International Transfers

Where there are discrepancies between this policy and Canada Soccer’s and FIFA’s international transfer policies, those policies shall take effect.

 

Any player who comes to Canada on or after the player is 10 years of age, the player must request and receive an international clearance from Canada Soccer. Without this certificate, the player is ineligible to play in Canada.

 

A player may request an international transfer certificate by completing the Canada Soccer international transfer application form and submitting to SSA, along with the required documentation.

 

Upon receipt of an international transfer application form, SSA will administer the request through Canada Soccer and provide approval upon receipt. Players are not permitted to participate until approval has been received.

ITCs For Amateur Adults

As prescribed by the FIFA Regulations, amateur players who participate in strictly amateur competitions may only transfer into Canada during an amateur transfer window, of which there are two in any calendar year. This is, of course, at all times subject to any additional competition-specific registration periods.

 

Given the various geographic and seasonal differences that exist in Canada, the amateur transfer windows are defined as follows:

 

Primary Window: January 2 to June 30 of the current calendar year

Secondary Window: July 1 to 31 December of the current calendar year

An ITC will be required for a player aged 18 or over where that player’s immediately previous soccer registration was overseas.

 

To determine if an ITC will be required in order to register a player, the Club, must ask and obtain the answers to the following questions from the player as a part of their registration process: 

 

In which year did the player last register in [NAME OF COUNTRY IN (b)]? 

 

If the player answers “yes” to question (a), the player will require an ITC in order to register. It is the responsibility of the Club to apply for the player’s ITC by fully completing the appropriate ITC Request form obtained from their respective Member Association (SSA). The form must be fully completed and returned to SSA, together with all necessary documents supporting the application. Failure to provide the mandatory documentation with the application will result in the application being rejected.

 

The SSA will then forward the ITC application form, together with all necessary documents to Canada Soccer. Canada Soccer will then process and upload the necessary documents in the FIFA Transfer Matching System (FIFA TMS) pursuant to the FIFA Regulations.

 

In accordance with the FIFA Regulations, with all amateur ITC requests, it is now mandatory to provide a copy of the player’s passport and/or a government issued identification card that contains the following information: 

 

photograph of the player

full name

date of birth

Nationality

The player cannot be registered unless and until:

 

(a) the ITC is received; or

(b) no response has been received from the National Association within 7 (seven) days from the date Canada Soccer processed and uploaded the ITC request in the FIFA TMS. 

 

If the player is transferring from the United States, the Club (on the player’s behalf) are advised to send their Member Association the following additional details: 

 

the name of the player’s former club in the United States;

the location of the player’s former club in the United States - city and state; and

the player’s last state of residence in the United States.

Players should contact their Club regarding ITC-related queries. Players (and parents or representatives of players) should not contact Canada Soccer directly - this will only delay the process. All Club enquiries should be directed to SSA. 

 

All Club enquiries should be directed to SSA.

If a player, participating in eleven-a-side soccer, was previously registered with an overseas Club and the new Canadian Club wishes to register that player as a professional, the new Canadian club will need to request that player’s ITC via the FIFA Transfer Matching System (TMS). 

 

Please note that Canada Soccer provides training to Professional Clubs prior to applying to FIFA TMS for access.

 

As prescribed by the FIFA Regulations, professional players, and or amateur players who participate in professional competitions (for example, the Canadian Championship), may only transfer into Canada during a professional transfer window, of which there are two in any calendar year. There is only one exception to this rule: a professional whose previous professional contract has expired or was mutually terminated prior to the close of the last transfer window may be registered outside that transfer window. This is, of course, at all times, subject to any additional League or Competition-specific registration periods.

 

The professional transfer windows represent the only opportunity in which to obtain an ITC for professional players designated by Canada Soccer pursuant to the FIFA Regulations. 

 

The FIFA Regulations provide for real and significant sanctions for Clubs and national associations that do not comply with the obligation to use TMS.

The International Clearance Process For Minors

Pursuant to the FIFA Regulations, the international clearance process applies to any minor player, being a player aged 10 to 17 years seeking to register to play soccer in Canada at any level. 

