Selling on Amazon.ca: French, bilingual labels and the rules that differ from the US

Selling on Amazon Canada (Amazon.ca) means meeting Canadian rules that a US listing does not cover: package labels in English and French under the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, Quebec's French-language labelling rules in force since 1 June 2025, metric units, and Canadian approvals such as a Natural Product Number for supplements and the National Safety Mark for car seats. Amazon sets separate category policies for its Canadian store, so an approval or listing that works on Amazon.com does not carry over automatically. A US listing is a source of facts for Amazon.ca, but it usually needs metric units, Canadian spelling, Canadian approvals and a French version.

How do you start selling on Amazon Canada?

Amazon sets category policies for its Canadian store, and an Amazon staff member reminds sellers to "thoroughly review Amazon's policies for the categories you want to sell in on the Canadian marketplace". An Amazon.com approval or listing does not carry over to Amazon.ca automatically, so check each product's category in the Canadian store before listing it.

What are Canada's bilingual packaging requirements?

Canada's Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act sets the rules for prepackaged consumer products, including labels in both official languages, English and French, for the information the law requires. Several product laws add further bilingual requirements:

A package printed for the US only, with English text alone, is often not ready for Canada. Check the package before sending stock, because relabelling stock that has already crossed the border is slow and costly. Some products sold in both countries already have a bilingual package, so ask the supplier whether one exists.

What changed in Quebec's French labelling rules in 2025?

Quebec's Charter of the French language goes further than Canada's federal labelling rules. Under the final regulation, the product labelling and packaging changes took effect on 1 June 2025: where a trademark on a product contains generic or descriptive words in another language, the French version of those words must appear on the product or on something permanently attached to it.

A transition lets products made before 1 June 2025 stay on the market until 1 June 2027, under the conditions the regulation sets. Law firms read the trademark exceptions differently, so do not build a Quebec launch on a generous reading: if your brand name contains English descriptive words, put their French version on the product unless the regulation's exception plainly covers your mark.

Which product rules differ between Canada and the US?

Several kinds of product need Canadian approvals that US approvals do not replace:

The general product safety framework in Canada sits in the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act. The library's rules pages cover each product type with its Canadian section, such as the supplement rules, the cosmetics and skincare rules, the car seat rules and the toy rules.

Should an Amazon.ca listing use metric units?

Yes. Canadian shoppers expect metric units, such as centimetres, millilitres, grams and kilograms, and a listing in inches and ounces alone asks them to convert. Give metric first, with imperial after it where it helps, and use the same figures on the package, the listing images and the listing.

• Convert once, carefully, and round consistently, to the nearest centimetre or the nearest 5 ml, not a mix.
• Match the package. The net quantity on a Canadian label follows Canadian rules, and the listing should match it.
• Redo size images and charts with metric first, rather than adding centimetres in small type under inches. The guide to size charts covers building them.

For clothing and footwear, Canada uses the same size names as the US for most brands, but shoppers still compare measurements. Give measurements in centimetres first, say which size system a shoe size uses, and give fibre content in English and French under the Textile Labelling Act.

How do you write a French listing for Amazon.ca?

Amazon.ca shoppers can browse in English or French, and a French listing helps French-speaking shoppers find and trust a product, especially in Quebec.

• Translate meaning, not words. A product title translated word for word often reads oddly; write it the way a French-speaking shopper would search for the product.
• Use Canadian French, which differs from the French of France in many everyday words and some spellings.
• Keep the facts identical to the English listing: sizes, materials, claims and warnings.
• Translate warnings exactly, as they appear on the bilingual package.
• Research French keywords separately. The phrases French-speaking shoppers type are not translations of the English phrases.

Canada's packaging laws are about the package, not the listing. Quebec's rules on French apply to the product itself. A French listing is a choice that serves French-speaking shoppers, and buyers in Quebec may also write to a seller in French, so a short set of prepared French replies for delivery, returns and product questions, written by a fluent speaker, covers the usual messages.

How do keywords differ on Amazon.ca?

Canadian shoppers' searches differ from US searches in small ways that matter: spelling ("colour", "centre"), words ("toque" for a winter hat), units, and French. Research Amazon.ca keywords for Canada separately, in English and in French, rather than reusing the US list. Search volumes in Canada are smaller than in the US for the same phrase, so compare phrases with each other within Canada, not with their US figures.

