WTO-GPA (Agreement on Government Procurement)

The WTO-GPA is the plurilateral World Trade Organization Agreement on Government Procurement — the trade treaty that opens government purchasing among its parties (Canada, the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan and others) and guarantees foreign suppliers non-discriminatory access to covered federal tenders. Canada is a party, and its coverage is what lets Canadian suppliers bid on US federal contracts — and US and EU suppliers bid on Canadian ones.

What it is

Per Global Affairs Canada, most of Canada’s free trade agreements contain a government procurement chapter, and Canada is also a party to the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement. These chapters combine procedural rules — non-discrimination, impartiality and transparency in how procurement is conducted — with market-access schedules listing the covered entities and acquisitions. Only purchases by covered entities, above the monetary thresholds, for covered goods, services and construction, are subject to the agreement. Notably, since CUSMA replaced NAFTA in 2020 without a government procurement chapter, Canada–US procurement relations are governed by the WTO-GPA (per the Canada Revenue Agency’s trade-agreement appendix), while Canada–Mexico procurement falls under the CPTPP.

Canadian thresholds (2026–2027)

Canada expresses its GPA thresholds in Special Drawing Rights and publishes Canadian-dollar equivalents every two years. Per Treasury Board Contracting Policy Notice 2025-8, for the period January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027, WTO-GPA thresholds are $239,200 for goods and services and $9,200,000 for construction for federal departments and agencies, and $653,200 for goods and services ($9,200,000 construction) for Crown corporations and other government enterprises. Above these values, tender notices must be published through the Government Electronic Tendering Service (GETS) via CanadaBuys.

Common questions

How does the GPA relate to CFTA and CETA?

They stack. The CFTA is Canada’s domestic internal trade agreement with its own (much lower) thresholds; CETA is the bilateral Canada–EU agreement that adds sub-federal (provincial and municipal) coverage; the WTO-GPA is the multilateral plurilateral layer for central government entities. A single federal tender can be subject to all three at once. See CFTA thresholds and CETA government procurement.

Can a supplier complain about a GPA-covered procurement?

Yes. Under Canada’s implementation, suppliers can file a complaint with the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) about designated procurements, including GPA-covered federal contracts. See the CITT bid challenge process and notice of intended procurement.

Related definitions

CFTA procurement valuation · CFTA vs CITT challenge timelines · Notice of Proposed Procurement (NPP)