Codes Canada extranet - frequently asked questions on the referenced document update tool

Your organization will now be able to submit changes to the list of referenced standards/documents in Codes Canada on an on-going basis. This will help to facilitate an efficient review of new editions of these referenced standards/documents for inclusion in Codes Canada. With the implementation of this tool, Codes Canada will no longer prompt your organization to submit changes for new editions of your standards/documents.

Access to the tool is restricted to all Standards Developing Organizations (SDOs) and other organizations whose documents are currently referenced in Codes Canada as well as key Codes Canada staff. The reason to restrict access to the tool is to ensure that Codes Canada receives only valid standard/document update notices.

Yes. You can reset your password here.

Once you are logged in you can change your password to one that is easier to remember via the main menu.

Anytime! Changes can be and are encouraged to be submitted on an on-going basis at the time the standards/documents are published.

Yes. The link "View all referenced documents" will produce a list of all currently referenced documents published by the organization(s) for which you are authorized to make changes. Each of these documents is available in the pull-down list of documents. The documents are those referenced in the most recent edition of the respective code.

Withdrawal of a document to us means that the publishing organization is not providing updates anymore. Please note that the document will still be referenced in the respective code until Codes Canada receives a code change request (CCR) to either delete the reference or replace it with a different, more up-to-date document. The CCR process is separate and cannot be triggered with the Referenced Document Update tool.

No. The text boxes have no limit, except for the document number, which is limited to 100 characters.

No. It is not necessary to attach copies of documents or supporting material. When you submit your update through the tool, the CCBFC standing committees (SCs) will review the update. Only, once the SCs decide that there is a need to review a document will Codes Canada staff get in contact with you to obtain copies for committee review. At this point you also have the opportunity to support the SCs in their review. Codes Canada will request cover pages of English and French documents only after the SCs have made their decision and once the publication process has started.

Significant changes or key changes in a document make a difference in the application of the document. They can be small changes (e.g., making a pass-fail criterion more stringent) or large changes (addressing a new field of application).

The committees reviewing the referenced document update need to understand why the changes were made and what the reasons were for the significant changes. Which problems were solved with these changes? A good justification gives the update and the resulting SCs approval credibility.

The SCs are particularly interested in the incremental differences of cost and benefits of new requirements. The Impact section in the referenced document update explores therefore whether there is an incremental compliance cost for the updated document when compared to the previous document. Similarly, a greater societal benefit (fewer injuries, better energy efficiency) will also be explored. At a high level, a national public interest statement prepared for a Canadian standard document and submitted to the Standards Council of Canada often contains this type of information. The incremental cost of significant changes can be described by general terms, such as "low cost", "no cost", or "significant cost". An example is provided above the text box in the tool. Filling out the impact statement is optional, but please note that the CCBFC 's Policies and Procedures require the SCs to prepare an impact analysis for every change.

Once you have submitted the update, it gets assigned to one or more of the CCBFC standing committees depending on where the document is referenced. The SCs will review a report that contains your update and make a decision as to whether the update can be submitted for public review or whether the standard needs to be reviewed.

The purpose of this tool is to streamline the updating of documents to their respective newest editions. Any changes to text in the code provisions, which reference your document, have to follow the regular process of submitting a code change request (CCR). Find more information on the code development process here.

If you are aware of an urgent need to update the reference to a document immediately you may write a letter to the Secretary of the CCBFC and make the case for an interim or urgent change to the codes and justify its urgency. The CCBFC 's Policies and Procedures allow urgent changes for specific reasons, such as to mitigate an imminent safety risk or to eliminate unfair market advantage for one industry.

The best way to update a specific code would be to engage the CCBFC 's standing committees by using the general code change process. We suggest that you submit a code change request (CCR) that proposes to delete the two standards and to replace them with the new combined standard. It is likely that the code provisions referencing your document will have to be changed accordingly.

The purpose of this tool is to update standards/documents that are already referenced by Codes Canada. For new standards/documents, the process is to submit a code change request.

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