How do you get stock to Canada from the US?

Selling on Amazon.ca from the US means moving goods over a border, which brings decisions about the importer, duties and taxes, and delivery times. Settle three questions before listing:

• Who is the importer, and who pays duties and taxes on the way in.
• Where the stock sits: shipped from the US to each buyer, or held in Canada.
• What the package says: the label on stock entering Canada should already meet Canadian rules.

The answers depend on what is sold and where it is made, so settle them product by product with your customs broker or fulfilment partner before the first shipment. Shoppers on Amazon.ca see prices in Canadian dollars, and delivery from the US can add time and cost, so price for the Canadian market rather than converting the US price.

What does a US product need before listing on Amazon.ca?

A made-up example: a US seller wants to list a face cream on Amazon.ca. Before sending stock, the seller works through five questions.

1. Cosmetic or drug? The cream claims only to moisturise, so it is a cosmetic in both countries. A cream claiming an SPF would be a sunscreen, needing a Drug Identification Number or a Natural Product Number in Canada.
2. Notification. The cosmetic must be notified to Health Canada.
3. Labels. The ingredient list must be in English and French, and the other required information bilingual under the packaging law. The US carton is English only, so the cream needs a Canadian carton or a compliant bilingual label.
4. Quebec. If the brand name contains English descriptive words, the French version of those words must appear on the product, subject to the regulation's exceptions.
5. The listing. Metric sizes first (50 ml), the same claims as the label, and a French version for French-speaking shoppers.

None of this is visible on the cream's US listing, which is why copying a US listing to Amazon.ca is not enough.

What are the steps to a first Amazon.ca listing?

1. Pick one product that sells well in the US and has no Canadian approval or licence to wait for.
2. Check its category in the Canadian store.
3. Check its package for English and French, and for Quebec's French rules.
4. Convert every figure to metric, on the package, the listing images and the listing.
5. Research keywords for Canada in English and French.
6. Write both listings from the same facts.
7. Send a small first shipment, and learn the costs and timings before scaling.

Starting with one product keeps the first round of learning cheap, and what the first product teaches, such as a label that needs changing or a duty not expected, applies to the products that follow.

A checklist for Amazon.ca

1. Categories checked in the Canadian store, not assumed from the US.
2. Package labels in English and French where the law asks.
3. Quebec's French rules checked for the brand and packaging.
4. Metric units first, matching the package.
5. Canadian approvals in place: Natural Product Number, Medical Device Licence, National Safety Mark, PCP number, as the product needs.
6. A French listing written for Canadian French-speaking shoppers, with the same facts.
7. Prices set for Canada.

How Commicorn helps

• Listings in English and French. Commicorn writes listing copy for French-speaking markets, Canada (French) among them, with the claim checks in French. The words on listing images stay in English for now.
• Keywords from Canadian searches. Keyword research runs for Canada in English or French, with search volumes for that market.
• One set of facts for the US and Canadian listings, so sizes, materials and warnings match.
• Your package, as printed. On the Untouched product route the pixels of your photo are never redrawn, so a bilingual label stays exactly as printed.

Commicorn writes your listing in English and French. Start free.

Questions sellers ask

Can I use my Amazon.com listing on Amazon.ca?

As a source of facts, yes. As written, an Amazon.com listing usually needs metric units, Canadian spelling, Canadian approvals where they apply, and a French version for Amazon.ca.

Do product labels in Canada have to be in English and French?

Yes, for the information the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act requires on prepackaged consumer products, and product laws for toys, cosmetics and textiles add further bilingual requirements.

Is a product approved in the US approved in Canada?

Not automatically. Supplements, sunscreens, medical devices, pest control products and car seats each need Canadian approvals or marks, such as a Natural Product Number or the National Safety Mark.

When did Quebec's new French labelling rules take effect?

The product labelling and packaging changes under Quebec's Charter of the French language took effect on 1 June 2025, with products made before that date allowed on the market until 1 June 2027 under conditions.

Can I sell CBD on Amazon.ca?

In Canada, CBD is cannabis under the Cannabis Act and is sold only through licensed channels.