Canada’s new anti-spam laws took effect July 1. Do you know how it will affect the way you do business?
Find out more about the legislation:
- Read CREA’s Guidance on Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) for REALTOR® Members online or download the publication. The guide book can be found on REALTOR Link® – go to the CREA home page, click on REALTOR® Resources and scroll down to the “Compliance Centre” – the publication is near the end of the Compliance section.
- Check out the Compliance Flow Chart created by CREA (centre pages of this issue of REALINFO). The easy-to-use chart helps you determine what you need to do to be in compliance with the new legislation.
Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation
exerpt from the REALTOR® Action Network website – https://www.votervoice.net/RAN/1/Campaigns/31992/Respond
When the [CASL] legislation was introduced in 2009, Canada was the only G8 country without a framework to protect consumers from spam. In this context, implementation was a matter of when, and not if. CREA’s goal at the outset was to preserve critical electronic marketing practices of REALTORS® and to significantly and substantively ease the compliance burden. On July 1, 2014, the legislation and regulations take effect.
Canada’s Anti‐Spam Legislation (CASL) is a consent-based framework. This means that a sender requires the prior consent of the recipient of an email in order to send a commercial electronic message. Consent can either be expressly provided or implied according to specific scenarios in the legislation.
CREA’s Efforts
CREA and REALTORS® carved out nine significant changes that will make it easier for REALTORS® to maintain and build client relationship under CASL:
- REALTORS® are able to follow-up on third-party referrals. Provided the person making the referral has a relationship with the prospective client, a REALTOR® can send a single message to the potential client by including the name of the person who made the referral.
- A transitional provision allows REALTORS® to send electronic messages to clients without express consent for three years, provided the relationship existed before the new rules come into force.
- The amount of time REALTORS® can stay in touch with a client without express consent after a sale was extended by an additional six months to 24 months total.
- REALTORS® can follow up with a potential client after exchanging contact information, including at a networking event, so long as the message is relevant to the recipient’s business.
- Express consent to send commercial electronic messages can be obtained orally or in writing. Prior to our lobbying efforts consent could only be acquired in writing.
- A tremendous amount of information about the sender was required in a request for consent to send an email. Our efforts reduced the required information significantly to include only basic contact details.
- A requirement to have a website in order to send a commercial electronic message was removed.
- The regime’s unsubscribe requirement was significantly streamlined. REALTORS® only need to provide a single functioning unsubscribe mechanism to consumers.
- The private right of action in the legislation, which allows consumers to take legal action against those who violate the rules, has been delayed by three years. This removes initial uncertainty about how this measure may be applied against businesses, particularly those who mistakenly contravene the law.
- New resource materials are available to help REALTOR® members more easily comply with Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL).
CREA has developed both brief and detailed resources:
Guidance on Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CREA) for REALTOR® Members, provides a comprehensive description of CASL and what members need to do to comply. Summary Guidance on Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CREA) for REALTOR® Members aims to be a reminder of members’ obligations.