Reference resources

Description: This product contains articles related to the latest methodological, conceptual developments in the Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts as well as the analysis of the Canadian economy. It includes articles detailing new methods, concepts and statistical techniques used to compile the Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts. It also includes information related to new or expanded data products, provides updates and supplements to information found in various guides and analytical articles touching upon a broad range of topics related to the Canadian economy.

Description: From November 2022 to March 2023 Statistics Canada undertook a series of discussions to obtain feedback on the questions used to identify First Nations people, Métis and Inuit on the Census of Population and on other Statistics Canada surveys. This report summarizes the feedback received during these discussions.

Description: Engagement on the questions used to identify First Nations people, Métis and Inuit that are included on the Census of Population and on other Statistics Canada surveys is an important part of ensuring high quality and meaningful data are collected. The feedback received during these discussions are presented in these reports.

Description: This classification system was developed conjointly by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and Statistics Canada which is the custodian. This shared standard classification, inspired by the Frascati Model 2015 of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), will be used by the federal granting agencies and Statistics Canada to collect, and disseminate data related to research and development in Canada. The Canadian Research and Development Classification (CRDC) first official version was the 2020 Version 1.0, now being replaced by CRDC Version 2.0. The CRDC is revised within 2 years for minor changes, and every five years for major revisions. CRDC 2020 Version 2.0 is composed of 3 main pieces: the type of activity or TOA (with 3 categories), the field of research or FOR (with 1,671 fields at the lowest level) and socioeconomic objective or SEO (with 85 main groups at the lowest level).

Description: Data from the Census of Population are important for all communities and are vital to plan services that support education, employment, transportation, health care and housing. To maintain the relevance of the census, Statistics Canada evaluates and reviews the census questionnaire content for each census cycle. In preparation for the 2026 Census, Statistics Canada consulted Canadians from fall 2022 to spring 2023. Detailed responses were received from organizations and individuals representing federal, provincial, territorial and local government departments; First Nations people, Métis and Inuit; the general public; academia; special interest groups; and the private sector.

This report focuses on the findings of the 2026 Census data needs consultation and stakeholder discussions. Chapter 1 explains whom we consulted. Chapter 2 describes the strength of census data users’ needs such as the size of the population of interest. Chapter 3 provides an assessment of the perceived data gaps in census content and the availability and suitability of alternative data sources. Chapter 4 focuses on information needs by census topic and how preparations for the 2024 Census Test will help meet these needs.

Description: These reference guides are intended for users of the Education and Labour Market Longitudinal Platform (ELMLP). The guide provides an overview of the Postsecondary Student Information System (PSIS) and the Registered Apprenticeship Information System (RAIS), the general methodology used to create longitudinal indicators, and important technical information for users.

Description: User consultation is the first step in determining Census Program content. The findings of content consultations are presented in these reports.

Description: The Guide to the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours contains a dictionary of concepts and definitions and covers topics such as survey methodology, data collection and processing, and data quality. It also provides information on products and services, as well as the survey questionnaire.

Description: This handbook complements the tables of the Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP). It is a guide that provides general descriptions for each indicator and indicator component. PCEIP has five broad indicator sets: a portrait of the school-age population; financing education systems; elementary and secondary education; postsecondary education; and transitions and outcomes.

The Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP) is a joint venture of Statistics Canada and the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada.

Description: Health regions are defined by the provinces and represent administrative areas or regions of interest to health authorities. This product contains correspondence files (linking health regions to latest Census geographic codes) and digital boundary files. User documentation provides an overview of health regions, sources, methods, limitations and product description (file format and layout).

In addition to the geographic files, this product also includes Census data (basic profile) for health regions.

Description: This classification system was developed conjointly by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and Statistics Canada which is the custodian. This shared standard classification, inspired by the Frascati Model 2015 of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), will be used by the federal granting agencies and Statistics Canada to collect, and disseminate data related to research and development in Canada. The Canadian Research and Development Classification (CRDC) first official version was the 2020 Version 1.0, now being replaced by CRDC Version 2.0. The CRDC is revised within 2 years for minor changes, and every five years for major revisions. CRDC 2020 Version 2.0 is composed of 3 main pieces: the type of activity or TOA (with 3 categories), the field of research or FOR (with 1,671 fields at the lowest level) and socioeconomic objective or SEO (with 85 main groups at the lowest level).

Description: The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) has been developed to increase coherence of the list of countries used within Statistics Canada and includes countries and areas for which statistical data are compiled. The Variant of the SCCAI for Social Statistics and the Variant of the SCCAI for Travel Statistics were developed to create groupings of countries to enable the production of integrated statistics when publishing social statistics data and travel statistics data, respectively. These variants have three levels.

