CGSB (Canadian General Standards Board)

The Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) was the Government of Canada’s own standards development and conformity assessment organization — in business since 1934 and part of Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC). Its CAN/CGSB standards — designated National Standards of Canada — have been referenced for decades in federal tenders for everything from office supplies and protective clothing to fuels, packaging and security-guard services.

What it is

Per PSPC, CGSB offered client-centred standards development and conformity assessment services supporting procurement, health, safety and environmental interests of government, industry and consumers. Its standards carry designations like CAN/CGSB-12.1-2022, where the CAN/CGSB prefix marks a CGSB National Standard of Canada, followed by subject area, standard number and year. CGSB also adopted international ISO standards as Canadian ones — for example, CAN/CGSB-48.9712-2022, which adopts ISO 9712:2021. Many CGSB standards have been available at no cost since 2017.

Status as of 2026

Per PSPC, as of April 1, 2026, CGSB no longer offers standards development or conformity assessment services. Organizations can continue to access CGSB standards at no cost through the standards catalogue, and PSPC retains a withdrawn-standards listing for reference numbers no longer maintained. Practically, this means tenders can still cite CAN/CGSB standards, and suppliers should read the cited edition exactly as written in the solicitation — specification clauses survive the change in who develops standards.

Common questions

What should a bidder do when a tender cites a CAN/CGSB standard?

Download the cited edition from the CGSB catalogue (free), confirm the edition and amendment dates match the solicitation, and check whether equivalents (ISO or CSA Group standards) are accepted. If a cited standard is withdrawn or ambiguous, use the solicitation’s question period to ask for clarification — see addenda in the tender process.

Where do CGSB standards sit relative to the Supply Manual?

They complement it: the Supply Manual governs how federal supply activities are run, while cited standards define the technical specification of the goods or services. See the Supply Manual and the statement of requirements.

Related definitions

SACC Manual · Statement of work · Acceptance testing