What does the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards cover?
Part of US and Canada targeting
The short answer
The Canadian Code of Advertising Standards is the advertising industry's self-regulatory code, first published in 1963 and administered by Ad Standards. Its 14 clauses set criteria for acceptable advertising in any medium, including the internet. Volunteer councils of industry and public representatives judge consumer complaints, and an advertiser found in breach is asked to amend or withdraw the ad.
Key takeaways
- Ad Standards calls the Code the Canadian advertising industry's principal instrument of self-regulation; the Code says it is not intended to replace the laws that regulate advertising.
- The Code covers messages in any medium sent to Canadians, and excludes political and election advertising, packaging, and foreign media unless the advertiser is Canadian.
- The audience actually, likely or intended to be reached and the media used are relevant factors when a council assesses an ad, which makes placement part of the review.
What is the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards?
The Code (opens in a new tab) was developed to promote the professional practice of advertising and was first published in 1963. It sets the criteria for acceptable advertising and is the basis on which ads are evaluated in response to consumer complaints and complaints between advertisers. Ad Standards' Code FAQs (opens in a new tab) describe it as "the Canadian advertising industry's principal instrument of self-regulation" with 14 provisions, and say it was last updated in 2019.
Definition
- Advertising, as the Code defines it
- "Any message (other than those excluded from the application of this Code), the content of which message is controlled directly or indirectly by the advertiser expressed in any language and communicated in any medium (except those listed under Exclusions) to Canadians with the intent to influence their choice, opinion or behaviour."
The Code applies to advertising by or for advertisers promoting goods and services, entities seeking to improve their public image or advance a point of view, and governments, government departments and crown corporations. It reaches only the content of ads: its scope section says it "does not prohibit the promotion of legal products or services or their portrayal in circumstances of normal use."
Who administers the Code and decides complaints?
Ad Standards administers the Code, but it does not decide public complaints on its own. Complaints are reviewed and adjudicated by one of two councils: the Standards Council, which includes representatives from Western Canada, Central Canada and Atlantic Canada, or, in Quebec, le Conseil des normes. The Code describes the councils as "independent bodies of senior industry and public representatives" supported by, but independent from, Ad Standards.
The Council page (opens in a new tab) says members volunteer their time and review complaints "that raise potential issues under the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards." Complaints from one advertiser about another go through a separate Advertising Dispute Procedure, which since April 2019 also receives complaints from advocacy groups whose members are advertisers.
| Complainant | Procedure | Decided by |
|---|---|---|
| A member of the public, not acting for an advertiser | Consumer Complaint Procedure | Standards Council, or le Conseil des normes in Quebec |
| An advertiser, or someone acting on its behalf | Advertising Dispute Procedure | Under that procedure's own rules |
| An advocacy group or marketing board that is itself an advertiser | Advertising Dispute Procedure, since April 2019 | Under that procedure's own rules |
How does an Ad Standards consumer complaint move from filing to decision?
The Consumer Complaint Procedure (opens in a new tab) accepts complaints online or by mail. For online ads, including email, website and social media, the complainant includes a print-out of the ad; for SMS or app ads, a picture. Staff evaluate each complaint first, and the deciding question is "whether or not the content of an advertisement appears to contravene the Code."
The path of one consumer complaint
- Staff screen the complaint. Ad Standards declines complaints that do not identify the ad, show no reasonable grounds, concern excluded ads, or are already before a court or government agency.
- The advertiser is notified. If staff find a possible infraction, the advertiser is told in writing; the complainant's identity is shared only with the complainant's informed consent.
- The route depends on the clause. For Clause 10 or Clause 14 complaints, the advertiser's response goes verbatim to the complainant, and the case reaches council only if the complainant remains dissatisfied. For other clauses, the advertiser supplies written information for council.
- Council decides in writing. Neither side attends; decisions are by majority vote. An ad found in breach must be amended or permanently withdrawn without unreasonable delay.
- An appeal is possible. The advertiser has seven working days to request one, a quorum of five voting council members hears it, and the appeal decision is binding and final.
Ad Standards publishes case summaries "as an educational tool for the industry, and not as a sanction," naming the advertiser only if it did not withdraw the ad before council met. If an advertiser ignores a decision, Ad Standards may ask media to stop running the ad, declare the finding publicly and notify the Competition Bureau.
Does the Code apply to digital ads?
The Code's own wording includes the internet. Its FAQs say it applies to advertising "in any medium (i.e., radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, billboard, Internet, flyers, etc.)." The exclusions are political and election advertising, packaging, wrappers and labels, and "foreign media (namely media that originate outside Canada and contain the advertising in question) unless the advertiser is a Canadian person or entity." Under that wording, a Canadian advertiser's ad on a website that originates in the US is not in an excluded medium.
Placement also enters the assessment. The Code's scope section reads: "The context and content of the advertisement and the audience actually, or likely to be, or intended to be, reached by the advertisement, and the medium/media used to deliver the advertisement, are relevant factors in assessing its conformity with the Code." A plan that records where an ad ran is a record of facts a council may weigh.