Description: The Canadian Export Classification is a structured, hierarchical classification system based on the Harmonized Description and Coding System. The HS nomenclature is divided into 21 Sections, which in general, group goods produced in the same sector of the economy.

Description: This product presents the Public Sector Universe, defined by Statistics Canada as a list of institutional units that are included in the economic measurement of governments in Canada. An institutional unit is defined as an economic entity that is capable, in its own right, of owning assets, incurring liabilities, and engaging in economic activities and in transactions with other entities. It includes the sectors of education, health, general government and government business enterprise sectors for all levels of government in Canada, annually, since 2008.

Description:

The Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) is used for classifying instructional programs according to field of study. CIP was originally created by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in the United States. It is a hierarchical classification. The classification provides a detailed description of each instructional program class together with illustrative examples of the types of instructional programs found in that class. Illustrative examples are also provided of closely related programs that are classified elsewhere. In addition, the classification includes an introduction to CIP and an alternative structure for the aggregation of field of study data. CIP has a ten-year revision cycle.

Description:

The North American Product Classification System (NAPCS) is the departmental standard for the classification of products (goods and services). The classification is a joint project of the national statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. NAPCS is used to produce product statistics on a variety of topics, including the value of outputs of industries, the consumption by businesses and households, the value of imports and exports, and the movement of industrial and raw material prices. NAPCS Canada comprises definitions for all categories that include a descriptive text, as well as illustrative examples, inclusions and exclusions where appropriate.

Email: statcan.csds-standardsproducts-cnsd-normesproduits.statcan@statcan.gc.ca

Description:

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by the statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. Created against the background of the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is designed to provide common definitions of the industrial structure of the three countries and a common statistical framework to facilitate the analysis of the three economies. NAICS is based on supply-side or production-oriented principles, to ensure that industrial data, classified to NAICS, are suitable for the analysis of production-related issues such as industrial performance.

NAICS is a comprehensive system encompassing all economic activities. It has a hierarchical structure. At the highest level, it divides the economy into 20 sectors. At lower levels, it further distinguishes the different economic activities in which businesses are engaged.

Email: statcan.csds-standards-industry-cnsd-normes-industrie.statcan@statcan.gc.ca  

Description:

This publication provides a systematic classification structure to identify and categorize the entire range of occupational activity in Canada. Definitions and occupational titles are provided for each unit group. An alphabetical index of the occupational titles classified to the unit group level is also included.

Description:

The concordance table provides a link between data tables and the survey questions from the Survey of Innovation and Business Strategy (SIBS).

Description:

The Ecological Land Classification (ELC) is Statistics Canada's official classification for ecological areas in Canada.

The ELC was developed to enable the production of integrated statistics for ecological areas. It is a hierarchical framework that classifies ecological areas or ecosystems and that incorporates all major components of ecosystems: air, water land and biota. All boundaries in the ecological framework are matched to soil landscape polygons from the Soil Landscapes of Canada (SLC).

There are 15 ecozones at the top of the ecological land classification hierarchy. They cover the entire terrestrial extent of Canada.

These ecozones are subdivided into 53 ecoprovinces that contain 194 ecoregions, which can be further subdivided into 1,027 separate ecological units called ecodistricts.

Description: These reference guides are intended for users of the Education and Labour Market Longitudinal Platform (ELMLP). The guide provides an overview of the Postsecondary Student Information System (PSIS) and the Registered Apprenticeship Information System (RAIS), the general methodology used to create longitudinal indicators, and important technical information for users.

Description: The Guide to the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours contains a dictionary of concepts and definitions and covers topics such as survey methodology, data collection and processing, and data quality. It also provides information on products and services, as well as the survey questionnaire.

Description: This handbook complements the tables of the Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP). It is a guide that provides general descriptions for each indicator and indicator component. PCEIP has five broad indicator sets: a portrait of the school-age population; financing education systems; elementary and secondary education; postsecondary education; and transitions and outcomes.

The Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP) is a joint venture of Statistics Canada and the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada.

Description: This document presents a complete list of the social inclusion indicators for ethnocultural groups in Canada that are available on the homepage of our Gender, Diversity and Inclusion Statistics Hub. The information provided for each indicator includes a short description of the corresponding derivation, available data sources, reference years and accessible levels of geographical and disaggregation. Each indicator has a corresponding products number (data tables, visualization tools and analytical documents). This document has been updated to reflect the social inclusion indicators and associated products that are available in 2024.

Description: This report presents the results of a study on the estimated number of children eligible for instruction in the minority official language, pursuant to section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, who were classified as ineligible in the 2021 Census because relationships between family members living at different addresses could not be established within this data source. Using other data sources, including previous censuses and administrative data (such as vital statistics and tax data), we were able to establish these family relationships within the 2021 Census. This report presents the methods and data sources used first, then the results by selected regions and age groups.

