Status

This standard was approved as a departmental standard on February 20, 2012.

2011 version of SCCAI

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) 2011 is based on the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1} including changes announced in newsletters which update the currently valid ISO standard. All changes made as of December 31st, 2011 are included in this 2011 version of the SCCAI. The list was also updated for consistency with government of Canada norms.

In addition to the list of countries and areas of interest, a classification variant for social statistics data is included. The hierarchical structure of the classification shows the relationship between these geographic areas.

HTML format

• Introduction to the classification
• SCCAI 2011 - Classification structure

Concordances and documentation on changes

• SCCAI 2010 - SCCAI 2011
• Differences between SCCAI 2011 and ISO 3166-1:2006
• Current and Historical Countries and Areas of Interest

Variants of SCCAI

Countries and Areas of Interest for Social Statistics - SCCAI 2011

The classification variant for social statistics includes customized groupings (geographical macro-regions and geographical sub-regions) of the SCCAI countries for the publication of social statistics data.

Introduction to the classification

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) 2010 was developed to increase coherence on the list of countries used within Statistics Canada and to be more consistent with government of Canada norms. This list of countries and areas includes those countries or areas for which statistical data are compiled. To satisfy the broadest possible range of applications, all entities in that list are mutually exclusive. For instance, the component parts of China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region and the remainder of China are considered as separate entities and each has its own codes. This list of countries and areas of interest forms the base level of the classification and applies to both economic and social statistics.

There are 249 countries or areas in the SCCAI 2010 including the 248 countries or areas found in the international standard ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1}, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions, plus Kosovo, which was recognized as a country by Canada in 2008. The names of countries or areas refer to their short form used and not necessarily to their official name. They are based on the official short names used in the ISO standard and were modified both to reflect Canadian norms as well as to follow specific naming rules adopted for the Canadian list. The modifications to reflect Canadian norms were done based on consultation with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade as well as examining responses to the 2006 Census of Population question for the place of birth variable. The specific naming rules adopted for the Canadian list are:

1. Use of short form of country names wherever practicable and/or to avoid confusion;
2. Use of commas for sorting in alphabetical order; and
3. Use of long form of country names to avoid confusion.

These changes to the names have resulted in differences between SCCAI 2010 and ISO 3166-1:2006.

Historical revisions of countries and areas of interest

The material on current and historical countries and areas of interest is presented here to help users who compile longitudinal data on countries and areas of interest to assign those data to the right current or formerly used country names and codes. A start and end date are provided to define the period of validity of country names and codes; however there is no end date when the country names or codes are still current. This list which compiles changes to country names and codes since 1970 is based on information gathered from the following sources:

• current and previous editions of the standard ISO 3166-1, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 1: Country codes;
• ISO 3166-3 Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 3: Code for formerly used names of countries;
• Newsletters related to ISO 3166-1 and ISO 3166-3; and
• current and previous editions of the United Nations Standard Country or Area Codes for Statistical Use.

Relation to previous standard

This is a revision of the previous Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) 2009. The current standard, like the previous standard, is also based on the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1}, and has been modified for consistency with Canadian norms. This standard includes a classification variant Countries and Areas of Interest for Social Statistics – SCCAI 2010 that provides standard groupings of countries and associated codes for publication purposes. Usage notes are included with the standard.

Conformity to relevant internationally recognized standards

This standard is compatible with the list of countries or areas included in the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1 except for the recognition of Kosovo. The coding structure follows the ISO coding structure with countries having three-digit numeric codes, two-character alpha codes, and three-character alpha codes. New codes were assigned to Kosovo based on an ISO clause which places codes at the disposal of users who need to add further names of countries or areas of interest to their list.

The 248 countries and areas in the ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1} standard includes 238 of the 239 countries or areas for which statistical data are compiled by the Statistics Division of the United Nations Secretariat^{Footnote 2}. The entity Channel Islands which regroups Guernsey and Jersey is an intermediate level not retained in ISO or SCCAI.

Status

This standard was approved as a departmental standard on January 17, 2011.

2010 version of SCCAI

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) is Statistics Canada's official classification of countries and areas of interest for use in classifying statistical data. The SCCAI provides a list of the names of countries or areas of interest in alphabetical order, with their corresponding three-digit numerical codes, two-character alpha codes and three-character alpha codes. In addition to the list of countries and areas of interest, a classification variant for social statistics data is included. The hierarchical structure of the classification shows the relationship between these geographic areas.

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) 2010 is based on the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1} including changes announced in newsletters which update the currently valid ISO standard. The list was also updated for consistency with government of Canada norms.

HTML format

• Introduction to the classification
• SCCAI 2010 - Classification structure

Concordances and documentation on changes

• Differences between SCCAI 2010 and ISO 3166-1:2006
• Current and Historical Countries and Areas of Interest 2010

Variant of SCCAI

Countries and Areas of Interest for Social Statistics – SCCAI 2010

The classification variant of SCCAI is a set of customized groupings that use countries and areas of interest of SCCAI as building blocks. In Statistics Canada, variants are created and adopted in cases where the version of the classification does not fully meet specific user needs for disseminating data. A classification variant is based on a classification version such as SCCAI 2010. In a variant, the categories of the classification version are split, aggregated or regrouped to provide additions or alternatives (e.g. context-specific additions) to the standard list of the base version.

The classification variant for social statistics includes customized groupings of the SCCAI countries for the publication of social statistics data.

