CASL is older than most marketers realize. Enforcement is newer. Here's what consent really means in 2026 and where most BC businesses fall short.
CASL applies to most CEMs
Commercial electronic messages: email, SMS, certain DMs. Sent to recipients in Canada. From or about a Canadian business. Most outbound marketing from BC businesses is in scope.
Express vs implied consent
Express consent: the recipient clearly opted in. Implied consent: they have an existing business relationship or published their email for the purpose you're using it for. Both work, but implied consent has expiry rules and narrow scope.
What express consent requires
Clear statement of purpose. Name of the business. Statement that they can unsubscribe. Proof of consent retained. A pre-checked box is not consent. A check box hidden in terms of service is not consent. A purchase is not consent for marketing in itself.
Implied consent limits
Implied consent from an existing business relationship lasts two years after the last transaction. From inquiry, six months. From published business contact info, only for messages relevant to the published role. Most businesses overreach here.
Proof of consent is the work
If a complaint is filed, the CRTC asks for proof of consent. 'We've been emailing them for years' is not proof. The system that captured the consent, the date, the form text, and the IP need to be retrievable. Most marketing automation tools can do this. Most BC businesses haven't turned it on.
Unsubscribe must work
Working unsubscribe link in every CEM. Honored within 10 business days. If it bounces, the message wasn't compliant in the first place. Test annually.
Suppression list discipline
Unsubscribes go on a permanent suppression list. Across all platforms, not just the one they were on. The number-one CASL violation is a person who unsubscribed from list A still receiving list B.
CRTC enforcement in 2026
Fines have climbed. Multi-hundred-thousand-dollar penalties are real for repeat offenders and reckless senders. Most enforcement starts with complaints. Most complaints come from people who already unsubscribed and got more email.