CASL
CASL (Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation) is Canadian law that regulates commercial electronic messages, requiring express consent before sending marketing emails to Canadian recipients.
What Is CASL?
CASL is one of the strictest anti-spam laws in the world. It requires express consent (explicit opt-in) before sending commercial electronic messages to Canadian recipients. Unlike CAN-SPAM, implied consent under CASL has a limited lifespan — typically 2 years from a business transaction or 6 months from an enquiry. CASL also requires clear identification of the sender (including physical address), a functional unsubscribe mechanism, and honest representation of the email's content. Penalties can reach $10 million per violation for businesses. CASL applies to any sender targeting Canadian recipients, regardless of where the sender is located.
Why It Matters for Newsletters
If you have Canadian subscribers, CASL applies to your newsletter. Its strict consent requirements make it important to have proper opt-in processes. Non-compliance risks are significant, and CASL has been actively enforced since its introduction in 2014.
Best Practices
- Obtain express consent before sending to Canadian addresses
- Record consent details: when, how, and what was consented to
- Include complete sender identification in every email
- Provide a functional unsubscribe mechanism that works within 10 business days
- Track consent expiry dates for implied consent and re-confirm before they lapse
How Aldus Handles This
Aldus's double opt-in process satisfies CASL's express consent requirements. The platform records consent timestamps and provides the required sender identification and unsubscribe mechanisms in every email.