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Assisted Dying in Canada

A look at the legal status of assisted dying across Canada.

Where the law stands
Legal (Federal)
Since
2016
Who can ask
Adults (18+)
Condition
Grievous & Irremediable
Residency
Residents Only

What you need to know.

  • Legalisation of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD)

    Unlike the USA, where MAiD refers to self-administration of medication to cause death, in Canada two types of MAiD are allowed:

    1. A nurse practitioner or physician can directly administer a substance that causes the death of the person who has requested it.
    2. A nurse practitioner or physician can give or prescribe to a patient a substance that they can self-administer to cause their own death.

  • Bill C-7 Reform

    The 2021 Bill C-7 amended eligibility criteria by removing the “reasonable foreseeability of natural death” requirement, while temporarily excluding cases where mental illness is the sole condition.

  • Eligibility

    Available to citizens and residents eligible for the national health care system (preventing medical tourism).

Summary

Legal (Federal) Since 2016

Canada permits medical assistance in dying (MAiD) following federal legislation that decriminalised voluntary assisted dying and medical assisted dying under strict conditions.

Since 2016, Medical Assistance in Dying has been legal in Canada, with dedicated sections in the Criminal Code allowing both voluntary assisted and medical assisted dying, when eligibility criteria are met. The law was updated in 2021 with Bill C-7, which removed “reasonable foreseeability of natural death” as an eligibility requirement and introduced two sets of safeguards, depending on whether death is reasonably foreseeable. People whose sole underlying condition is a mental illness remain excluded until 17 March 2027.

Quick Overview

The new situation since 2016 is the result of the Act to amend the Criminal Code (Bill C-14) and the subsequent amendments in 2021 (Bill C-7).

Federal Legislation

MAiD is permitted nationwide under federal law (sections 241.1–241.4 of the Criminal Code), making it legal for eligible citizens and residents to receive medical assistance in dying.

Act to amend the Criminal Code (Bill C-7)

The legislation created exceptions to culpable homicide and aiding suicide when carried out in the context of medical assistance in dying.

Click to view the legislative details →

Eligibility
Available to citizens and residents eligible for the national health care system (preventing medical tourism).
RFND Removal
In 2021, the criterion that a “reasonable foreseeability of natural death” (RFND) be present was repealed as an absolute requirement, expanding access to those who are suffering intolerably but not necessarily dying immediately.
Safeguards
The law creates two sets of safeguards. Track 1 for those with a reasonably foreseeable death (eased safeguards) and Track 2 for those without (clarified, stricter safeguards).
Mental Illness
People whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness are excluded until 17 March 2027, after Parliament extended the exclusion twice (Bill C-39 in 2023 and Bill C-62 in 2024).

Visit Department of Justice Canada for more info →

Legal Timeline

  1. 2017

    The Framework on Palliative Care in Canada Act receives Royal Assent in December 2017. It requires the federal health minister to develop a national palliative-care framework and report on it to Parliament; it does not itself authorise or regulate palliative sedation, which is governed by provincial law and professional standards. The practical aspects are described on the website End-of-Life Law and Policy in Canada.

  2. 2019

    In 2019, the Superior Court of Québec declared in its Truchon v Canada (AG) decision that the criterion in the federal MAiD legislation, that there should be a “reasonable foreseeability of natural death” (RFND), as unconstitutional. In reaction to this decision, the Government of Canada delivered a legislative response: Bill C-7.

  3. March 2021

    In March 2021 this bill became law. “Reasonable foreseeability of natural death” ceased to be an eligibility requirement, though it still decides which of two sets of safeguards applies. The bill also included a provision to temporarily exclude those whose sole underlying condition is a mental disorder from eligibility. Access to MAiD in these cases was delayed for 24 months, to allow an Expert Panel to provide advice to the federal government on the safeguards, protocols and guidance that should apply in these cases.

  4. May 2022

    In May 2022, the Expert Panel came with their report on MAiD and Mental Illness. In December, the federal government declared it needs more time before expanding Canada’s medical assistance in dying (MAiD) policy to include mentally ill people.

  5. June 2022

    In June 2022, Canadian Senator Pamela Wallin tabled a bill to create possibilities for MAiD based on an advance request. Bill S-248 sought an exemption to the Criminal Code of Canada to allow for advance requests for medical assistance in dying for Canadians diagnosed with a serious or incurable disease, illness or disability. The bill would allow Canadians to waive the requirement for final consent when receiving MAiD if they lose capacity and it will allow provinces and territories to legally create advance request frameworks.

  6. February 2024

    Mental illness exclusion extended

    Parliament passes Bill C-62, extending the exclusion of mental illness as a sole underlying condition to 17 March 2027, after a first extension in 2023 (Bill C-39).

End-of-Life Law and Policy in Canada →

Across Canada.

Province by province.

  • Quebec

    Legal

    Quebec has a unique legal history regarding assisted dying. Before the federal legislation passed, Quebec adopted its own law, the Act Respecting End-of-Life Care, in 2014.

    In 2019, the Superior Court of Québec declared in the Truchon v Canada (AG) decision that the federal “reasonable foreseeability of natural death” criterion and the provincial “end of life” criterion were unconstitutional. This decision was a catalyst for the federal Bill C-7.

    In June 2022, a bill was tabled to allow for advance requests for MAiD for those with serious or incurable diseases (like Alzheimer’s) who may lose capacity.

    Quebec refers to the practice as “Medical Aid in Dying” (l’aide médicale à mourir).

    The province regulates the practice as a continuum of care.

    Visit Government of Quebec for more info →

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