tables

The tables 46-10-0030 and 46-10-0069 include all residential property owners at the provincial level. However, table 46-10-0030 also provides data on buyers, who are property owners who acquired a property, either on or off the market, between January 1 and December 31 of the previous reference year.

The tables 46-10-009646-10-0097 and 46-10-0098 are restricted to resident owners who are persons occupying their residential property. An owner's geographic location is determined by the location of the occupied property.

In the case of Nunavut, where information on owner-occupied properties is unavailable, the universe includes all resident owners who are persons without restrictions on owner-occupancy. For owners with multiple properties, the geographic location and property characteristics are based on the residential property with the highest assessment value.

Universe of buyer table

The table 46-10-0099 is restricted to resident buyers who are persons who filed their T1 tax return form in the previous year and purchased a property in a market sale.

Data availability and limitations

Newfoundland and Labrador

  • Estimates are not available at the provincial level and for the category "outside of census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs)."
  • Estimates by property type are available only for the census subdivision of St. John's.

Prince Edward Island

  • Estimates of total living area and assessment value per square foot are not available.

New Brunswick

  • Estimates of total living area and assessment value per square foot for condominium apartments are not available.
  • The "total, all property types" category excludes condominium apartments; therefore, users should consider this limitation when interpreting estimates of total living area and assessment value per square foot for this group.

Manitoba

  • Estimates by property use of residential property are suppressed in many areas due to lower linkage quality.
  • The estimate of the number of owner-occupied residential property is underestimated due to the quality of the linkage.

Saskatchewan

  • Provincial estimates exclude the census subdivision of Prince Albert.
  • Owner-related variables are not available because of missing owners' information.

Alberta

  • Estimates by property use and residency status of residential property are suppressed due to low data quality.
  • The number of resident owners who are persons occupying a residential property, which represent the universe of the owner tables, is underestimated due to the low linkage quality. Therefore, the number of owners should be interpreted with caution.

Yukon

  • Estimates by property use and residency status of residential property are available only for the census subdivision (CSD) of Whitehorse.
  • The number of resident owners who are persons occupying a residential property, which represent the universe of the owner tables, is underestimated due to the low linkage quality outside the CSD of Whitehorse. Therefore, the number of owners outside this CSD should be interpreted with caution.

Northwest Territories

  • Data are available only for the CA of Yellowknife.
  • Estimates by property type and period of construction are not available.
  • Estimates of total living area and assessment value per square foot are not available.

Nunavut

  • Estimates by property type, period of construction and property use are not available.
  • Estimates of total living area and assessment value per square foot are not available.

Variable-specific limitations

Property use of residential property

  • The property use indicator is suppressed outside CMAs and CAs due to low linkage quality. It may also be removed in certain regions where its reliability has been deemed insufficient.
  • For the most recent period of construction, the property use indicator is less precise. Consequently, these estimates should be used with caution.

Owner-occupancy

  • The quality of the linkage is unreliable outside CMAs and CAs, leading to an underestimation of the number of resident owners who are persons occupying a residential property, which represents the universe of the owner tables (except for Nunavut). Therefore, Census Subdivisions (CSDs) located outside CMAs and CAs are not included in the owner tables. Although aggregate estimates for the category "outside of census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs)" are still provided, the number of owners in this category should be interpreted with caution.

Assessment value

  • Because provinces and territories have varying assessment periods and assessment roll durations from one region to another, it is not possible to make precise comparisons between the assessment values of properties located in different provinces or territories. To obtain the reference years for property assessment values, please refer to the document linked on the CHSP web page: Reference years of the property stock and assessment values, by province and territory.

Number of residential properties owned

  • The number of properties owned by the property owner is limited to residential properties that are within a given province.

Sale Price

  • Estimates of property sale prices are limited to transactions conducted on the market and are available only for residents.

Number of Buyers

  • Estimates of the number of buyers are restricted to residents only.

