Love
Merely days from the July 1st, 2014 implementation of Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL), a survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) showed only 15% of small business owners are aware of the requirements of CASL and 62% have “taken no steps to comply with the new regulations.” ~ from the article “CASL: Most small businesses unprepared for legislation to take effect” by canadianmanufacturing.com
What You Should Know About Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation
If you send emails promoting events, people, services, products (or to request donations, volunteers, members etc), you’ll need to understand how the July 1st, 2014 anti-spam law which will impact your work and communications.
I just found out myself and after researching for many hours without clear answers, I was so blessed that my friend Sigrun connected me to the Manager of the Anti-spam Coordinating Body (Digital Policy Branch) who worked directly on this law! I asked him if I could record our conversation so I could refer to the audio and ensure accuracy when I wrote this article.
Please hit “SHARE” on this post and spread the word to entrepreneurs, businesses, teachers, healers, artists who have email lists! I will post more on this thread if I receive more questions and answers!
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Anti-Spam 101
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Express consent before July 1st, 2014:
Up til July 1, 2014, if you KNOW that you got express consent to email someone your updates/newsletters, then it is grandfathered in as express consent indefinitely even if you did NOT keep thorough records. They are legally your subscribers unless they choose to unsubscribe!
Note: keep reasonable record of the manners in which you collected people’s consent to prove your due diligence.
Express consent is someone’s clear agreement to receive your emails/newsletters*:
1) Verbal agreement
2) Written agreement
~ can be on a hardcopy letter or form they signed
~ can be by email interaction (where they requested or agreed to on your list)
3) Digital agreement
~ this can be single optin (where they just add their name/email to your form)
~ double optin with confirmation link not required
~ cannot be a pre-checked box accompanying some other transaction
*When they are subscribing, ensure your intent to send them future content is stated.
Express consent AFTER July 1st, 2014:
You must now keep records of each NEW Canadian subscriber’s express consent.
If verbal, then you must send them an email that clearly states they have agreed to receiving your newsletter/email updates and keep this email in a folder.
If written, then you must keep the hard copy documents where they opted in at an event, trade show, workshop etc.
If digital, just their name & email added via your website optin form is sufficient. DOUBLE optin with confirmation link is NOT required.
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Implied consent before July 1st, 2014:
If you had ANY kind of business transaction or business interaction (like an inquiry) with someone prior to July 1, 2014 – then you have 3 YEARS (up til July 1, 2017) to get express consent. See section 66 of the law.
And you WILL have to keep records of these express consent subscriptions.
Implied consent AFTER July 1st, 2014:
If you have any kind of business transaction or business interaction (like an inquiry) with someone after July 1, 2014… then you have 2 YEARS from that interaction or transaction to get express consent.
You may send emails to this person within those 2 years (unless they said “no” to emails/newsletters) but if you wish to continue contacting them after this period, they must officially optin to your emails.
Interestingly, every new transaction they have with you renews your 2-year period of implied consent.
i.e. if they buy another service/product or make another inquiry, then a new 2 year period of implied email consent occurs.
But rather than continually tracking the date of your last transaction, it’s best to get their express consent during this period of allowed emails.
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Foreign businesses with Canadian subscribers:
The same rules apply.
If you did not keep complete records but you KNOW that you obtained express consent from each Canadian subscriber on your list, then those subscribers are grandfathered in as legal indefinitely until they choose to unsubscribe.
But AFTER July 1st, 2014, you will have to keep records for ALL new Canadian subscribers.
If you have any implied consent subscribers, then you must get express consent between July 1, 2014 to July 1, 2017.
Any implied consent occurring AFTER July 1st, 2014 will only allow a 2 year window for emails, unless express consent is received.
Exemption:
If there is really NO reasonable way for you to determine who is Canadian on your list, then it’s simply not possible and you are off the hook.
But if there IS a way to determine country of your subscribers (if you have their mailing addresses or you can access their IP address via newsletter service tracking) then you do have a legal obligation to contact these subscribers to get express consent if you didn’t get it in the first place.
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Required info on all outgoing emails:
You will need to include your name, address and contact info (phone or email).
You will also need to include an easy unsubscribe option very clearly in each out-going message.
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Best Online Resource For More Info:
He said the best website to visit for clarification is: www.fightspam.gc.ca
He agreed that other articles and interpretations around the web can be misleading or inaccurate.
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More Questions?
It’s not possible for me to share answers for every scenario around this new law. And nothing I say here should be taken as legal advice – please consult a lawyer.
But if you still have some questions after reading this article AND reviewing the www.fightspam.gc.ca website, post your questions below in the comments area.
I will try to collect your questions here to ask the expert in the first week of July.
Help spread the word to entrepreneurs, businesses, teachers, healers, artists who have email lists to prevent possible penalties, exorbitant fines, litigation and stress.
By reading this website or its documents, you assume all risks associated with using the advice given and are responsible for anything that may occur as a result of putting this information into action in any way, regardless of your interpretation of the advice. Also, this article should not be construed as legal advice. If you have questions about the legislation, please consult legal counsel.
