CWA Canada: Ubisoft Received Nearly a Billion Dollars from Canadian Authorities in Tax Subsidies
Canada turned out to be the most generous of all countries where Ubisoft has offices.
According to an official complaint from the CWA Canada union filed against Ubisoft amid the closure of the Halifax office, the company has received significant financial support from Canadian authorities for many years.
According to materials from the French Senate, between 2020 and 2024, Ubisoft received tax credits from Canada totaling 605.6 million euros (approximately 980 million Canadian dollars at the current exchange rate) — more than from any other state. In particular, the province of Nova Scotia alone has provided the company with approximately $12–12.8 million in tax breaks and grants in recent years.
It’s outrageous that a company can take hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars and then shut down production and lay people off.
In early January 2026, Ubisoft unexpectedly announced the complete closure of its studio in Halifax (Nova Scotia, Canada), laying off all staff. This happened just three weeks after the majority of the studio's employees — 61 out of 71 people — voted to join the CWA Canada union in December 2025.
Under pressure from the union and public outcry, Ubisoft has already agreed to revise the terms of severance pay for laid-off workers — initially, the company offered compensation of only two months' salary. CWA Canada continues to insist on full transparency and calls for urgent legislative changes: companies that close or significantly reduce business after receiving government support should return subsidies or face serious liability.
