Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation is getting ready to turn three and as this date approaches we are approaching the end of the transition period, also known as Section 66. This covers pre-existing consents and the Private Right of Action under the legislation. But what does this really mean for marketers under CASL?

Lets take a minute and back up… CASL has two types of consent:

  • Implied – Existing Business Consent, or Existing Non-Business Consent. These consents are good for two years from the time of the last point of consent collected, or two years from the end of a contract.
  • Express – Informed express consent collected with a users informed consent, a postal address, contact information and a statement that consent can be withdrawn at anytime in the future.

However during the transition period there was a third type of consent. This covered consents collected from individuals prior to July 1, 2014 were grandfathered for the three year transition period. These consents will expiring on July 1st 2017, unless the users have given a new consent during the last three years. It was also said that Express consents prior to CASL enforcement collected under PIPEDA would be considered Express under CASL. Remember you’ll need proof of consents should you ever be challenged or need to prove consents to the regulators or in the Private Right of Action (PIA).

Over the next several weeks business will need to evaluate the types of consents that they are currently still mailing and weather their consents will be valid after July 1, 2017. Take the next several weeks to review your consents against this criteria:

  • Have you had a Business Relationship/Non-Business Relationship with the individual you are mailing in the last 2 years that meets the 2 years implied consent requirements?
  • Do you collect Express consents? Do they meet the requirements under the legislation?
  • Are you tracking consent properly to prove consent should you be challenged by a regulator or individual (or Class)?
  • Are you able to identify the subscribers on your lists that will have their consents expire, or maybe have already expired?

Time is running out. get your program into compliance now.

If you have questions or concerns feel free to reach out via my contact form.