A direct acquisition of control of a Canadian business by a World Trade Organization investor (or a Canadian business owned by a WTO investor) generally is only reviewable under the Investment Canada Act in 2012 where the Canadian business has assets with a book value of more than $330 million.
Pre-merger notification under the Competition Act is required only where both party size and transaction size thresholds are met. The $400 million party-size threshold is met when the parties to the transaction and their affiliates have aggregate assets in Canada, or gross revenues from sales in, from or into Canada, in excess of $400 million. The transaction-size threshold is generally met where the value of assets in Canada of the acquired business, or the gross revenues from sales in or from Canada generated from those assets, exceeds a prescribed threshold. In February 2012, the prescribed threshold was raised to $77 million.
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