Quick answer: The CRTC streaming levy is a set of contribution rules for large online streamers under Canada’s Online Streaming Act. The 2024 5% base contribution is stayed in court and slated for elimination (Michael Geist); the 2026 15% spending framework is under government-directed review (Cassels); no new payments are flowing. Small services under C$25 million in Canadian revenue owe neither (Blakes).
The CRTC streaming levy is one of the most misreported rules in streaming right now. Most coverage still describes a 5% charge rising to 15%, as if both were being collected. They are not. As of October 2026, the 5% base contribution is on the books but stayed by the courts, Ottawa has told a judge it plans to eliminate it, the 15% framework is under a government-ordered review, and the promised C$600 million in replacement funding has no published timeline.
This guide is for OTT founders, finance leads and content owners deciding whether, and how, to launch or grow a streaming service in Canada. You’ll get a status board separating what is written from what is happening, a revenue-tier map with worked numbers, a realistic timeline for the replacement rules, and the one part of the regime that is still moving forward.
Key takeaways
- Nothing is being collected from the big streamers. A court stay has paused base contribution payments since December 2024 (Globe and Mail), and the federal government told the court in July 2026 it intends to scrap the requirement (Michael Geist).
- The 15% is a spending target, not a 15% cash levy on top of 5%. It includes the 5% and sits under review after a June 3, 2026 government directive (Blakes, Cassels).
- The C$600 million is a promise, not a payment. Four months after the announcement, there is still no distribution timeline (CityNews).
- Thresholds matter more than rates. C$10 million triggers registration, C$25 million triggers contribution and spending rules, and C$100 million triggers additional obligations (CRTC, Blakes).
- Discoverability is still advancing. The CRTC said in August it will continue building rules on how streamers surface Canadian content, which is a product and metadata problem as much as a legal one (BNN Bloomberg).
1. What does the CRTC streaming levy actually cover?
“Streaming levy” is shorthand. In practice it refers to several separate obligations the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has built under the Broadcasting Act, as amended by the 2023 Online Streaming Act. They have different triggers, and confusing them is the most common planning mistake.
| Obligation | What it is | Who it targets | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration | A light filing that tells the CRTC who you are and what you offer | Online services earning C$10M+ in annual Canadian broadcasting revenue, alone or as part of an ownership group | CRTC registration guidance |
| Base contribution (5%) | Payments into designated Canadian content and news funds | Online undertakings with C$25M+ in Canadian contributions revenue that are not affiliated with a traditional Canadian broadcaster | CRTC 2024-121-1 |
| Canadian programming expenditure (CPE, 15%) | A broader spending obligation on Canadian programming that absorbs the 5% | Qualifying unaffiliated online ownership groups at the C$25M threshold | CRTC 2026-96 |
| Services of exceptional importance (SEI) fund | A new fund supporting services the CRTC deems essential | Ownership groups with C$100M+ in Canadian broadcasting revenue | Blakes summary of 2026-95/96 |
| Discoverability | Requirements to make Canadian and Indigenous programming available and visible | Being developed service by service | CRTC 2026-95 via iPhone in Canada |
Two practical points follow. First, a service can be registered without owing any money. Second, the money obligations apply to Canadian broadcasting revenue, not global revenue. A platform with a large international audience and a modest Canadian subscriber base may sit well under every financial threshold.
The CRTC’s online streaming hub is the primary index for all of these decisions.
2. Paper vs. reality: the October 2026 status board
This is the table most coverage skips. Each rule below exists in some formal sense. Whether it is producing payments or binding behavior today is a separate question.
| Measure | On paper | What is actually happening (Oct 16, 2026) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5% base contribution (2024) | In force through CRTC orders | Payments by the challenging streamers stayed since December 2024; the August 31, 2026 payment date passed with no new money reported reaching the funds | Stephen Taylor, The CRTC Clock |
| Court challenge to the 5% | Heard by the Federal Court of Appeal in June 2025 | No ruling; the court asked Ottawa for a status update and signalled the case may become moot | Michael Geist |
| Government position on the 5% | Not formally changed | A July 17, 2026 Justice Department letter told the court the government intends to eliminate the base contribution and replace it with public funding | Mondaq / court letter summary |
| 15% CPE framework (2026) | Published May 21, 2026 | Government directed the CRTC on June 3 to review and reconsider it; the CRTC could not say when the rules would become enforceable | Cassels, BNN Bloomberg |
| Policy direction replacing both | Promised in June | Not yet published in the Canada Gazette as of mid-October | Hashtag Investing, citing Canadian Press |
| C$600M/year federal support | Announced June 3, 2026 | No distribution timeline as of October 15 | Canadian Heritage, CityNews |
| Discoverability (2026-95) | Published May 21, 2026 | CRTC confirmed in August it is proceeding, with hearing dates still being set | BNN Bloomberg / Canadian Press |
Our reading: the contribution side of the CRTC streaming levy is functionally frozen, and the replacement does not yet exist in any binding form. The discoverability side is alive. Planning should reflect both facts at once.
