Excise Act, 2001 (S.C. 2002, c. 22)

Marginal note:Prohibition — production and packaging of wine

• 62 (1) No person shall, except in accordance with a wine licence issued to the person, produce or package wine.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to

  • (a) the production of wine by an individual for their personal use;

  • (b) the packaging of wine referred to in paragraph (a) by an individual for their personal use; or

  • (c) the packaging of wine from a marked special container by a purchaser at a bottle-your-own premises.

Marginal note:Prohibition — fortification of wine

62.1 Except as permitted under section 130, no person shall use bulk spirits to fortify bulk wine.

Marginal note:Prohibition — sale of wine produced for personal use

63 No person shall sell or put to a commercial use wine that was produced, or produced and packaged, by an individual for their personal use.

Marginal note:Wine produced by individual

64 For the purposes of this Act, wine is not produced or packaged by an individual if it has been produced or packaged by a person acting on their behalf.

Marginal note:Prohibition — ferment-on-premises facility

65 No person shall carry on at a ferment-on-premises facility any activity specified in a licence or registration issued under this Act other than an activity specified in a ferment-on-premises registration.

Marginal note:Application — in-transit and transhipped alcohol

66 Sections 67 to 72, 75, 76, 80, 85, 88, 97 to 100 and 102 do not apply to imported alcohol or specially denatured alcohol that is, in accordance with the Customs Act, the Customs Tariff and the regulations made under those Acts,

• (a) transported by a customs bonded carrier from a place outside Canada to another place outside Canada;

• (b) stored in a customs bonded warehouse or sufferance warehouse for subsequent delivery to a place outside Canada; or

• (c) transported by a customs bonded carrier

  • (i) from a place outside Canada to a customs bonded warehouse or a sufferance warehouse for subsequent delivery to a place outside Canada, or

  • (ii) from a customs bonded warehouse or a sufferance warehouse to a place outside Canada.

Marginal note:Prohibition — sale of alcohol

67 No person shall sell

• (a) bulk alcohol unless it was produced or imported in accordance with this Act;

• (b) packaged alcohol unless it was, in accordance with this Act,

  • (i) produced and packaged in Canada,

  • (ii) imported and packaged in Canada, or

  • (iii) imported; or

• (c) a marked special container of alcohol unless it was marked in accordance with this Act.

Marginal note:Availability and sampling of imported DA and SDA

• 68 (1) Any person who imports a product that is reported under the Customs Act as being denatured alcohol or specially denatured alcohol shall make the product available for sampling and the product is required to be sampled by the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness before it is released under that Act.

• Marginal note:Testing

  (2) The samples must be tested to verify that the product is denatured alcohol or specially denatured alcohol.

• Marginal note:Minister may waive

  (3) The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness may at any time waive the requirement to sample an imported product under subsection (1).

• Marginal note:Fees

  (4) The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness may fix fees to be paid by the importer of the product but those fees must not exceed an amount determined by that Minister to be the costs to Her Majesty in respect of the sampling and testing.

Bulk Alcohol

Marginal note:Prohibition — ownership of bulk alcohol

69 No person shall own bulk alcohol unless it was produced or imported in accordance with this Act.

Marginal note:Prohibition — possession

• 70 (1) No person shall possess bulk alcohol.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) Subsection (1) does not apply

  • (a) to a spirits licensee or a licensed user who possesses bulk spirits that were produced or imported by a spirits licensee;

  • (b) to a wine licensee or a licensed user who possesses bulk wine that was produced or imported by a wine licensee;

  • (c) to a licensed user who possesses bulk alcohol that was imported by the licensed user;

  • (c.1) in the case of bulk spirits produced for the purpose or as a consequence of the analysis of the composition of a substance containing absolute ethyl alcohol, to a person who, having produced those spirits, possesses them during the period of analysis;

  • (d) to an alcohol registrant who possesses, for the purposes of storage or transportation, bulk alcohol that was produced by an alcohol licensee or imported by an alcohol licensee or licensed user;

  • (e) to a sufferance warehouse licensee who possesses in their sufferance warehouse bulk alcohol that was imported by a person permitted to do so under this Act;

  • (f) to a ferment-on-premises registrant who possesses bulk wine that was produced at the registrant’s ferment-on-premises facility by an individual for the individual’s personal use; or

  • (g) to an individual who possesses less than 500 L of bulk wine that was lawfully produced at a residence or a ferment-on-premises facility for an individual’s personal use.