Introduction to the classification

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) 2009 was developed to increase coherence on the list of countries used within Statistics Canada and to be more consistent with government of Canada norms. This list of countries and areas includes those countries or areas for which statistical data are compiled. To satisfy the broadest possible range of applications, all entities in that list are mutually exclusive. For instance, the component parts of China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region and the remainder of China are considered as separate entities and each has its own codes. This list of countries and areas of interest forms the base level of the classification and applies to both economic and social statistics.

There are 247 countries or areas in the SCCAI 2009 including the 246 countries or areas found in the international standard ISO 3166-1:2006, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions, plus Kosovo, which was recognized as a country by Canada in 2008. The names of countries or areas refer to their short form used and not necessarily to their official name. They are based on the official short names used in the ISO standard and were modified both to reflect Canadian norms as well as to follow specific naming rules adopted for the Canadian list. The modifications to reflect Canadian norms were done based on consultation with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade as well as examining responses to the 2006 Census of Population question for the place of birth variable. The specific naming rules adopted for the Canadian list are:

1. Use of short form of country names wherever practicable and/or to avoid confusion;
2. Use of commas for sorting in alphabetical order; and
3. Use of long form of country names to avoid confusion.

These changes to the names have resulted in differences between SCCAI 2009 and ISO 3166-1:2006.

Historical revisions of countries and areas of interest

The material on current and historical countries and areas of interest is presented here to help users who compile longitudinal data on countries and areas of interest to assign those data to the right current or formerly used country names and codes. A start and end date are provided to define the period of validity of country names and codes; however there is no end date when the country names or codes are still current. This list which compiles changes to country names and codes since 1970 is based on information gathered from the following sources:

• current and previous editions of the standard ISO 3166-1, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 1: Country codes;
• ISO 3166-3 Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 3: Code for formerly used names of countries;
• Newsletters related to ISO 3166-1 and ISO 3166-3; and
• current and previous editions of the United Nations Standard Country or Area Codes for Statistical Use.

Relation to previous standard

This is a revision of the previous standard List of Countries, Dependencies and Other Areas of Interest. The current standard, like the previous standard, is also based on the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1}, but the current standard has been modified for consistency with Canadian norms. This standard includes a classification variant Countries and Areas of Interest for Social Statistics – SCCAI 2009 that provides standard groupings of countries and associated codes for publication purposes. New usage notes are included with the standard.

Conformity to relevant internationally recognized standards

This standard is compatible with the list of countries or areas included in the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1 except for the recognition of Kosovo. The coding structure follows the ISO coding structure with countries having three-digit numeric codes, two-character alpha codes, and three-character alpha codes. New codes were assigned to Kosovo based on an ISO clause which places codes at the disposal of users who need to add further names of countries or areas of interest to their list.

The 246 countries and areas in the ISO 3166-1:2006 standard includes 236 of the 237 countries or areas for which statistical data are compiled by the Statistics Division of the United Nations Secretariat^{Footnote 2}. The entity Channel Islands which regroups Guernsey and Jersey is an intermediate level not retained in ISO or SCCAI.

Status

This standard was approved as a departmental standard on May 17, 2010.

2009 version of SCCAI

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) is Statistics Canada's official classification of countries and areas of interest for use in classifying statistical data. The SCCAI provides a list of the names of countries or areas of interest in alphabetical order, with their corresponding three-digit numerical codes, two-character alpha codes and three-character alpha codes. In addition to the list of countries and areas of interest, a classification variant for social statistics data is included. The hierarchical structure of the classification shows the relationship between these geographic areas.

The Standard Classification of Countries and Areas of Interest (SCCAI) 2009 is based on the International Standard for country codes ISO 3166-1:2006^{Footnote 1} including changes announced in newsletters which update the currently valid ISO standard. The list was also updated for consistency with government of Canada norms.

HTML format

• Introduction to the classification
• SCCAI 2009 - Classification structure

Concordances and documentation on changes

• Differences between SCCAI 2009 and ISO 3166-1:2006
• Current and Historical Countries and Areas of Interest

Variant of SCCAI

Countries and Areas of Interest for Social Statistics – SCCAI 2009

The classification variant of SCCAI is a set of customized groupings that use countries and areas of interest of SCCAI as building blocks. In Statistics Canada, variants are created and adopted in cases where the version of the classification does not fully meet specific user needs for disseminating data. A classification variant is based on a classification version such as SCCAI 2009. In a variant, the categories of the classification version are split, aggregated or regrouped to provide additions or alternatives (e.g. context-specific additions) to the standard list of the base version.

The classification variant for social statistics includes customized groupings of the SCCAI countries for the publication of social statistics data.

A forward regulatory plan is a public list or description of anticipated regulatory changes or actions that a department intends to bring forward or undertake in a specified time frame. It is intended to give consumers, business, other stakeholders and trading partners greater opportunity to inform the development of regulations and to plan for the future. It should be noted that this forward regulatory plan will be adjusted and updated over time as Statistics Canada’s operating environment also changes over time.

This plan provides information on planned and potential regulatory initiatives that Statistics Canada expects to bring forward over the next two years. It also identifies public consultation opportunities and a departmental contact point for each regulatory initiative.

Forward Regulatory Plan: 2025-2027

This plan provides information on regulatory proposals that Statistics Canada expects to bring forward over the next two years. It also identifies public consultation opportunities and a departmental contact point for each regulatory initiative.

Proposed regulatory initiatives

There are no proposed regulatory initiatives for 2025-2027. This information is up to date as of August 1, 2024.