3. How did we get here? A dated timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| April 27, 2023 | Online Streaming Act comes into force |
| September 29, 2023 | CRTC sets registration rules with a C$10M exemption threshold (Cassels) |
| June 4, 2024 | CRTC imposes the 5% base contribution, estimated at about C$200M a year (Media in Canada) |
| July 4, 2024 | MPA-Canada, Apple, Amazon and Spotify file challenges at the Federal Court of Appeal (Stephen Taylor) |
| December 2024 | Court grants a stay; challengers need not pay pending the appeal (Globe and Mail) |
| June 2025 | Appeal heard; no decision issued since (Fasken) |
| May 21, 2026 | CRTC publishes the 15% CPE framework (2026-96) and discoverability framework (2026-95) |
| June 3, 2026 | Government orders a review and announces C$600M/year in support |
| July 17, 2026 | Justice Department tells the court the government intends to eliminate the base contribution |
| August 26, 2026 | CRTC says it will still proceed with discoverability rules |
| August 31, 2026 | Annual base contribution date passes without new payments reported |
| October 15, 2026 | Cultural sector still waiting on funding timeline and policy direction |
4. Is the 15% on top of the 5%?
No. This single misunderstanding inflates cost models more than any other.
Under the published 2026 framework, non-Canadian streamers that meet the threshold must direct at least 15% of annual Canadian broadcasting revenue to Canadian programming expenditure, and that 15% already includes the 5% base contribution. The incremental layer is therefore 10 points, not 15.
The two layers also behave differently:
- The 5% is mostly paid out to third-party funds such as the Canada Media Fund and news funds.
- The remaining 10% is an expenditure requirement: money the streamer spends on qualifying Canadian programming, which can include its own commissions and partnerships.
That distinction matters for an OTT business case. Cash paid into a fund is a pure cost. Spending on Canadian programming you own or license can produce catalog value you monetize. A finance model that treats all 15% as a tax overstates the economic burden, even under the full framework.
5. Which revenue tier is your OTT service in?
Most services evaluating a Canadian launch, including the majority of white-label OTT deployments, sit far below the money thresholds. Map your service before modeling any rate.
| Tier | Canadian broadcasting revenue | What applies on paper |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 0 | Under C$10M | Exempt from registration; no base contribution; no CPE |
| Tier 1 | C$10M to under C$25M | Register with the CRTC; no base contribution; no CPE |
| Tier 2 | C$25M to under C$100M | Registration, 5% base contribution (if unaffiliated), 15% CPE framework |
| Tier 3 | C$100M and above | Everything in Tier 2, plus SEI fund contributions and spending sub-allocations |
For Tier 3 services, the CRTC also prescribed how the money is spent: at least 30% on “enhanced partnerships” and at least 30% on French-language programming, according to an analysis of the decision.
Revenue is measured alone or as part of a broadcasting ownership group, so a brand with several apps under one parent should add them together.
Worked numbers: four illustrative services
The figures below simply apply the published percentages to hypothetical revenue. They are not what any service owes today, because payments are stayed and the framework is under review. Use them to size your exposure range, not your budget line.
The “reset” column uses roughly 4%, the level Michael Geist notes is typical of global standards and close to the European median cited by the Chamber of Progress, an industry-funded group. It is a planning assumption, not a forecast of the final rate.
| Illustrative service | Canadian revenue | 5% base (on paper) | 15% CPE total (on paper) | ~4% reset scenario |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. Niche faith or regional SVOD | C$4M | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| B. Mid-size sports AVOD/SVOD | C$18M | Not applicable (register only) | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| C. Foreign genre SVOD, unaffiliated | C$40M | C$2.0M | C$6.0M (includes the C$2.0M) | C$1.6M |
| D. Large foreign general-entertainment service | C$150M | C$7.5M | C$22.5M, of which at least C$6.75M to enhanced partnerships and C$6.75M to French-language | C$6.0M |
What the table shows:
- Services A and B have no financial exposure under any version on the table. Their CRTC homework is registration (B only) and conditions of service.
- Service C’s exposure range is wide, from about C$1.6M to C$6.0M a year depending on which framework survives. That spread is the real planning risk.
- Service D faces the steepest curve and the most prescriptive spending rules. This is the tier where the trade fight is being waged.
