3 Steps to CASL Compliance

The Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) will be enforced starting on July 1, 2014 and is applicable to anyone who makes use of commercial electronic messages. This means if you have an email address in your email marketing campaign that you suspect belongs to a Canadian, or if anyone opens your email in Canada, this law is applicable even if your business is based in the U.S. or any other country outside of Canada. This document is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice.

Here’s what you’ll need to do to make sure you’re CASL ready: (plus, an infographic to share with your readers below! )

1. Review Your Email Address Collection Methods

For all Canadian email addresses added to your email marketing database after July 1, 2014, CASL requires you to document consent, either implied or express. Implied consent is inferred based on actions, such as having an existing business relationship (making a purchase or donation, for example). In order to maintain implied consent a subscriber must take a business action with you at least once every two years.
Express consent is obtained when you explicitly ask your potential subscribers for permission to send them email, and they agree. Once you obtain express consent, it is good forever or until someone opts out. When possible we recommend obtaining express consent. In order to obtain express consent when collecting email addresses — online and offline — make sure you can answer “yes” to the following questions:

• Does your sign-up form have clear and obvious language asking for permission to send the contact future electronic messaging?
• Does your sign-up form clearly identify the person, business, or organization asking for the consent?
• Does your sign-up form contain a valid mailing address and either a telephone number, email address, or web address?
• Does your sign-up form indicate that there will be a mechanism for people to easily unsubscribe at any time?
• Do you have a process in place to document this express consent?

If you are currently using the RevResponse RSS-to-Email Tool to send your newsletters, not to worry! NetLine is updating all templates for CASL compliance. If you are using methods such as a third-party sign-up, manually uploading a list, or a paper sign-up form, you’ll need to make sure you’re adding the appropriate CASL-compliant language to all of these sign-up methods and save documentation of the subscriber’s express permission.

2. Obtain Express Consent from Existing Canadian Subscribers

For subscribers added prior to July 1, 2014 you must be able to document express consent before July 1, 2017 (three years after the law goes into effect). We recommend you start taking any necessary actions to comply with CASL sooner than later. Important questions are: In order to obtain express consent when collecting email addresses — online and offline — make sure you can answer “yes” to the following questions:

• Do you have subscribers with an email address ending with .ca?
• Do you have any subscribers with a Canadian physical address or phone number associated with an email address?

If the answer is yes, we recommend sending a dedicated email to your Canadian subscribers asking them to confirm their opt-in status by clicking a link within the email.

3. Make Sure Ongoing Communications have the Appropriate Information

All marketing emails you send must contain the following information in order to be CASL compliant: In order to obtain express consent when collecting email addresses — online and offline — make sure you can answer “yes” to the following questions:

Email clearly identifies the person, business, or organization sending the message

Email contains a mechanism for people to easily unsubscribe at any time

Email contains valid mailing address and either telephone number, email address, or web address

These guidelines set forth by CASL mirror best practices in email marketing. Permission-based email marketing is the best route to developing long-lasting customer relationships. By building permission-based lists the way CASL outlines, you’ll keep yourself safe by being in compliance and set yourself up for marketing success!
We hope that this information is helpful. NetLine recommends all partners to review CASL documentation and seek legal counsel.
Official CASL website: http://fightspam.gc.ca/eic/site/030.nsf/eng/home Click to open this infographic in a new window.
(This document is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice.)

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