May 29, 2025

The provincial government has issued a Procurement Restriction Policy that applies to the University.  The purpose of the policy is to restrict US businesses from accessing public sector procurements in Ontario, as a response to US tariffs on Canadian products and services. 

To determine whether a supplier is either a US business or a BOBI supplier, please have your supplier complete the BOBI and Procurement Restriction Policy Requirements Supplier Representation Form found at this link.

BOBI and Procurement Restriction Form [1]

The Policy applies to all new procurements as of May 15, 2025. 

Purchases from Preferred Supplier contracts established before this date are exempt.

Exceptions may be approved if the following two requirements are met;

• No alternative to a US supplier exists AND
• The procurement can’t be delayed

Exceptions MUST be approved by the VP Financial Services, exemption request forms must be sent to purchasing.helpdesk@uoguelph.ca [2]

The procedure and reference documents can be found here [3]. 

If you or your suppliers have questions about how the University will proceed under this policy, please contact the Purchasing HelpDesk at purchasing.helpdesk@uoguelph.ca [2]