 

As a first principle, the FIFA Regulations state that an international transfer of a player is only permitted if the player is over the age of 18 (Art 19.1 - The Protection of Minors). This policy is intended to protect players under the age of 18 from potential exploitation.

 

The FIFA Regulations also apply to any Minor who is a foreign national (including refugees) seeking to register in Canada, irrespective of whether they were registered to play soccer in their previous country or not. The FIFA Regulations also capture any Canadian Minors who are returning to Canada after having played abroad. Any such Minor seeking to register to play soccer will need to complete a Minor ITC Application.

 

Where a Minor was born in a country other than Canada and is registering to play soccer for the first time (First Registration), the international clearance process will still need to be carried out. Canada Soccer is required to confirm that there is no record of registration of the player in their former country of residence and will still require mandatory supporting documents to request this information. 

 

Canada Soccer is able to consider Minor ITC applications for the transfer of Minors to amateur Canadian Clubs who meet the following exceptions as per the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players: 

 

 

 

 

 

For all other Minors, Canada Soccer may be able to make an application on behalf of that Minor to the FIFA Players’ Status Committee in Zurich. However, Canada Soccer is unable to make any guarantee as to the outcome of such an application. Please note that such applications can be very time consuming and require significant supporting documentation. Further, in Canada Soccer’s experience, it is not unusual for FIFA to make a number of requests for further supporting documentation once the initial application is lodged. 

 

Children aged under 10 at the time of their registration do not require an ITC. 

 

An individual player’s soccer ability or nationality has no bearing on the ITC process. 

 

To avoid delays, please ensure that:

 

only SSA sends the Minor ITC Application Form and supporting documents to Canada Soccer; and

the supporting documents provided are in accordance with the relevant enclosed checklists

The below flowchart and document checklists will assist parents, and Clubs to determine which application form to complete and which additional documentation is required to support a Minor ITC Application.

 

Minor Player Application Procedure   

Complete the international transfer application, checklist compile the following documents in a PDF format, with no document larger than 2 MB.

 

Minor with parent - Application and Checklist

Minor 50km shared border exception - Application and Checklist

Minors moving to Canada for the purposed of an academic exchange program - Application and Checklist

Minors in Canada for humanitarian purposes without their parents - Application and Checklist

Minors in Canada for humanitarian purposes accompanied with their parents - Application and Checklist

First registration for Minors resident in Canada for 5 or more years - Application and Checklist (email registrar@sasksoccer.com to get the document)

First registration for Minors resident in Canada for less than 5 years - Application and Checklist

Submit the application and required documentation to SSA by email to registrar@sasksoccer.com

 

SSA will submit the documentation to Canada Soccer on behalf of the applicant.

 

Canada Soccer will submit the application and documentation to FIFA’s Transfer Matching System (TMS) for review by FIFA’s Player Status Committee. Only FIFA’s Player Status Committee can approve requests for the international transfers of minors.

 

SSA will provide the ITC to the applicant upon receipt and/or follow up accordingly.

The following documents are to be submitted to Saskatchewan Soccer Association:

 

Complete the  application form, checklist and documents in a PDF format, with no document larger than 2 MB.

 

Adult ITC - Application and Checklist

Adult ITC for adult player in Canada as a Refugee/Humanitarian Purposes - Application and Checklist

Submit the international transfer application and required documentation to SSA by email to registrar@sasksoccer.com.

 

SSA will submit the documentation to Canada Soccer on behalf of the applicant.

 

Canada Soccer will submit the application and documentation to FIFA’s Transfer Matching System (TMS) for review by FIFA’s Player Status Committee.

 

SSA will provide the ITC to the applicant upon receipt and/or follow up accordingly.

SSA will provide the player and the Member Organization they wish to register with the approved ITC once it is received from Canada Soccer. Please note all ITC applications can take up to 30 days to be approved and very rarely are they completed prior to the 30 days. 

 

Explanatory Notes - This document has been created to assist you in selecting the correct documents in support of any application made using one of the prescribed forms.

art from www.canadasoccer.com 

 

Questions regarding International Transfers can be emailed to registrar@sasksoccer.com