Composite quality indicator

The composite quality indicators (CQI) combine multiple individual quality indicators (QIs) representing the quality of various CHSP data processing steps (for example, coding, geocoding, linkage, imputation). The CQIs are available for certain tables, such as the following:

Table 46-10-0093-01 Residential properties by characteristics, property use and ownership type

Table 46-10-0094-01 Residential properties by characteristics and residency status.

The CQI letter grades are defined as follows:

A – Excellent: All domain variables and the variable of interest are of excellent quality.

B – Very good: All domain variables and the variable of interest are of very good to excellent quality.

C – Good: The quality of some of the domain variables or the variable of interest is considered good, while all the other variables are of very good to excellent quality.

D – Acceptable: The quality of some of the domain variables or the variable of interest is considered acceptable, while all the other variables are of good to excellent quality.

E – Use with caution: The quality of several domain variables or the variable of interest is considered poor.

F – Too unreliable to be published

Retail Commodity Survey: CVs for Total Sales (September 2025)

Retail Commodity Survey: CVs for Total Sales (September 2025)
Table summary
This table displays the results of Retail Commodity Survey: CVs for Total Sales (September 2025). The information is grouped by NAPCS-CANADA (appearing as row headers), and Month (appearing as column headers).
NAPCS-CANADA Month
202506 202507 202508 202509
Total commodities, retail trade commissions and miscellaneous services 0.54 0.59 0.59 0.51
Retail Services (except commissions) [561] 0.53 0.59 0.59 0.51
Food and beverages at retail [56111] 0.33 0.35 0.34 0.30
Cannabis products, at retail [56113] 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Clothing at retail [56121] 0.55 0.65 0.74 1.17
Jewellery and watches, luggage and briefcases, at retail [56123] 2.12 1.98 2.35 2.42
Footwear at retail [56124] 1.13 1.09 1.21 1.11
Home furniture, furnishings, housewares, appliances and electronics, at retail [56131] 0.79 0.74 0.72 0.76
Sporting and leisure products (except publications, audio and video recordings, and game software), at retail [56141] 2.16 3.03 2.97 3.36
Publications at retail [56142] 8.65 8.46 8.67 9.62
Audio and video recordings, and game software, at retail [56143] 3.05 4.04 5.66 5.71
Motor vehicles at retail [56151] 1.84 1.97 2.23 1.80
Recreational vehicles at retail [56152] 3.15 3.61 2.90 3.25
Motor vehicle parts, accessories and supplies, at retail [56153] 1.35 1.27 1.68 1.46
Automotive and household fuels, at retail [56161] 1.37 1.36 1.46 1.36
Home health products at retail [56171] 2.68 3.22 2.62 2.39
Infant care, personal and beauty products, at retail [56172] 2.57 2.61 2.58 2.40
Hardware, tools, renovation and lawn and garden products, at retail [56181] 2.04 1.94 1.37 1.34
Miscellaneous products at retail [56191] 3.14 2.67 2.27 2.49
Retail trade commissions [562] 1.63 1.57 1.67 1.52

Federal Patents, Licences and Royalties Survey 2024-2025

Information for respondents

This information is collected under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S-19. Completion of this questionnaire is a legal requirement under this act.

Survey Objective

This survey collects information that is necessary for monitoring federal patent, royalty and licensing related activities in Canada, and to support the development of science and technology policy. The survey is conducted by Statistics Canada, on behalf of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED). The data collected will be used by federal science policy analysts. Your information may also be used by Statistics Canada for other statistical and research purposes.

Confidentiality

Your answers are confidential. Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects which could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Statistics Canada will use the information from this survey for statistical purposes.

Security of emails and faxes

Statistics Canada advises you that there could be a risk of disclosure during the transmission of information by facsimile or e-mail. However, upon receipt, Statistics Canada will provide the guaranteed level of protection afforded all information collected under the authority of the Statistics Act.

