Add StudioX as a preferred source on GoogleCanada and the United Arab Emirates have signed a free trade agreement, and the new Canada UAE trade deal is expected to take effect in 2027. For the many families in Surrey and Metro Vancouver with relatives in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the deal is about business, investment and security cooperation. It does not change visas.
The agreement was announced in Ottawa on Tuesday, Oct. 27, during a two-day visit by Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. The Prime Minister’s Office called it the first-ever visit to Canada by a Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
“The UAE and Canada are building big,” Prime Minister Mark Carney said.
What is in the Canada UAE trade deal
The agreement is formally called the Canada-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, or CEPA. Once fully in place, it will reduce or remove tariffs on more than 99 per cent of what Canada now sells to the UAE.
The government says talks wrapped up in a record 47 days, the fastest free trade negotiation either country has ever finished.
Ottawa says Canadian exporters of pulses, canola, machinery, power generation equipment and aerospace products stand to gain, along with forestry, fish and seafood, environmental and engineering firms. For B.C., that list touches the forest sector, seafood exporters and engineering companies.
How much trade is at stake
Two-way merchandise trade between the countries was worth about $3.5 billion in 2025. Canada sold $2.8 billion in goods to the UAE, up more than 10 per cent, and bought about $679 million.
International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu said the agreement “will double our two-way trade, from $3.4 billion to $7 billion over the next decade.” More than 150 Canadian companies already operate in the UAE.
More than trade
The Canada UAE trade deal came with a wider package. The two countries launched a new Strategic Partnership covering economic ties, energy, technology, education, defence, diplomacy and cultural exchange. They also signed:
- a memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation, covering training, joint exercises, cyber security and the defence industry, and creating a Joint Military Committee;
- an energy cooperation arrangement between Natural Resources Canada and Masdar, the UAE’s clean energy company.
The government says the visit also brought “significant progress” on the UAE’s pledge, first made in November 2025, to invest $70 billion in Canada.
Extradition treaty talks
Canada and the UAE also agreed to start negotiations on an extradition treaty and a mutual legal assistance treaty. These would set formal rules for handing over people wanted for crimes and for sharing evidence in criminal cases. Nothing has been concluded yet, and no timeline was given.
Why it matters to families in B.C.
An estimated 60,000 Canadians live and work in the UAE, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. Many Punjabi-, Hindi- and Urdu-speaking families in Surrey, Delta and across the Lower Mainland have relatives in the Gulf, or worked there themselves before moving to Canada. More trade can mean more jobs, contracts and business openings on both sides.
What the deal does not do
The government’s announcement does not mention any change to visas, work permits, study permits or travel rules. Anyone who tells you this deal makes it easier to move to Canada from the UAE, or to the UAE from Canada, is not describing what was announced. Check official sources before you pay anyone for immigration or job help.
Next steps
A trade agreement has to go through each country’s legal process before it takes effect. The government expects the CEPA to enter into force in 2027. Carney has said he wants to double Canada’s trade with countries other than the United States over the next decade, and the Canada UAE trade deal is one of several agreements his government is pursuing while trade talks with Washington continue.
Read the Prime Minister’s Office announcement. For more on Ottawa’s recent economic moves, see our report on Carney’s First Nations funding and sovereign wealth fund talks.
Harnaik Singh Rathor is the Founder, Publisher, and Editor-in-Chief of StudioX News Canada, Canada's multilingual digital news network serving multilingual diaspora communities across Canada. With a background in media production, public relations, and multicultural communications, he founded StudioX Film and TV Corporation to bridge the gap between mainstream Canadian media and the country's diverse immigrant communities. He is a member of the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ), RTDNA Canada, CPRS Vancouver, NEPMCC, and the Canadian Freelance Union (Unifor). Based in Surrey, British Columbia. | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harnaiksinghrathor/ | Muck Rack: https://muckrack.com/harnaiksinghrathor | Email: editor@studioxnews.ca
