Canada and Palestine
Canada and Palestine connect diplomacy, self-determination and institutional support. Canada's September 2025 recognition is a milestone in the political framework.
Analysis reviewed: 2026-10-07 · Indicators updated: 2026-10-07History and institutional framework
Contact with the Palestinian Authority and recognition of the State of Palestine describe different institutional levels.
Areas of the relationship
Recognition of the State of Palestine: Canada formalised recognition within a coordinated international effort.
Areas of the relationship
Recognition of the State of Palestine: Canada formalised recognition within a coordinated international effort.
Bilateral indicators
Blank cells: data unavailable.
| Indicator | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Goods trade | ||
| Goods: Canada to Palestine | ||
| Goods: Palestine to Canada | ||
| Services trade | ||
| Export share: Canada to Palestine | ||
| Export share: Palestine to Canada | ||
| Investment stock: Canada in Palestine | ||
| Investment stock: Palestine in Canada |
Definitions and sources
Trade adds both directions. Shares refer to the country’s total goods exports; investment is an accumulated stock, not an annual flow. Every figure retains the currency and period of its source. BEA positions are historical-cost estimates based on the immediate counterpart, not market values or investment by ultimate owner. ‘More than’ indicates a lower bound, not an exact amount. A recorded stock does not establish new activity or authorisation to operate under sanctions.
Country comparison
Period and source beside each figure · est. = estimate by the stated institution.
The aggregate Palestinian CPI reflects large differences between Gaza and the West Bank; its decline does not mean prices have fallen uniformly or living standards have recovered. Fiscal data cover central government.
| Indicator | Canada | Palestine |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal GDP | 2.32 trillion USD2025 · WB | 17.17 billion USD2025 · WB |
| GDP per capita | 55,697.66 USD2025 · WB | 3,171.11 USD2025 · WB |
| GDP growth | 1.74 %2025 · WB | 4.34 %2025 · WB |
| Policy interest rate | 2.25 %2026-09-02 · BoC | Not comparable · ITA |
| Inflation · annual average | 2.07 %Annual average · 2025 · WB | 9.81 %Annual average · 2025 · WB |
| Inflation · latest year-on-year figure | 3 %Year-on-year · Aug. 2026 · StatCan | -34.25 %Year-on-year · Aug. 2026 · PCBS |
| Unemployment | 6.91 %ILO est.2025 · WB | 48.5 %PCBS est.2025 · PCBS |
| Budget balance (% of GDP) | -1.8 %IMF est.2025 · IMF | -0.6 %provisionalprovisional2025 · PCBSCentral government · after grants |
| Gross public debt (% of GDP) | 113.5 %IMF est.2025 · IMF | 27.9 %provisionalprovisional2025 · PCBSCentral government |
| Current account balance (% of GDP) | -0.95 %2025 · WB | -15.82 %2025 · WB |
| Population | 41,651,6532025 · WB | 5,413,5962025 · WB |
| Area | 9,984,670 km²2012 · StatCan | 6,025 km²2023 · WB |
| Military expenditure | ||
| Military expenditure (% of GDP) |
Definitions, dates and sources
Blank cells are not zero. Average annual inflation and the latest year-on-year figure appear in separate rows: they are not the same measure. Every annual indicator retains its reference year; when the years differ, the figures are identified as not directly comparable. When a figure is unavailable from the World Bank, an annual IMF estimate is used and identified as such. The latest year-on-year figure is the latest official release verified as of 7 October 2026. This includes advance releases marked as provisional. Mexico may have a fortnightly figure before the full month is published; it is not automatically compared with a monthly figure. The publication date is retained in each source’s details; it does not replace the observation period or the annual average. Policy rates carry their own dates and represent different instruments. Spain and France share the ECB rate. Balances are positive for surpluses and negative for deficits. The IMF may use fiscal years; unemployment retains each source’s definition (ILO estimates, IMF WEO or PCBS), as stated in the details. For Palestine, debt and the fiscal balance cover central government and retain the PCBS definition; they are not presented as consolidated general government. These are economic magnitudes, not measures of relationship quality.