Data sharing agreement

To reduce response burden and to ensure more uniform statistics, Statistics Canada has entered into an agreement under Section 12 of the Statistics Act with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) for sharing information from this survey. ISED has agreed to keep the information confidential and use it only for statistical purposes. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with ISED by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician and returning it with the completed questionnaire. You may also contact us by email at infostats@statcan.gc.ca or by fax at 1-514-496-4879.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey and to minimize the reporting burden, Statistics Canada may combine it with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Authorization

I hereby authorize Statistics Canada to disclose any or all portions of the data supplied on this questionnaire that could identify this department.

  • Yes
  • No

Department or agency:

Name of person authorized to sign:

Signature:

Program Official position:

E-mail address:

Telephone number:

Extension:

Section 1 - Identifying intellectual property (IP)

1.1 – Reports and disclosures

Please indicate the number of new instances of Intellectual Property reported or disclosed during the reference year, April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025. The types of Intellectual Property are defined in the Respondent Guide, Section 4.1.

Intellectual Property: Number of new IP reports and disclosures

  • Inventions
  • Copyrightable IP
  • Trademarks
  • New plant varieties
  • Know-how
  • Other (please specify):

1.2 - Reports and disclosures resulting in protection activity

Please indicate how many instances of Intellectual Property (not necessarily new) resulted in protection activity by this organization during the reference year, April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025. The types of Intellectual Property are defined in the Respondent Guide, Section 4.1.

Intellectual Property: Number of IP reports and disclosures resulting in protection activity

  • Inventions
  • Copyrightable IP
  • Trademarks
  • New plant varieties
  • Other (please specify):

Section 2 - Patents

2.1 – Patent applications filed and issued

Please report the number of patent applications filed and issued during the reference year, April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025.

Patent activity: Count

  • Total patent applications filed
  • Total patents issued

2.2 – Patent applications held or pending

Please report the number of patent applications held and pending at the end of the reference year, as of March 31, 2025.

Patent activity: Count

  • Total patents held (including patents issued)
  • Total patents pending

Section 3 - Licences

3.1 – New and active licences

Please report the number of new licences executed during the reference year, April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025.

Please report the number of active licences at the end of the reference year, as of March 31, 2025.

Include Canadian and foreign licences. Please see the Respondent Guide, Section 4.3.1, for detailed definitions.

New licences executed: Count:

  • Royalty-bearing
  • Royalty-free
  • Total

Active licences: Count

  • Royalty-bearing
  • Royalty-free
  • Total

3.2 – Income received from licensed IP

Please specify the total income received from licensed IP during the reference year, April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025.

Report amounts in thousands of Canadian dollars and in whole numbers only (no decimals).

Income received from  licensed IP: Total CAD$ (in thousands of Canadian dollars)

  • Income received from  licensed IP

Section 4 - Respondent guide

This questionnaire, in general, covers the intellectual property generated from R&D activities. We acknowledge that commercializable IP arises from other activities as well and that it may be difficult to differentiate. Whenever possible, please report figures for IP generated from R&D activities. If this is not possible, please note that the figures include IP generated from non-R&D activities.

If exact numbers are not readily available, please provide estimates with a note indicating this.

Please do not leave any question blank. Enter «0» if the value is known to be zero. If the data are not available, enter «..». In cases where the question is not applicable, enter "N/A".

This guide may provide specific examples to further clarify broadly defined categories or terms. Sometimes example lists are misinterpreted as inclusion lists. If you are unsure of any definitions, please reach out to your StatCan contact during the collection period. Please do not report for joint IP to avoid multi-counting issues.

Report all dollar amounts in thousands of Canadian dollars.

