Short Title

1 These Regulations may be cited as the Letter Mail Regulations.

Interpretation

2 In these Regulations,

carbonizing

carbonizing[Repealed, SOR/91-625, s. 1]

delivery mode

delivery mode[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

delivery mode scheme

delivery mode scheme[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

domestic basic letter rate

domestic basic letter rate means the standard domestic letter rate available generally to the public for standard mail weighing up to 30 g; (tarif de base des lettres du régime intérieur)

first class mail

first class mail[Repealed, SOR/90-801, s. 3]

foldover construction self-mailer

foldover construction self-mailer[Repealed, SOR/91-625, s. 1]

forward sortation area

forward sortation area[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

frequent posting

frequent posting[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

identical items

identical items[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

infrequent posting

infrequent posting[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

letter mail

letter mail means

• (a) a letter, card, postcard or similar communication,

• (b) a receipt, invoice or similar article of a financial nature, and

• (c) any other article the sender chooses to post at a rate for letter mail

that is posted in Canada for delivery in Canada and meets the requirements of these Regulations; (envoi poste-lettres)

local delivery unit

local delivery unit[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

multi-web construction self-mailer

multi-web construction self-mailer[Repealed, SOR/91-625, s. 1]

optical character reader

optical character reader or OCR[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

postal code

postal code[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

reduced consumer price index factor

reduced consumer price index factor means 66.67% of the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Canada, All-items (Not Seasonally Adjusted), as published by Statistics Canada, for the period beginning with May preceding the last increase to the domestic basic letter rate and ending with May of the current year; (facteur de réduction de l’indice des prix à la consommation)

rural forward sortation area

rural forward sortation area[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

self-mailer

self-mailer means any article, other than a card, postcard, magazine or catalogue, that does not have an outer cover, wrapping or envelope in addition to the paper or other material on which the written communication is placed; (envoi à découvert)

single posting

single posting[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

urban forward sortation area

urban forward sortation area[Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 1]

Rates of Postage

• 3 (1) The rates set out in subitem 1(1) of the schedule apply to an item of letter mail that meets the applicable requirements for standard mail.

• (2) [Repealed, SOR/2004-294, s. 1]

• (3) The rates set out in item 2 of the schedule apply to an item of letter mail other than an item referred to in subsections (1) and (8).

• (4) Increases to the domestic basic letter rate, if any, shall go into effect the second Monday after January 3 of each year.

• (4.1) The Canada Post Corporation shall publish a notice in the Canada Gazette of any increase to the domestic basic letter rate no later than July 1 in the year before the increase goes into effect.

• (5) The increase referred to in subsection (4) shall be the result determined in accordance with the following formula rounded down to the nearest whole cent:

  (A × B) + C

  where

  A

  is the domestic basic letter rate then in effect;

  B

  is the reduced consumer price index factor; and

  C

  is any fractional rate increase in the calculation of the previous increase to the domestic basic letter rate that has not been applied as a result of rounding down to the nearest whole cent.

• (6) For the purpose of calculating the rate increase after January 1st, 1999, the value of C is $0.236.

• (7) Despite subsections (1) to (6), for the period beginning on January 12, 2009 and ending on January 10, 2010, the domestic basic letter rate shall be 54 cents.

• (8) The rate set out in item 3 of the schedule applies to an item of letter mail other than an item referred to in subsections (1) and (3).

4 [Repealed, SOR/91-636, s. 1]

General Conditions

• 5 (1) Every item of letter mail shall be securely wrapped with sufficient cushioning and reinforcing material as required to prevent loss of or damage to the item, damage to postal equipment or other mail and injury to persons handling the item.

• (2) Every envelope or self-mailer shall be sealed except an item referred to in item 2 of the schedule.

6 Nothing shall appear on the right side of the face of a postcard except

• (a) the name and address of the addressee;

• (b) the applicable postage stamp; and

• (c) such postal endorsement or label as is necessary to facilitate delivery of the postcard.

7 [Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 2]

Standard Mail

• 8 (1) The following articles shall not be enclosed in an item of standard mail, namely,

  • (a) bottle caps;

  • (b) coins;

  • (c) foodstuffs;

  • (d) glass;

  • (e) jewellery;

  • (f) keys;

  • (g) liquids;

  • (h) pencils;

  • (i) pens;

  • (j) powders;

  • (k) seeds; and

  • (l) any other articles that are fragile or perishable, can soil or damage other mail or postal equipment or can cause injury to persons handling them.

