Securities Law

British Columbia securities laws include the Securities Act, regulations and rules made under the Securities Act.

Most of the BCSC's rules are harmonized with other Canadian securities regulators, and are referred to as National Instruments (or Multilateral Instruments, if not all jurisdictions adopted them). Other rules made by the BCSC are Securities Rules or sometimes BC Instruments.

Sometimes the BCSC makes decisions that provide exemptions from securities laws. Those that are of general effect and are relevant to many market participants are also called BC Instruments and can be found under Instruments and Policies.

The BCSC or its staff may also provide interpretive guidance about British Columbia securities laws in the form of a notice or policy. Some notices or policies are issued on a harmonized basis with other Canadian securities regulators, while others are only issued in B.C. These notices and policies are generally available in Instruments & Policies and BC Notices.