One caution for Tier 2 and 3: the court stay protects the companies that brought the challenge. A service outside that litigation should not assume the stay covers it. Get Canadian regulatory advice on your specific position.
6. Where was the 5% supposed to go, and who is waiting?
For audiovisual streamers, the 2024 decision split the 5% roughly like this, based on Kidscreen’s summary of the CRTC decision and Blakes:
| Share of revenue | Destination |
|---|---|
| 2.0% | Canada Media Fund, with flexibility to direct up to 1.5% to certified Canadian content directly |
| 1.5% | Independent Local News Fund |
| 0.5% | Black Screen Office Fund, Canadian Independent Screen Fund for BPOC creators and/or Broadcasting Accessibility Fund |
| 0.5% | Indigenous Screen Office Fund |
| 0.5% | Certified Independent Production Funds supporting official-language minority communities |
The news slice shows the cost of the stalemate. A federal briefing note records that the Independent Local News Fund was expected to gain about C$42M a year from streamers but received very little in 2024-25, and that broadcasters asked Ottawa for temporary emergency funding of C$3.5M per month.
For OTT operators, this context explains the politics. The C$600 million is partly an attempt to fill holes left by money that never arrived. Until it flows, pressure on Ottawa to land some contribution rule stays high. The culture minister has said the eventual level won’t be zero.
7. The C$600 million: announced, allocated, or paid?
On June 3, 2026, Canadian Heritage announced C$600 million per year for the audio and audiovisual sectors, with details to follow after consultation. By October 15, the sector was still waiting for a timeline.
Public money moves through four distinct stages. Locate any program on this ladder before counting on it:
| Stage | Meaning | C$600M status (Oct 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Announced | A political commitment with a headline figure | Reached |
| 2. Allocated | Funds assigned to a named program with a budget | Not confirmed publicly |
| 3. Open for applications | Eligibility rules and intake published | Not reached |
| 4. Disbursed | Money paid to producers or funds | Not reached |
For producers and content owners: do not book prospective grant income from this program into operating budgets until stage 3 at minimum.
For streamers: public funding and a regulatory contribution are separate instruments. Even if the C$600 million arrives, it does not by itself cancel a company’s legal obligations. Only a formal policy direction followed by CRTC action changes those.
8. When will the replacement rules arrive?
This is the question finance teams ask most, and the one with the least coverage. Here is the process the government has to follow, and a realistic estimate based on precedent.
The required steps
Per Michael Geist’s analysis, a policy direction under the Act requires the minister to:
- Consult the CRTC.
- Publish the proposed direction in the Canada Gazette, Part I.
- Table it in both the House of Commons and the Senate.
- Allow at least 30 days for public comment.
- Finalize the order.
Then the CRTC must unwind its existing decisions and run new proceedings on what replaces them. New legal challenges are possible at that stage too.
What precedent suggests
The last policy direction under this same law was published as a draft in June 2023 and did not take effect until late November 2023, roughly five months.
Our estimate (not an official forecast): if the draft direction appears in the Gazette in late 2026, a final direction around spring 2027 is plausible, with replacement CRTC rules after that. In the July filing the government expected the draft “in the coming weeks”; it had still not appeared by mid-October. Treat any date as soft.
Signals to watch, in order of importance
| Signal | Why it matters | Where to check |
|---|---|---|
| Proposed policy direction in Canada Gazette Part I | Starts the formal clock | Canada Gazette |
| Federal Court of Appeal mootness ruling or withdrawal | Ends the stay question | Court docket / legal commentary |
| New CRTC notice of consultation on contributions | Shows the replacement design | CRTC 2026 policies |
| C$600M program guidelines | Moves the fund to stage 3 | Canadian Heritage news |
| Discoverability hearing dates | Starts product-level obligations | CRTC streaming hub |
9. The part still moving: discoverability
While the money rules stall, the CRTC confirmed in August that it will proceed with rules on how streamers ensure Canadian content is available and visible. Instead of one universal requirement, the regulator said it would work with each streamer on tailored commitments.
The 2026-95 framework defines discoverability as content being available and visible even when a viewer is not searching for it, across French, English and Indigenous languages. The Act also prevents the CRTC from requiring a specific algorithm or source code.
That last point is why discoverability is an OTT product question. If the regulator cannot dictate your recommendation engine, any commitment you make will be met through catalog structure, metadata and interface choices. From the platform side, these are the capabilities we’d check before committing to anything:
| Capability | Why it helps meet a discoverability commitment |
|---|---|
| Custom content rails and collections | Lets you feature Canadian or Indigenous titles on the home screen without touching ranking logic |
| Structured metadata fields (origin, certification, language) | Makes Canadian content filterable, reportable and promotable |
| Region-aware catalog and home layouts | Shows a Canada-specific layout to Canadian viewers only |
| Multi-language UI and audio/subtitle tracks | Supports French and Indigenous-language access |
| Exportable viewing and impression reports | Gives you evidence if you need to show the CRTC what you surfaced |
Larger services will negotiate these commitments directly with the CRTC. Smaller platforms are unlikely to be first in line, but building the capability now costs far less than retrofitting an app later.
