Asbestos, explained

When Was Asbestos Banned in Canada?

Canada banned asbestos on 30 December 2018. The ban stopped new asbestos entering the market, but it did not remove a gram of what was already installed, which is why a building put up before 1990 still needs to be surveyed before it is renovated or demolished.

Updated 2026-08-096 minute read

When was asbestos banned in Canada?

Asbestos was banned in Canada on 30 December 2018. That is the date the Prohibition of Asbestos and Products Containing Asbestos Regulations, SOR/2018-196, came into force under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

The regulations prohibit importing, selling and using asbestos, and manufacturing, importing, selling and using products that contain it. A limited number of exclusions exist, which is why the word people usually want is prohibition rather than disappearance.

Does the ban mean the asbestos in existing buildings is gone?

No, and this is the single most common misreading of the 2018 date. The ban governs what may enter the market. It places no obligation on any owner to remove asbestos already installed in a building.

Every square metre of asbestos-containing material installed before the ban is still exactly where it was. Undisturbed and in good condition it is generally left in place. The hazard is created when it is cut, drilled, sanded, broken or demolished, which is precisely why the rules that matter day to day are workplace rules, not import rules.

Which BC buildings are most likely to contain asbestos?

Construction date is the fastest way to narrow the odds. The table below is a planning aid for Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley buildings: it tells you how much suspicion a build era deserves, not what any specific material contains.

No table can substitute for analysis. Two houses built the same year by the same builder can differ, because what matters is which products went in, and that varied by trade, by supplier and by later renovation.

Asbestos likelihood by construction era, as a planning aid only. Laboratory analysis is the only way to confirm any specific material.
Construction era	Likelihood	Where it typically turns up
Before 1950	High	Pipe and boiler insulation, plaster, cement board, roofing felt
1950 to 1979	High	Vinyl floor tile and sheet backing, drywall joint compound, textured (popcorn) ceilings, cement pipe, insulation
1980 to 1990	Moderate	Joint compound, floor tile, textured ceilings and roofing in stock installed after use declined
1990 to 2018	Low but not zero	Imported products and old stock still legal to install until the ban
After 2018	Very low	Prohibited, subject to the limited exclusions in SOR/2018-196

Cite this tableAsbestos likelihood by BC construction era, Balco Environmental, https://go.balcoenvironmental.com/blog/when-was-asbestos-banned-in-canada/#asbestos-by-era

What does BC require before you renovate or demolish?

Before demolition, section 20.112 of BC's Occupational Health and Safety Regulation requires the owner or employer to ensure hazardous materials are identified by a qualified person and safely removed first, and requires the report documenting them to be kept on site.

The survey covers more than asbestos. Lead, silica, PCBs, mercury and other chemical or biological agents fall under the same identification duty, which is why the deliverable is usually called a hazardous materials survey rather than an asbestos test.

Qualified person is a defined term, not a description. Sections 6.1 and 6.6 of the Regulation and guideline G6.1-1 set out what it means. Separately, asbestos abatement contractors must be licensed in BC, anyone performing abatement on buildings must hold WorkSafeBC certification, and employers must file a Notice of Project for asbestos work.

How is asbestos actually confirmed?

By taking a physical sample of each suspect material and having a laboratory analyse it. There is no visual test, no home kit that substitutes for analysis, and no way to tell from a photograph.

A survey works material by material rather than room by room, because one building can hold a dozen distinct suspect products with different answers. The report lists each one, whether it contains asbestos, where it is, and what condition it is in.

Walkthrough to identify every suspect material and where it sits in the building
Controlled sampling of each distinct material, taken so the sampling itself does not spread fibre
Laboratory analysis of each sample
A written report naming each material, its result, its location and its condition, for the site file and the permit application

Common questions

When exactly was asbestos banned in Canada?

30 December 2018, when the Prohibition of Asbestos and Products Containing Asbestos Regulations (SOR/2018-196) came into force. The regulations prohibit the import, sale and use of asbestos, and the manufacture, import, sale and use of products containing it, with a limited set of exclusions.

Does the ban mean asbestos was removed from existing buildings?

No. The ban stops new asbestos entering the market. It does not require anyone to remove asbestos already installed in a building. Material put in place before the ban is still there, and it is still regulated as a workplace hazard when it is disturbed.

My house was built before 1990. Does it definitely contain asbestos?

Not definitely, but it is likely enough that BC treats it as suspect. Asbestos was used across dozens of building products for decades, and the only way to know whether a specific material contains it is laboratory analysis of a sample. Age narrows the odds; it does not answer the question.

Do I need an asbestos survey before renovating in BC?

Before demolition, yes. Section 20.112 of BC's Occupational Health and Safety Regulation requires the owner or employer to ensure hazardous materials are identified by a qualified person and safely removed before demolition begins, with the report kept on site. Renovation work that disturbs suspect material falls under the same duty to identify it first.

Who is allowed to do asbestos work in BC?

Asbestos abatement contractors must be licensed to operate in British Columbia, and anyone performing asbestos abatement on buildings must hold certification issued by WorkSafeBC. Employers must also submit a Notice of Project to WorkSafeBC for asbestos work.