November, 2025 – NEW EDITION
NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber
NEW Edition – September 2025
We are pleased to announce that a new edition of the NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber has been published.
Supersedes all previous Editions, Revisions and Supplements
Many of the GR revisions were editorial and/or related to formatting including:
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- Add design values for Canada – new Paras. 850-857
- Revise Hem-Fir (N) design values for the U.S.
- Renumber U.S. design value section – new Paras. 900-910
- Remove Para. 48 and incorporate into Para. 7b to eliminate redundancy
- Harmonize terms throughout: “species group” to replace “species combination”, “surfaced” to replace “dressed”, “narrow face” to replace “edge”, etc.
- Harmonize the NGR 2025 updates
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We are pleased to provide free PDF sections of the NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber (2025 edition) for your personal reference.
These files are protected by copyright. You may view, print and download these PDF files for your own use but may not copy, reprint, publish, distribute or sell them in any format, including electronic, without the written permission of National Lumber Grades Authority.
A spiral-bound book of the full NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber may be purchased from NLGA through our publication sales section of the website.
Copies may be ordered through Publications For Sale on our website.
November 2025
NLGA Special Product Standards
NEW Edition – November 1, 2025
We are pleased to announce the publication of a new edition of the
- NLGA SPS4 – SPECIAL PRODUCTS STANDARD FOR FINGERJOINED MACHINE GRADED LUMBER
We provide free PDFs of the NLGA Special Product Standards for your personal reference. These files are protected by copyright. You may view, download and print these PDF files for your own use, but may not copy, reprint, publish, distribute or sell them in any format, including electronic, without the written permission of NLGA.
Click below for a free download:
June 2025 (rev November 2025)
NLGA Special Product Standards
NEW Edition – June 1, 2025
We are pleased to announce the publication of a new edition of the
- NLGA SPS1 – SPECIAL PRODUCTS STANDARD FOR FINGERJOINED STRUCTURAL LUMBER
- NLGA SPS2 – SPECIAL PRODUCTS STANDARD FOR MACHINE GRADED LUMBER
- NLGA SPS3 – SPECIAL PRODUCTS STANDARD FOR FINGERJOINED ‘VERTICAL STUD USE ONLY’ LUMBER
We provide free PDFs of the NLGA Special Product Standards for your personal reference. These files are protected by copyright. You may view, download and print these PDF files for your own use, but may not copy, reprint, publish, distribute or sell them in any format, including electronic, without the written permission of NLGA.
Click below for a free download:
- NLGA SPS 1 – 2025 Final+Ratified Responses
- NLGA SPS 2 – 2025 Final+Ratified Responses
- NLGA SPS 3 – 2025 Final+Ratified Responses
March 2025
Updates to Hem-Fir(N) design values for dimension lumber
NLGA informs you of updates to the design values for Hem-Fir (N) dimension lumber, which will take effect on April 1, 2025. These changes result from a routine reassessment of strength and stiffness properties, ensuring Hem-Fir (N) continues to meet structural performance expectations.
Key Points:
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- Minimal Practical Impact: The updated design values should not result in significant changes to the practical use of Hem-Fir (N) in most applications, maintaining continuity for builders, designers, and engineers.
- Consistent Performance: Hem-Fir (N) remains a trusted and dependable choice for residential and commercial construction, with values that closely align with previous standards.
- No Impact on Existing Construction: Structures built under previous building codes remain compliant.
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- The updates are reflected in the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber, CSA O86 – Engineering Design in Wood, and the National Design Specification® (NDS®) Supplement for Wood Construction.
For additional details, including specific design value changes, affected lumber grades, and implementation considerations, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document for Canada or the USA.
For Canada
For the USA
2022 Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber
We are pleased to provide free PDF sections of the NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber (2022 edition) for your personal reference.
These files are protected by copyright. You may view, print and download these PDF files for your own use but may not copy, reprint, publish, distribute or sell them in any format, including electronic, without the written permission of National Lumber Grades Authority.
The separated sections of the NLGA Standard Grading Rules are listed for convenience only and are not meant to be stand-alone, but rather must be considered in the context of the Grading Rules in their entirety.
A spiral-bound book of the full NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber may be purchased from NLGA through our publication sales section of the website.
Erratum No. 1 to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber (2022)
(effective March 21, 2023)
Erratum No. 2 to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber (2022)
(effective May 18, 2023)
Erratum No. 3 to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber (2022)
(effective November 29, 2023)
Erratum No. 4 to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber (2022)
(effective May 30, 2024)
Supplement No. 1 to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber (2022)
(effective December 1, 2024)
Supplement No. 2 to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber (2022)
(effective April 1, 2025)
NLGA Special Product Standards
We provide free PDFs of the NLGA Special Product Standards for your personal reference. These files are protected by copyright. You may view, download and print these PDF files for your own use, but may not copy, reprint, publish, distribute or sell them in any format, including electronic, without the written permission of NLGA.
2017 Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber
We are pleased to provide free PDF sections of the NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber (2017 edition) for your personal reference.
** Please note that, effective March 1, 2019, Supplements to the NLGA Standard Grading Rules have been posted on this website under Publications – Updates.
These files are protected by copyright. You may view, print and download these PDF files for your own use but may not copy, reprint, publish, distribute or sell them in any format, including electronic, without the written permission of National Lumber Grades Authority.
The separated sections of the NLGA Standard Grading Rules are listed for convenience only and are not meant to be stand-alone, but rather must be considered in the context of the Grading Rules in their entirety.
A spiral-bound book of the full NLGA Standard Grading Rules For Canadian Lumber may be purchased from NLGA through our publication sales section of the website.
PDF files of sections of the Standard Grading Rules for Canadian Lumber are listed below:
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- NLGA GR 2017 – Cover, Title Page, Preface & Section Index (pgs. 1-6)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 1 – General Provisions – Paras. 1-48 (pgs. 7-24)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 2 – Upper Grades – Paras. 100-109 (pgs. 25-38)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 3a – Boards – Paras. 112-115 (pgs. 39-54)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 3b – EW & Red Pine Boards – Paras. 116-118 (pgs. 55-64)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 4 – Dimension Lumber (NGR) – Paras. 120-125 (pgs. 65-82)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 5 – Decking, Machine Graded & Glued Lumber, Timbers – Paras. 126-131 (pgs.-83-110)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 6 – Specialty Items – Paras. 132-195 (pgs. 111-168)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 7 – Western Red Cedar Products – Paras. 200-211 (pgs. 169-186)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 8,9 – Stress Grades & Measurements – Paras. 300-360 (pgs. 187-196)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 10 – Re-Inspection Provisions – Paras. 400-413 (pgs. 197-206)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 11 – Glossary – Paras. 700-754 (pgs. 207-224)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 12 – Characteristic Tables & Abbreviations – Paras. 810-830 (pgs. 225-242)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 13 – Grading Agencies & Grade Stamps (pgs. 243-248)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 14,15 – Profile Patterns & Metric Conversion (pgs. 249-260)
- NLGA GR 2017 – Section 16 – U.S. Lumber Design Values – Paras. 900-910 (pgs. 261-286)
- NLGA Interpretations & EU 2017 – Part 1 – NGR Interpretations (pgs. 5-19)
- NLGA Interpretations & EU 2017 – Part 2 – NLGA Interpretations (pgs. 20-35)
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