10. The trade dimension
The CRTC streaming levy is also a trade file. The United States has repeatedly listed the Online Streaming Act as a trade irritant, and the Motion Picture Association described the 15% decision as unprecedented and discriminatory toward American services. In August, Canadian Press reported that the streaming rules played a role in ending trade talks with the U.S.
For operators, the takeaway is volatility. Final contribution rates may be shaped by trade negotiations as much as by cultural policy, which is one more reason to model a range rather than a single number.
11. A five-step planning checklist for OTT operators
Step 1: Calculate Canadian broadcasting revenue properly. Separate Canadian subscription, advertising and transactional revenue from global totals. Aggregate across every service in your ownership group. Place yourself in a tier from section 5.
Step 2: Confirm your obligations by tier, not by headline. Tier 0 and 1 services should focus on registration and conditions of service. Tier 2 and 3 services need Canadian regulatory counsel, especially on whether the court stay applies to them.
Step 3: Model three scenarios, not one.
- Frozen: current reality, with no new contributions collected.
- Full framework: 15% CPE applied as published.
- Reset: a lower contribution near global norms, around 4%.
Price, content budget and payback period should survive all three.
Step 4: Separate cash-out from spend-in. Any expenditure-style obligation you can meet through programming you own or license is partly an investment. Track it apart from pure fund payments.
Step 5: Build discoverability into the roadmap. Rails, metadata, regional layouts and reporting are cheap to plan now and expensive to bolt on after a commitment is negotiated.
Where Flicknexs fits
Flicknexs builds white-label OTT and video-on-demand platforms for content owners, broadcasters and media businesses that want their own branded streaming apps. For teams weighing Canada, the platform questions in section 9 (content rails, structured metadata, region-aware catalogs, multi-language support and reporting) are the ones to raise during evaluation. If you are still choosing a monetization model, our guides on what VOD is, TVOD platforms and white-label OTT providers cover the trade-offs.
Planning a Canadian launch? Book a free Flicknexs OTT platform demo, and pair the technical plan with Canadian legal advice on your regulatory position.
12. Frequently asked questions
What is the CRTC streaming levy?
It is the common name for contribution and spending rules the CRTC applies to large online streaming services under the Online Streaming Act. It includes a 5% base contribution set in 2024 and a broader 15% Canadian programming expenditure framework published in 2026, which includes the 5% (Blakes).
Are Netflix and other big streamers paying the 5% right now?
No new payments are reported. The Federal Court of Appeal stayed payments for the challenging companies in December 2024, and the August 31, 2026 payment date passed without new money reaching the funds, according to industry reporting (Globe and Mail, The CRTC Clock).
Has Canada canceled the 5% base contribution?
Not formally. In a July 17, 2026 letter to the court, the government said it intends to eliminate the requirement and replace it with public funding. It takes a published policy direction and follow-up CRTC action to make that official (Michael Geist).
Is the 15% CRTC rule in effect?
It was published in May 2026, but the government directed the CRTC to review and reconsider it on June 3, 2026. The CRTC has not said when it would be enforceable, so treat it as an upper-bound scenario rather than a current cost (Cassels).
Does the CRTC streaming levy apply to small OTT platforms?
Generally no. Services under C$10 million in Canadian broadcasting revenue are exempt from registration, and the base contribution and 15% framework start at C$25 million. Revenue is counted across your whole ownership group (CRTC registration guidance).
Has the C$600 million Canadian content fund been paid out?
No. It was announced on June 3, 2026, but as of October 15 the sector had no timeline for distribution and no published program guidelines (CityNews).
Does the 15% apply to music streaming services?
Reporting at the time of the decision indicated the 15% requirement does not apply to music streaming services like Spotify. Audio services remain subject to separate rules, including the base contribution.
What are CRTC discoverability rules?
They are requirements, under development, for streamers to make Canadian and Indigenous programming available and visible. The CRTC plans to set them service by service and cannot mandate a specific algorithm, so they will mostly be met through catalog design and metadata (BNN Bloomberg).
When will the new streaming rules be final?
There is no official date. Based on the five-month gap for the 2023 policy direction, a final direction around spring 2027 is plausible if the draft appears in late 2026, with new CRTC rules after that (Michael Geist).