Description:

This report deals with Indigenous identity, Indigenous ancestry, Indigenous group, Registered or Treaty Indian status, Membership in a First Nation or Indian band, Membership in a Métis organization or Settlement, and Enrollment under an Inuit land claims agreement, and contains explanations of concepts, data quality, historical comparability and comparability with other sources, as well as information on data collection, processing and dissemination.

Description: The data for the products associated with this technical reference guide are derived from an early version of the T1 file that Statistics Canada receives from Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Data on special topics linked to income and income tax deductions can be derived from the T1 income tax returns. Topics of interest for this preliminary release of the T1 data can vary from year to year.

Description: Census of Agriculture data provide statistical information on farms and farm operators at fine geographic levels and for small subpopulations. Quality evaluation activities are essential to ensure that census data are reliable and that they meet user needs.

This report provides data quality information pertaining to the Census of Agriculture, such as sources of error, error detection, disclosure control methods, data quality indicators, response rates and collection rates.

Description: This guide presents information to enhance an understanding of Canadian International Merchandise Trade statistics. It provides essential definitions, describes key concepts and methodology, and outlines data processes. An overview of the published data, including descriptions of product, industry, and geographical classifications, is provided along with links to the products where these data are available.

Description:

Created in collaboration with the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), this user guide with appended data dictionary provides Canadians and researchers with required information to be able to utilize the Detailed preliminary information on confirmed cases of COVID-19 (Revised) table.

The user guide with appended data dictionary describes background information of COVID-19 as well as objectives, coverage, content, limitations and data quality concerns of the table.

Description:

This guide describes the content and applications of the product, as well as providing information on data quality, record layouts, and methodology.

Description:

Three correspondence files are available:

The Dissemination Area correspondence file is a tabular product that describes the relationship between the current census Dissemination Area and the previous census Dissemination Area;

The Dissemination Area and Land Area correspondence file describes the percentage of the current census Dissemination Area's land area within the boundaries extent of the previous census Dissemination Area;

The Dissemination Block correspondence file describes the relationship between the current census Dissemination Block and the previous census Dissemination Block.

Each file contains a unique identifier for the current census geographic area and the corresponding unique identifier for the previous census geographic area. In addition, a relationship flag is included which indicates the degree of correspondence between the geographic areas, facilitating the comparison between census years.

Description:

The Boundary files portray the geographic limits used for census dissemination and are available for Provinces and Territories, Census Divisions, Economic Regions, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, Census Consolidated Subdivisions, Census Subdivisions and Aggregate Dissemination Area.

There are two types of boundary files: digital and cartographic. Digital files depict the full extent of the geographical areas, including the coastal water area. Cartographic files depict the geographical areas using only the major land mass of Canada and its coastal islands. The files provide a framework for mapping and spatial analysis using commercially available geographic information systems (GIS) or other mapping software.

The Boundary Files are portrayed in Lambert conformal conic projection and are based on the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83). A reference guide is available (92-160-G).

Description:

The Dissemination Block Boundary Files portray the dissemination block boundaries for which Census data are disseminated. A dissemination block is an area bounded on all sides by roads and/or boundaries of standard geographic areas and is the smallest geographic area for which population and dwelling count data are disseminated. The files contain the boundaries of all dissemination blocks which combine to cover all of Canada.

There are two types of boundary files: digital and cartographic. Digital files depict the full extent of the geographical areas, including the coastal water area. Cartographic files depict the geographical areas using only the major land mass of Canada and its coastal islands. The files provide a framework for mapping and spatial analysis using commercially available geographic information systems or other mapping software.

The Dissemination Block Boundary Files are portrayed in Lambert conformal conic projection and are based on the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83). A reference guide is available (92-160-GWE).

Description:

The Dissemination Area Boundary Files portray the dissemination area boundaries for which Census data are disseminated. A dissemination area is a small area composed of one or more neighbouring dissemination blocks and is the smallest standard geographic area for which all census data are disseminated. The files contain the boundaries of all dissemination areas which combine to cover all of Canada.

There are two types of boundary files: digital and cartographic. Digital files depict the full extent of the geographical areas, including the coastal water area. Cartographic files depict the geographical areas using only the major land mass of Canada and its coastal islands. The files provide a framework for mapping and spatial analysis using commercially available geographic information systems or other mapping software.

The Dissemination Area Boundary Files are portrayed in Lambert conformal conic projection and are based on the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83). A reference guide is available (92-160-GWE).