Notes on survey questions

4.1. Notes for Section 1 - Identifying Intellectual Property (IP)

  • Invention: Includes any new and useful art, process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement in any art, process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter (Public Servants Inventions Act. R.S., c. P-31, s. 1.). Some inventions are patentable in some jurisdictions but not in others: these include novel genetically-engineered life forms, new microbial life forms, methods of medical treatment and computer software.
  • Copyrightable IP: Copyright protection applies to all original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works provided the conditions set out in section 5 of the Copyright Act have been met. Each of these general categories covers a wide range of creations. Examples are provided below:
    • literary works such as books, pamphlets, computer programs, software and other works consisting of text
    • dramatic works such as motion picture films, plays, screenplays and scripts
    • musical works such as musical compositions with or without words
    • artistic works such as paintings, drawings, maps, photographs, sculptures and plans

We understand that it is hard to count all copyrightable IP. For Section 1.1, please provide the number of copyrightable IP reported or disclosed to your departmental IP office by employees of your department during the reference period. For Section 1.2, please report any copyrights registered with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) during the reference period. 

For survey purposes, please exclude journal articles from your reporting.

  • Trademarks: These are words, symbols, designs, or combinations thereof used to distinguish your wares or services from someone else's. Trademarks are registered with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.
  • New plant varieties: Certain plant varieties that are new, different, uniform and stable may be protected by registration with the Plant Breeders' Rights Office, Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
  • Know-how: This is practical knowledge, technique or expertise. For example, certain information is codified in the patent application, but a researcher’s know-how could be valuable for commercial optimization of the product. Know-how can be licensed independently of the terms of a related patent.

Notes for Section 1.2: Please report the number of IP resulting in protection activity, not the number of times protection activity occurred. For example, if one invention has multiple patents, this should be counted once since there is only one IP involved. Know-how is not applicable for this section because Know-how is not formally protected.

4.2. Notes for Section 2 - Patents

Total patent applications filed: Please include in your total:

  • Initiating patent applications: includes provisional or first filings. Please report for any initiating patent applications during the reference period, even if they were revoked at a later date.
  • Follow-on patent applications: includes any that claim priority from an initiating patent application.

Total patents issued includes patents that have been approved for protection during the reference period.

Total patents held is the total number of patents owned or controlled at the end of the reference period. It includes patents issued, such that they were still held at the end of the reference period.

Total patents pending includes any patents filed during or before the reference period that have not been issued yet. Please report the total number of patents pending at the end of the reference period.

Note: International (for example, Patent Cooperation Treaty applications, PCT) and regional applications (e.g., European Patent Office applications) should be counted as single applications. This means a patent family only needs to be counted once. Filed patents not yet issued may be pending. If filed during the reference period, these pending patents would be captured by Total patent applications filed.

4.3.1. Notes for Section 3.1 - New and active licences

New licences executed refers to the number of new licence agreements completed during the reference period. Please include both Canadian and foreign licences in your count.

Active licences refers to the number of existing licence agreements in place at the end of the reference period. This includes any ongoing, new, amended or renegotiated licence agreements in place at the end of the reference period. Please include both Canadian and foreign licences in your count.

Royalty bearing licences refers to licence agreements where licensees compensate IP owners for use of their IP. Compensation to the IP owner can take different forms (% of sales, lump sum payments, equity, etc.). Compared to total licences, this portion of licences aligns better with the dollar amounts in Section 3.2.

Royalty-free licences refers to licence agreements without set compensation for IP owners. The licensee is generally required to respect established conditions but does not provide payment to benefit from the IP rights. While these licences do not generate income for federal departments, they allow licensees to use federal department IP to benefit Canadians.

Note: Please exclude click/wordwrap end user licence agreements (EULAs) including open government licences, and EULAs associated with free downloadable software.

4.3.2. Notes for Section 3.2 - Income received from licensed IP

Income received from licensed IP refers to all income received through IP commercialization during the reference period. This includes income from any royalty structure, for example, sales-based, milestone payments, minimum annual royalties, etc. It also includes income from one-time sales of IP, contributions or fees from licensees, and any other income generated through commercializing IP.

Note: If expired licences generated revenue during the reference period, please still report these amounts. Please exclude click/wordwrap end user licence agreements (EULAs) including open government licences, and EULAs associated with free downloadable software.