press rank #14 · ~$2,200/mo

Can you live unwatched in Canada?

No national ID card, but banking is tightly reported.

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The privacy scorecard

State surveillance3/5
Facial recognition3/5
No national ID4/5
Data-protection law4/5
Encryption4/5
VPN freedom5/5
Democracy5/5
Free expression4/5
Cash still works3/5
Financial privacy2/5
Crypto freedom4/5
Easy to stay3/5
Off-grid living5/5
8 cameras / 1,000 people press rank #14 ~$2,200/mo national average

Childhood vaccines: recommended, never required

Canada has no national mandate: two provinces run a school entry rule, the rest recommend.

If you skip them: Nothing federally. In Ontario and New Brunswick a school can exclude a child without proof.

Exemptions: Medical, religious and conscience, with a mandatory information session in Ontario.

Source: Georgetown AMP EID, survey of national legislation, 2024

Legal & financial exposure

Facts about the law, not a privacy score: whether each one helps or hurts depends on what you are trying to do.

Reports your account balances abroad (CRS)

Extradition treaty with the US

No ID required to buy a SIM card

Crypto capital gains are taxed

50% of capital gains are added to taxable income.

Crypto mining is a recognised industry here

Significant legal mining industry, particularly in Quebec on hydro power.

2 of 7 signals are unverified for this country: not shown, rather than guessed.

63 real places in Canada

Facial recognition, Bitcoin friendliness and cost vary by city even inside the same country.

Toronto (ON)

~$2,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Montreal

~$1,900/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Calgary

~$1,950/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Edmonton

~$2,400/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Ottawa

~$2,000/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Winnipeg

~$2,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Vancouver

~$2,250/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Brampton

~$2,050/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Surrey

~$2,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Québec City

~$2,150/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Halifax

~$2,300/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Saskatoon

~$2,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 3/5

Weigh Canada against your own threat model

Surveillance, speech, money: filter thousands of real places across every country and see where Canada actually ranks.

Browse every place

Not just privacy?

Arcadia matches the same real places against how you actually want to live: weather, cost, healthcare, schools, internet.

Find where to live on Arcadia

Country-level estimates for orientation, not legal advice. Surveillance law changes fast: verify anything you would act on.