Marginal note:Prohibition — supply of spirits

71 No person shall give possession of bulk spirits to a person other than a spirits licensee, a licensed user or an alcohol registrant.

Marginal note:Prohibition — supply of wine

• 72 (1) No person shall give possession of bulk wine to a person other than a wine licensee, a licensed user or an alcohol registrant.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to an individual who, in connection with their personal use of it, gives possession of bulk wine lawfully produced by an individual for their personal use.

Marginal note:Restriction — licensed user

73 A licensed user shall not use or dispose of bulk alcohol other than to

• (a) use it in an approved formulation;

• (b) use it in a process in which the absolute ethyl alcohol is destroyed to the extent approved by the Minister;

• (c) use it to produce vinegar;

• (d) use it in accordance with section 130, 131 or 131.1;

• (e) return it to

  • (i) in the case of alcohol returned in circumstances to which paragraph 105(1)(a) or 114(1)(a) applies, a licensee referred to in that paragraph, or

  • (ii) in any other case, the alcohol licensee who supplied it;

• (f) subject to section 76, export it;

• (g) use it for analysis in a manner approved by the Minister; or

• (h) destroy it in a manner approved by the Minister.

Marginal note:Disposal of bulk spirits

74 A person who possesses bulk spirits produced for the purpose or as a consequence of the analysis of the composition of a substance containing absolute ethyl alcohol shall, immediately after the analysis is complete, destroy or dispose of the spirits in a manner approved by the Minister.

Marginal note:Importation — bulk spirits

• 75 (1) No person shall import bulk spirits other than a spirits licensee, a licensed user or, if the spirits are in a special container, an excise warehouse licensee in accordance with section 80.

• Marginal note:Importation — bulk wine

  (2) No person shall import bulk wine other than a wine licensee, a licensed user or, if the wine is in a special container, an excise warehouse licensee in accordance with section 85.

Marginal note:Unauthorized export

76 No person shall export bulk alcohol other than

• (a) the alcohol licensee who is responsible for the alcohol;

• (b) the licensed user who imported the alcohol; or

• (c) a person required to do so under section 101.

Special Containers of Spirits

Marginal note:Marked container deemed packaged

77 If a special container of spirits is marked, the spirits are deemed to be packaged at the time the container is marked.

Marginal note:Marking

• 78 (1) No person shall mark a special container of spirits unless

  • (a) the person is a spirits licensee; or

  • (b) the container is one that has been placed in a sufferance warehouse in accordance with section 80 and the person marks the container in the circumstances described in that section.

• Marginal note:Container to be warehoused

  (2) If a spirits licensee marks a special container of spirits, the licensee shall immediately enter it into an excise warehouse.

Marginal note:Importation

79 No person, other than an excise warehouse licensee, shall import a marked special container of spirits.

Marginal note:Marking of imported container

80 If a special container of spirits that is imported by an excise warehouse licensee is not marked when it is reported under the Customs Act, it shall be placed in a sufferance warehouse for the purpose of being marked.

Marginal note:Imported container to be warehoused

81 If a marked special container of spirits is released under the Customs Act, the excise warehouse licensee who imported it shall immediately enter it into their excise warehouse.

Special Containers of Wine

Marginal note:Marked container deemed packaged

82 If a special container of wine is marked, the wine is deemed to be packaged at the time the container is marked.

Marginal note:Marking

• 83 (1) No person shall mark a special container of wine unless

  • (a) the person is a wine licensee; or

  • (b) the container is one that has been placed in a sufferance warehouse in accordance with section 85 and the person marks the container in the circumstances described in that section.

• Marginal note:Container to be warehoused

  (2) If a wine licensee marks a special container of wine, the licensee shall immediately enter it into an excise warehouse.

