About the Certification of Cultural Property

The certification of cultural property is a process administered by the Canadian Cultural Property Export Review Board (CCPERB), through which cultural property of outstanding significance is certified for tax purposes. The certification process encourages the transfer of outstanding examples of Canada's artistic, historic, and scientific heritage from private hands to public collections.

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Who can apply

Designated institutions or public authorities may apply for certification of cultural property on behalf of the donor or vendor. These organizations meet the necessary standards to preserve cultural property and make it accessible to the public. An institution or public authority must be designated under the Cultural Property Export and Import Act at the time of disposition and at the time that an application for certification is submitted to CCPERB. For more information about designated institutions, please visit the Department of Canadian Heritage Movable Cultural Property Program.

Deadlines

New applications, supplementary information, or requests for redetermination are all subject to the same deadlines.

Applications received by the deadline date typically will be reviewed at the subsequent CCPERB meeting, unless supplementary information or additional processing is required. Applicants will be notified in the event of any delays.

Decisions

CCPERB may approve or refuse an application for certification, or place an application on hold.

If CCPERB determines that the cultural property meets the requirement of outstanding significance set out in the Cultural Property Import and Export Act, the application is approved and a Cultural Property Income Tax Certificate will be issued to the donor or vendor based on a determination of the object’s fair market value.

If CCPERB concludes that a property does not meet the requirement of outstanding significance, the application will be refused.

If CCPERB requires additional information from the applicant in order to make a determination, an application may be put on hold. If the requested information is not received within two years of the request, the application will be closed.