I don’t even think we have A-level equivalents in Canada. We have the American AP courses, which carry 1st year university / college credit. We also have the IB diploma program available (seems to be of European origin), which can also grant 1st year credit. However these programs aren’t available at all schools.

A regular Canadian high school graduate is not eligible for admissions to many of the UK universities based on the little time I’ve spent looking at the admissions standards.

This sounds identical to the system in the US: a mix of AP and more recently IB. It is interesting to me that the IB program has somewhat high status even in countries with (optional) academic tracks that are often more rigorous than the AP or A Level systems. It actually seems to be an effective equalizer for many students hoping to study in different countries.