Marginal note:Importation

84 No person, other than an excise warehouse licensee, shall import a marked special container of wine.

Marginal note:Marking of imported container

85 If a special container of wine that is imported by an excise warehouse licensee is not marked when it is reported under the Customs Act, it shall be placed in a sufferance warehouse for the purpose of being marked.

Marginal note:Imported container to be warehoused

86 If a marked special container of wine is released under the Customs Act, the excise warehouse licensee who imported it shall immediately enter it into their excise warehouse.

Packaged Alcohol

Marginal note:Information on container

87 Every alcohol licensee who packages alcohol shall cause all prescribed information to be displayed on the container containing the alcohol and on any packaging encasing the container

• (a) in the case of wine that is entered into an excise warehouse immediately after it is packaged, before the wine is removed from the warehouse; and

• (a.1) [Repealed, 2022, c. 10, s. 129]

• (b) in any other case, immediately after the alcohol is packaged.

Marginal note:Prohibition — possession

• 88 (1) No person shall possess non-duty-paid packaged alcohol.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) Non-duty-paid packaged alcohol, other than alcohol in a marked special container,

  • (a) that is packaged by an alcohol licensee or imported by an excise warehouse licensee may be possessed by

    • (i) an excise warehouse licensee in their excise warehouse,

    • (ii) a licensed user in their specified premises,

    • (iii) a registered user for use in accordance with their registration,

    • (iv) a prescribed person who is transporting the alcohol under prescribed circumstances and conditions,

    • (v) a duty free shop licensee, in their duty free shop,

    • (vi) an accredited representative, for their personal or official use, or

    • (vii) a person as ships’ stores, if the acquisition and possession of the alcohol by that person are in accordance with the Ships’ Stores Regulations;

  • (b) that is imported may be possessed by a sufferance warehouse licensee, in their sufferance warehouse;

  • (c) that is imported by a licensed user may be possessed by

    • (i) the licensed user in their specified premises, or

    • (ii) a prescribed person who is transporting the alcohol under prescribed circumstances and conditions;

  • (d) that is imported by an accredited representative may be possessed by

    • (i) the accredited representative, for their personal or official use, or

    • (ii) a prescribed person who is transporting the alcohol under prescribed circumstances and conditions;

  • (e) that is imported for sale in a duty free shop, for sale to an accredited representative or for use as ships’ stores, may be possessed by

    • (i) a customs bonded warehouse licensee, in their customs bonded warehouse,

    • (ii) a duty free shop licensee, in their duty free shop,

    • (iii) an accredited representative, for their personal or official use,

    • (iv) a customs bonded carrier in accordance with the Customs Act, or

    • (v) a person as ships’ stores, if the acquisition and possession of the alcohol by that person are in accordance with the Ships’ Stores Regulations;

  • (f) that is imported for supply to an air carrier that is licensed under section 69 or 73 of the Canada Transportation Act to operate an international air service may be possessed by a customs bonded warehouse licensee, in their customs bonded warehouse;

  • (g) that is imported by an individual in accordance with the Customs Act and the Customs Tariff for their personal use may be possessed by an individual;

  • (h) that is wine that is produced and packaged by an individual for their personal use may be possessed by an individual;

  • (i) that is wine referred to in paragraph 135(2)(b) may be possessed by any person; and

  • (j) that is wine produced or packaged by a wine licensee and removed from the excise warehouse of the licensee and that is to be provided free of charge to individuals as a sample consumed at the premises where the licensee produces or packages wine may be possessed by the licensee or those individuals at those premises.

• Marginal note:Exception — special containers

  (3) A non-duty-paid marked special container of alcohol may be possessed by

  • (a) an excise warehouse licensee in their excise warehouse;

  • (b) a prescribed person who is transporting the alcohol under prescribed circumstances and conditions;

  • (c) in the case of an imported special container of alcohol, a sufferance warehouse licensee in their sufferance warehouse; or

  • (d) in the case of a special container of spirits that is marked for delivery to and use by a registered user, a registered user for use in accordance with their registration.