The Canadian government tabled Bill C-34 at first reading in the House of Commons on 10 June 2026. The bill is an omnibus measure enacting two statutes: the Digital Safety Act and the Digital Safety Commission of Canada Act. As of this publication, Bill C-34 sits at first reading and has not passed. The proposals are at an early legislative stage and the bill's text may change through committee, report, and Senate stages before royal assent.
The Digital Safety Act creates 'regulated chatbot services' as a distinct statutory category with tailored obligations, separate from the social media platform and search service obligations also set out in the bill. Operators of regulated chatbot services must implement crisis intervention protocols for users exhibiting signs of distress, disclose affirmatively to users that they are interacting with an AI system rather than a human, restrict content and engagement patterns designed to simulate emotional dependence in minors, and submit annual reports to the Digital Safety Commission of Canada on self-harm safeguard effectiveness. The DSA operates as standalone civil regulatory legislation enforced by the DSCC. Maximum penalties reach the greater of C$10 million or 3% of global annual gross revenues.
Operators of conversational AI services accessible to users in Canada must assess whether their product falls within the 'regulated chatbot service' definition as drafted. The bill does not limit its reach to Canadian-established operators; foreign companies whose services are accessed by Canadian users fall within scope. Financial institutions, health-sector AI providers, legal AI tools, and general-purpose AI assistants each fall within the potential scope of the definition and should conduct a coverage analysis against the current bill text.
Bill C-34 remains at first reading and has not been referred to committee. Parliamentary amendments may alter the scope of the chatbot definition, the penalty structure, or the enforcement architecture. Companies with AI deployments that include Canadian users should begin gap assessments against the current bill text while monitoring parliamentary progress.
Licentium advises technology companies and regulated businesses on AI regulatory obligations in Canada, the EU, US states, and the Asia-Pacific region. Work we undertake includes AI regulatory gap analyses, cross-border chatbot compliance mapping, disclosure framework reviews, and pre-legislative impact assessments.
Source: Parliament of Canada, Bill C-34, Digital Safety Act, First Reading, 10 June 2026