Area retains each source’s territorial coverage; it does not determine sovereignty or effective control. Canada uses an archived national geographic reference. Military expenditure retains the 2024 SIPRI sample distributed by the World Bank: the amount and percentage of GDP use that same definition, which differs from NATO’s. It is not an approved budget or a 2026 figure. Information from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Military expenditure database · Terms of use0
Indicators reviewed: 2026-10-07. Each source retains its original access date; this review does not turn all the data into 2026 observations. Figures may be revised.
- Nominal GDP
- Current USDCanada: 2025 · World BankPalestine: 2025 · World Bank
- GDP per capita
- Current USD per personCanada: 2025 · World BankPalestine: 2025 · World Bank
- GDP growth
- Annual real change (%)Canada: 2025 · World BankPalestine: 2025 · World Bank
- Policy interest rate
- Central bank instrument (%)Canada: 2026-09-02 · Overnight rate target · Bank of CanadaPalestine: There is no national currency of its own or single directly comparable rate for this row. Lending and deposit rates by currency are not monetary policy rates; Israel's rate is not automatically inherited. · International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce
- Inflation · annual average
- Average annual change in headline CPI (%)Canada: 2025 · Average annual CPI change (%) · World BankPalestine: 2025 · Annual average change in CPI (%) · World Bank
- Inflation · latest year-on-year figure
- Headline CPI relative to the same period of the previous year (%); monthly or fortnightly frequency statedCanada: 2026-08 · Headline CPI change relative to the same month of the previous year (%) · Statistics Canada · Published: 2026-09-14 · National headline year-on-year CPI, not monthly inflation or an annual average.Palestine: 2026-08 · Change in headline CPI against the same month of the previous year (%) · Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics · Published: 2026-09-14 · Palestinian aggregate published by PCBS in NIS. The result reflects very different situations: Gaza −58.39%, the West Bank +3.27% and Jerusalem J1 +3.30%. It does not mean prices have fallen uniformly or living standards have recovered; PCBS territorial coverage is retained.
- Unemployment
- % of the labour force; definition used by the stated institutionCanada: 2025 · World Bank · ILO est.Palestine: 2025 · PCBS annual estimate of aggregate unemployment in Palestine (aged 15 or over); excludes parts of Jerusalem as specified in the report. · Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics · PCBS est. · Table 3: Palestine 48.5%, the West Bank 30.9%, Gaza 77.9%. PCBS states that the Palestinian aggregate and Gaza are estimates for 2023–2025; this is not a complete survey of Gaza in 2025.
- Budget balance
- General government (% of GDP)Canada: 2025 · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est.Palestine: 2025 · Overall central government balance after grants, on a commitment basis, as % of GDP; not a current or cash balance. · Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics · provisional · Provisional · PCBS publishes a deficit of 0.6% of GDP. Table 5: −94.9 M USD and preliminary GDP of 17,167.1 M USD. Not the consolidated general-government WEO coverage used for other countries.
- Gross public debt
- General government (% of GDP)Canada: 2025 · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est.Palestine: 2025 · Central government public debt at the end of 2025 divided by annual GDP, according to PCBS. · Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics · provisional · Provisional · PCBS publishes 27.9% (debt 4,788.8 M USD). The debt and GDP scope of the same publication is retained; no inference is made to include every liability or arrear outside the source's coverage.
- Current account balance
- % of GDPCanada: 2025 · World BankPalestine: 2025 · World Bank
- Population
- PeopleCanada: 2025 · World BankPalestine: 2025 · World Bank
- Area
- Total area in km²; territorial coverage of the sourceCanada: 2012 · Total area of Canada, land and water; archived official geographic reference from 2012 · Statistics Canada · Not an annual measurement for 2025. Replaces an API observation that does not match the national reference.Palestine: 2023 · Area according to the series' coverage; does not determine sovereignty or effective control · World Bank
- Military expenditure
- Current USD per year; SIPRI series
- Military expenditure (% of GDP)
- Percentage of GDP; SIPRI definition, not NATO’s definition
Other data specific to this relationship
What they buy and sell
Documented selection, not an exhaustive list. Cells without a figure do not mean zero value; some products are identified without a verified amount.
