Commercial vehicle & NSC compliance software for Canadian carriers
The records and evidence a carrier needs to satisfy the National Safety Code as its province administers it — carrier registration (CVOR, PEVL, SFC, NSC certificate), trip-inspection and maintenance records, and driver files — resolved to the province and the vehicle.
Complys is launching for Canadian carriers. It is a system of record, not an ELD.
What “commercial vehicle compliance” means in Canada
It means meeting the National Safety Code as your province adopts and enforces it. For most carriers that comes down to a handful of duties with evidence behind each: be registered as a carrier in your province, keep your vehicles inspected and maintained, qualify and monitor your drivers, and manage hours of service where the federal rules apply. Complys keeps the records and evidence for all of it — the part a carrier-safety audit actually asks you to produce.
The National Safety Code — national standards, provincial administration
The National Safety Code is a set of 16 nationally-developed safety standards, coordinated through the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA). It is not a single, directly-administered Canada-wide operating regime: each province and territory adopts the standards into (or mirrors them in) its own legislation and is responsible for administering and enforcing them within its jurisdiction.
So carrier registration has a different name and rules in each province — Ontario’s CVOR, Québec’s PEVL register (a plate from the SAAQ alone is not enough to operate a heavy vehicle), Alberta’s Safety Fitness Certificate, and British Columbia’s NSC Safety Certificate administered by CVSE.
What counts as a commercial vehicle also differs by province — for example a registered gross weight over 4,500 kg in Ontario and Québec, over 4,500 kg extra-provincially (or 11,794 kg operating solely within) in Alberta, and over 5,000 kg for the NSC certificate in British Columbia. Complys resolves the requirements to the province and the vehicle, rather than assuming one national number.
General information, not legal advice; verify the National Safety Code standard and your province’s requirements.
Carrier registration, province by province
The Commercial Vehicle Operator’s Registration, issued by the MTO. Required for trucks over 4,500 kg and buses for 10+ passengers, with exemptions (for example out-of-province plates and certain personal-use vehicles).
Heavy-vehicle owners (GVWR 4,500 kg or more) must be entered in the register of owners and operators (PEVL) at the CTQ. A SAAQ licence plate alone is not enough to operate.
Required over 4,500 kg for extra-provincial operation, or at 11,794 kg and above for vehicles operating solely within Alberta; buses by passenger count. Alberta’s CVIP handles periodic inspection.
The NSC Safety Certificate, administered by CVSE, for commercial vehicles over 5,000 kg (a separate weight applies to being subject to periodic inspection). Complys keeps the certificate and its evidence on file.
The other provinces and territories follow the same National Safety Code pattern under their own carrier-safety systems; Complys is built to add them as province-configured profiles.
How to read these requirements
Complys keeps the distinction clear between what a standard sets, what a province requires, what regulators guide, what insurers require, and what’s your own policy — so nothing is over-stated as a legal duty.
The 16 NSC standards are developed via CCMTA; they take legal force through each province's and territory's own legislation. There is no single, directly-administered Canada-wide operating regime.
Ontario CVOR (MTO); Québec PEVL register at the CTQ (a SAAQ plate alone is not sufficient); Alberta Safety Fitness Certificate; British Columbia NSC Safety Certificate (CVSE). Names and rules differ by province.
For example a registered gross weight over 4,500 kg in Ontario and Québec; over 4,500 kg extra-provincial (or 11,794 kg operating solely within) in Alberta; over 5,000 kg for the NSC certificate in British Columbia. Do not assume one national threshold.
The federal Commercial Vehicle Drivers Hours of Service Regulations (SOR/2005-313) and the federal ELD mandate apply to carriers operating across a provincial or national border; intra-provincial carriers follow their province's own rules.
Unlike the US self-certification model, Canadian ELDs are certified by a body accredited by Transport Canada, and a US-certified device is not automatically valid in Canada. Complys is not an ELD — it holds the records and evidence, not the device.
Insurers often require driver-abstract checks, telematics or documented safety programs — contractual, not law.