Which Code clauses apply to digital placements and sponsored content?
| Clause | What the Code says | Digital situation it touches |
|---|---|---|
| 1(d) Disclaimers | Must not contradict more prominent aspects of the message and must be clearly legible and/or audible | Small print on a mobile banner or a fast end card in a video ad |
| 1(f) Advertiser identified | The advertiser must be clearly identified, except in a teaser advertisement | Unbranded display or video creative |
| 2 Disguised advertising | No ad shall be presented in a format or style that conceals the fact that it is an advertisement | Sponsored articles and native units styled like editorial |
| 3(c) Currency | Prices in Canadian media other than in Canadian funds must be so identified | Ads served from a US price feed |
| 7 Testimonials | Must reflect the genuine, reasonably current opinion of the person, based on adequate experience | Reviews, creator posts and customer quotes in ads |
| 8 Scientific claims | Scientific or professional claims must be applicable to the Canadian context, unless otherwise clearly stated | Study results from another country quoted in creative |
| 13 Minors | Products prohibited from sale to minors must not be advertised to appeal particularly to persons under legal age | Placements on sites or channels aimed at teens |
Clause 1(e) sits behind all of these: "All advertising claims and representations must be supported by competent and reliable evidence, which the advertiser will disclose to Ad Standards upon its request." The Code adds that advertisers must substantiate claims promptly when council asks.
How do Ad Standards' guidelines treat endorsements and influencer posts?
Clause 7 is read with Interpretation Guideline #5 (opens in a new tab), updated October 2020. It requires a testimonial, endorsement or review in any medium to disclose any "material connection" with the entity behind the product, "clearly and prominently" and "in close proximity to the representation." The guideline names employees posting about their employer, family relationships, affiliate marketing and refer-a-friend programs as cases that can trigger disclosure.
The Influencer Marketing Disclosure Guidelines (opens in a new tab), updated in fall 2025 by Ad Standards' Influencer Marketing Steering Committee, call #ad used on its own "the gold standard," warn that disclosures buried in hashtag lists or faint overlays "could be considered hidden," and say "Disclosure only in a caption accompanying a video is not sufficient" when the video itself triggers disclosure.
Disclosure points to confirm in creative before a flight
- Each endorser's material connection, if any, is written next to the claim, not in comments or a hashtag list.
- Video creative that features an endorser carries its own disclosure inside the video.
- Employee, family and affiliate relationships are treated as material connections.
- Sponsored articles and native units are labeled so the format does not conceal that they are ads.
- Any claim in the creative has evidence on file that could be sent to Ad Standards on request.
What does a Code review look like on a Canadian brief?
Fictional example
A laser hair removal clinic in Halifax and Dartmouth
A fictional laser hair removal clinic with locations in Halifax and Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, plans a display and video campaign on local lifestyle, beauty and wellness sites, plus two sponsored articles on a Halifax culture site.
Before launch, the agency walks the creative through the Code. The "regular price" in a package offer is checked against Clause 3(a), which treats such terms as deceptive unless the clinic sold a substantial volume at that price, or offered it in good faith, for a period such as six months. A quoted clinical result is checked under Clause 8 for the Canadian context, a staff member's before and after story is labeled as an employee testimonial, and the sponsored articles carry a clear label under Clause 2.
The planner files the site list and each site's audience description with the campaign, since audience and media are factors a council may weigh. No results or performance figures are implied.
How does PlacementGraph show the content around a planned placement?
For the placement record, PlacementGraph explains each site on a list.
Frequently asked questions
Can Ad Standards fine an advertiser?
The Consumer Complaint Procedure lists no fines. When an advertiser does not comply with a council decision, Ad Standards may ask media to stop running the ad, flag it to Google through its Priority Flagger program, declare publicly that the ad breached the Code and name the advertiser, and notify the Competition Bureau or other regulators.
Does the Code cover political and election ads?
The Code excludes political advertising and election advertising from its application, while saying Canadians are entitled to expect such ads to respect its standards. Government advertising is defined separately and is covered. Interpretation Guideline #6 explains where the lines between government, political and election advertising fall.
Does the advertiser learn who complained?
Ad Standards tells the advertiser the nature of the complaint and shares the complainant's identity only if the complainant freely gives informed consent. The complaint and related correspondence are confidential, and Ad Standards cannot proceed if the complainant does not keep it confidential.
Do several complaints make a council review more likely?
Ad Standards' procedure states that the number of complaints received about a specific ad does not factor into its decision. What matters is whether the content appears to contravene the Code, and only council can decide that in response to one or more bona fide complaints from the public.
Sources
- The Canadian Code of Advertising Standards (The Code Online, revised July 2019) (opens in a new tab)Ad Standards
- Code FAQs (opens in a new tab)Ad Standards
- Consumer Complaint Procedure (opens in a new tab)Ad Standards
- The Council (opens in a new tab)Ad Standards
- Interpretation Guidelines (opens in a new tab)Ad Standards
- Influencer Marketing Disclosure Guidelines, Fall 2025 update (opens in a new tab)Ad Standards Influencer Marketing Steering Committee
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.