Canada Adopts Significant Changes To Foreign Investment Review Framework

On March 25, 2015, the Canadian government adopted regulations that significantly affect the foreign investment review framework.  The new regulations, which take effect on April 24, 2015, implement the long anticipated changes to the existing thresholds that trigger a net benefit review under the Investment Canada Act (ICA).  For investments by World Trade Organization (WTO) private-sector investors, the basis of the net benefit review threshold will change from the "book value" of the target Canadian business's assets to its "enterprise value".  Initially, the new threshold amount will be $600 million.  This is expected to result in the review of fewer foreign investment proposals to determine whether they are likely to be of net benefit to Canada.