What’s ready, honestly
Complys is launching for Canadian fleets and carriers. Here is exactly where the capabilities on this page stand — labelled at the feature level, never marketed as available before they ship.
Province-native identifiers — Ontario CVOR, Québec PEVL, Alberta Safety Fitness Certificate, BC NSC certificate — held against the carrier profile. Being built now; arriving in the release after launch.
One record per vehicle: registration and plates, inspection dates, insurance and documents with expiry. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Digital inspections with timestamped photos held against each vehicle. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Scheduled preventive maintenance, repair history and evidence, retained against the vehicle. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Every action recorded with who did it and when; export the evidence on demand. Included in Complys Self-Drive from launch.
Requirements resolved to where a vehicle actually operates — federal (extra-provincial) vs the province's own rules (intra-provincial), and commercial class by weight and use. Being built now; arriving in the release after launch.
Hours-of-service and ELD are device-based, and Canadian ELDs are third-party certified; Complys is not an ELD. Planned as an evidence/records layer beside your certified ELD, not a replacement for it. On the roadmap for a later release; not built yet.
Sources
- • CCMTA — National Safety Code
- • Transport Canada — National Safety Code
- • Ontario — Commercial Vehicle Operator's Registration (CVOR)
- • Québec (SAAQ) — Register of owners and operators of heavy vehicles
- • Alberta — Safety Fitness Certificate
- • British Columbia — CVSE / National Safety Code
- • Transport Canada — Electronic Logging Devices
Last reviewed: 21 September 2026. This page describes current Canadian requirements in general terms and is not legal advice; check the primary sources above and your province’s rules.
Commercial vehicle compliance — FAQs
What is NSC or commercial vehicle compliance software?
Software that keeps the records and evidence a Canadian carrier needs to show it meets the National Safety Code as its province administers it — carrier registration details, trip inspections, preventive-maintenance and inspection records, and driver files — in one auditable system. Complys is a system of record; it isn't an ELD and doesn't log hours of service.
Is the National Safety Code a national law I comply with directly?
Not exactly. The NSC is a set of 16 national standards coordinated through the CCMTA. It becomes enforceable through each province's and territory's own legislation, and they administer and enforce it. So 'NSC compliance' in practice means meeting your province's adopted version — Ontario's CVOR rules, Québec's PEVL regime, Alberta's SFC, British Columbia's NSC certificate, and so on.
Do I need a CVOR, a PEVL registration, or an SFC?
It depends on your province. Ontario carriers need a CVOR; Québec heavy-vehicle owners must be in the PEVL register at the CTQ (a SAAQ plate alone is not enough to operate); Alberta uses a Safety Fitness Certificate; British Columbia an NSC Safety Certificate. Complys holds whichever identifiers apply to you against your carrier profile.
Is a commercial vehicle the same weight everywhere in Canada?
No. The threshold differs by province — for example over 4,500 kg in Ontario and Québec, with Alberta using 4,500 kg extra-provincially and 11,794 kg for vehicles operating solely within Alberta, and British Columbia using 5,000 kg for the NSC certificate. Complys resolves the requirement to the province and the vehicle rather than applying one national number.
Does it handle hours of service and ELDs?
Hours of service are logged by an ELD device, and Canadian ELDs must be third-party certified — a US-certified device isn't automatically valid here. Complys is not an ELD. We're planning an HOS/ELD records layer so the evidence sits with your other compliance records, but the device and the live logging stay with your certified ELD provider.
Federal or provincial — which rules apply to me?
If you operate across a provincial or national boundary you're federally regulated for hours of service and ELDs. If you operate only within one province, that province's rules apply. Registration, inspection and driver licensing are administered by the provinces. Complys resolves the requirements to how and where your vehicles actually run.
Explore Complys fleet & vehicle compliance in Canada
The Canadian hub — vehicles, inspections, maintenance and evidence in one province-aware system of record.
Daily trip inspections (NSC Standard 13) and periodic inspections with photo evidence.
Preventive maintenance and the records the National Safety Code expects you to keep.
Run car and vehicle rental with Canadian identity, consent-based abstract and condition evidence.