Canada to Palestine
| Product or sector | Value / share |
|---|---|
Palestine to Canada
| Product or sector | Value / share |
|---|---|
Connections between people
Contacts between people and relations between governments are distinct dimensions. Published counts appear in the table with their date and definition; a resident community is not inferred from trade or diplomatic representation. [1]
Residents, study and travel
Blank cells: data unavailable. Each measure retains its definition and period.
| Indicator | Value | Period / source |
|---|---|---|
| Residents from Canada living in Palestine | ||
| Residents from Palestine living in Canada | ||
| Study and training: Canada in Palestine | ||
| Study and training: Palestine in Canada | ||
| Academic stays: Canada in Palestine | ||
| Academic stays: Palestine in Canada | ||
| Travel: Canada to Palestine | ||
| Travel: Palestine to Canada |
What each figure measures
Residents are counted by nationality and the coverage of the stated register, not as people born in the other country or as new arrivals in one year. PERE includes dual nationals and people born outside Spain. Study with OPT and stays carrying academic credit are different measures. Travel may include several visits by the same person; FRONTUR arrivals require an overnight stay, whereas the Canadian survey includes day visits. These figures are neither added together nor automatically compared across directions.
Mobility data added or reviewed: 2026-10-07. Reference periods may be earlier.
Underlying ties
History, institutions and long-standing issues.
History and institutional framework
Contact with the Palestinian Authority and recognition of the State of Palestine describe different institutional levels. Canada maintains the objective of a viable, democratic and territorially contiguous state. [1]
The scale of both economies
Nominal GDP for Canada is 2,319.9 billion USD (2025), compared with 17.2 for Palestine (2025). The reference populations are 41.65 and 5.41 million, respectively. In the same year, the economy of Canada was 135.14 times that of Palestine in nominal GDP. The comparison provides context on market size, but does not, on its own, measure influence, well-being or diplomatic closeness. Estimates and their sources retain their labels in the tables. [2] [3]
Recent developments
Recent developments and latest available data · Reviewed: 2026-10-07
Areas of the relationship
Recognition of the State of Palestine: Canada formalised recognition within a coordinated international effort. [1]
Institutions and recognition
Canada's office in Ramallah manages relations with the Palestinian Authority within the framework following the 1993 Oslo Accords. The Palestinian delegation in Ottawa has operated since 1995. Canada distinguishes these channels from its relationship with Hamas, an organisation with which it states it has no contact and which is included on its list of terrorist organisations. State recognition in September 2025 does not replace negotiations on final-status issues or establish that all announced reforms have been implemented. [1]
Trade preferences and development
The Paris Protocol and the 1999 economic cooperation framework allow preferential treatment for Palestinian goods through the Canada–Israel agreement. That mechanism's coverage does not turn Palestinian exports into Israeli exports. Information technology, life sciences and infrastructure appear as business opportunity areas, not already implemented contracts. Canadian assistance also addresses security, the rule of law, growth and humanitarian needs, through measures distinct from customs trade. [1]
Milestones and consequences
- 2025-09-21
Recognition of the State of Palestine
Canada formalised recognition within a coordinated international effort. [1]
Sources and data
Periods and scope of the figures
Institutional sources and periods accompany each figure. Annual trade, investment positions, residents and visits are distinct measures. Empty cells do not mean zero. Statements of intent are not presented as project implementation or treaties in force.
- Bilateral relations — CAN-PSE
Global Affairs Canada · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Official statistics
World Bank · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-09-17
- Official statistics
World Bank · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-06