Description:

The Federal Electoral District Boundary Files portray the federal electoral district boundaries for which census data are disseminated. A federal electoral district is an area represented by a member of the House of Commons. The federal electoral district boundaries used for the census are based on the Representation Order in effect on January 1 of census year. The files contain the boundaries of all federal electoral districts which combine to cover all of Canada.

There are two types of boundary files: digital and cartographic. Digital files depict the full extent of the geographical areas, including the coastal water area. Cartographic files depict the geographical areas using only the major land mass of Canada and its coastal islands. The files provide a framework for mapping and spatial analysis using commercially available geographic information systems (GIS) or other mapping software.

The Federal Electoral District Boundary Files are portrayed in Lambert conformal conic projection and are based on the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83). A reference guide is available (92-160-GWE).

Description:

This Cartographic Boundary File for Canada contains the boundaries of all 82 census agricultural regions delineated for the 2011 Census of Agriculture together with the shoreline around Canada and the larger inland lakes, all integrated in a single layer. The boundary file co-ordinates are latitude/longitude and are based on the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83). The file is available in ARC/INFO Interchange, MapInfo Interchange and Geography Markup Language formats.

A reference guide is also provided.

Description: This reference guide is intended for the users of the 2021Census Dissemination Geographies Relationship File. The guide provides an overview of the file, the general methodology used to create it, and important technical information for users.

Description:

This document describes the structure of the Dissemination Geography Unique Identifier (DGUID) used within Statistics Canada to facilitate the linkage of every geographic area maintained by Statistics Canada with data tables that use geographic names in the Common Output Database Repository (CODR).

Description:

This guide describes the content of the product, as well as providing information on data quality, record layouts and methodology.

Description: This product contains articles related to the latest methodological, conceptual developments in the Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts as well as the analysis of the Canadian economy. It includes articles detailing new methods, concepts and statistical techniques used to compile the Canadian System of Macroeconomic Accounts. It also includes information related to new or expanded data products, provides updates and supplements to information found in various guides and analytical articles touching upon a broad range of topics related to the Canadian economy.

Description: From November 2022 to March 2023 Statistics Canada undertook a series of discussions to obtain feedback on the questions used to identify First Nations people, Métis and Inuit on the Census of Population and on other Statistics Canada surveys. This report summarizes the feedback received during these discussions.

Description: Engagement on the questions used to identify First Nations people, Métis and Inuit that are included on the Census of Population and on other Statistics Canada surveys is an important part of ensuring high quality and meaningful data are collected. The feedback received during these discussions are presented in these reports.

Description: Data from the Census of Population are important for all communities and are vital to plan services that support education, employment, transportation, health care and housing. To maintain the relevance of the census, Statistics Canada evaluates and reviews the census questionnaire content for each census cycle. In preparation for the 2026 Census, Statistics Canada consulted Canadians from fall 2022 to spring 2023. Detailed responses were received from organizations and individuals representing federal, provincial, territorial and local government departments; First Nations people, Métis and Inuit; the general public; academia; special interest groups; and the private sector.

This report focuses on the findings of the 2026 Census data needs consultation and stakeholder discussions. Chapter 1 explains whom we consulted. Chapter 2 describes the strength of census data users’ needs such as the size of the population of interest. Chapter 3 provides an assessment of the perceived data gaps in census content and the availability and suitability of alternative data sources. Chapter 4 focuses on information needs by census topic and how preparations for the 2024 Census Test will help meet these needs.

Description: User consultation is the first step in determining Census Program content. The findings of content consultations are presented in these reports.

Description: Departmental Results Reports (DRRs) are part of the Estimates family of documents. Estimates documents support appropriation acts, which specify the amounts and broad purposes for which funds can be spent by the government. The Estimates document family has three parts.

Part I (Government Expenditure Plan) provides an overview of federal spending.

Part II (Main Estimates) lists the financial resources required by individual departments, agencies and Crown corporations for the upcoming fiscal year.

Part III (Departmental Expenditure Plans) consists of two documents. Departmental Plans (DPs) are expenditure plans for each appropriated department and agency (excluding Crown corporations).

Description: The Fees Report must be tabled in parliament annually, as per the Service Fees Act, which came into force in June 2017. The Service Fees Act introduces a modern legislative framework that enables cost-effective delivery of services and, through enhanced reporting to Parliament, improved transparency and oversight.

Description: This report provides a summary of changes to municipal boundaries, status and names. The list is usually produced on an annual basis for changes that occurred during the previous year. A five year list is produced on Census of population years.

Description:

As is the case in advance of each Census, content consultations are being held with data users. The Census Content Consultation Guide gives you the opportunity to provide input.

Description:

The report Veterans data in the 2021 Census of Population aims to provide an overview of the data quality assessment activities performed for the 2021 Census data on Canadian military experience, comparability to other sources and recommendations for usage.