• (2) An item of mailable matter shall not be accepted for transmission by post as standard mail if

  • (a) a staple is attached to the outer cover;

  • (b) it has a pin-feed hole strip attached thereto when in the form of a self-mailer; or

  • (c) it consists of a punched or perforated card that is not enclosed in an envelope.

• 9 (1) An item of standard mail shall be rectangular in shape and have a minimum length to width ratio of 1.3:1 and a maximum length to width ratio of 2.6:1.

• (2) [Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 4]

10 An item of standard mail, when supported by two level supports located 10 mm from the left and right edges of the item, shall not sag more than 10 mm from its horizontal plane.

• 11 (1) Every item of standard mail bearing a postage meter impression or a postage-paid-in-cash impression shall bear the delivery address of the addressee, including the applicable postal code for that address.

• (2) Subject to subsection (3), the address of the addressee shall appear on the front of every item of standard mail and be located not less than

  • (a) 40 mm from the top edge;

  • (b) 19 mm from the bottom edge; and

  • (c) 15 mm from the left and right edges.

• (3) Paragraph (2)(b) shall not apply in respect of an item of standard mail that bears a postage stamp other than a postage meter or postage-paid-in-cash impression.

• (4) The postal code on an item referred to in subsection (1) shall be located

  • (a) not less than 19 mm from the bottom edge;

  • (b) not less than 40 mm from the top edge;

  • (b.1) not less than 15 mm from the left and right edges; and

  • (c) on the last line of the address, or shall follow all other address particulars on the last line of the address if the postal code is separated from those address particulars by at least two character spaces.

• (5) [Repealed, SOR/90-801, s. 6]

• 12 (1) Where the envelope of an item of standard mail has an address window, the address window shall be

  • (a) rectangular in shape with the greatest dimension of the window parallel to the length of the envelope;

  • (b) covered with transparent material that allows the address to be easily read by a person or an optical character reader;

  • (c) located on the side of the envelope that is not provided with a closing flap; and

  • (d) located not less than 40 mm from the top edge, 19 mm from the bottom edge and 15 mm from the left and right edges of the item.

• (2) The complete address of the addressee shall be clearly visible through the address window of an item referred to in subsection (1).

• (3) An auxiliary window on an envelope referred to in subsection (1) shall be covered with transparent material and

  • (a) where it is located on the front of the envelope, shall be located not less than 45 mm from the bottom edge and 15 mm from the left and right edges and shall be outside the area prescribed in section 13 for the postage meter or postage-paid-in-cash impression;

  • (b) where it is located on the back of the envelope, shall be located not less than 30 mm from the top and bottom edges and 15 mm from the left and right edges.

• (4) No more than one auxiliary window may be located on the front or back of an envelope referred to in subsection (1).

• 13 (1) The postage meter or postage-paid-in-cash impression on an item of standard mail shall be located on the front of the item in the upper right corner not more than 40 mm from the top edge and 74 mm from the right edge.

• (2) Where a postage stamp other than one referred to in subsection (1) is affixed to an item of standard mail, it shall be located on the front of the item in the upper right corner.

• 14 (1) Where, on an item of standard mail that bears a postage meter or postage-paid-in-cash impression, a return address, service indications or delivery instructions are marked thereon, they shall be located on the front of the item in the upper left corner not less than 45 mm from the bottom edge.

• (2) A form number may be printed on the front of an item of standard mail if it is located not more than 6 mm from the bottom.

• (3) On an item of standard mail, graphics or other printing shall not be less than 45 mm from the bottom of the front of the item nor in the area prescribed by section 13 for the postage.

15 to 30 [Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 6]

31 [Repealed, SOR/88-613, s. 4]

Size and Weight

• 32 (1) No item of letter mail shall

  • (a) exceed 380 mm in length, 270 mm in width or 20 mm in thickness; or

  • (b) be less than 140 mm in length, 90 mm in width or 0.18 mm in thickness.

• (2) No item of standard mail shall exceed

  • (a) in the case of a card or a postcard, 235 mm in length and 120 mm in width; or

  • (b) in any other case, 245 mm in length, 156 mm in width or 5 mm in thickness.

• (3) [Repealed, SOR/90-13, s. 7]

32.1 A card or postcard shall be made of cardboard or of any other material commonly used in printing that is of sufficient grammage to provide the stiffness necessary for the card or postcard to withstand processing without difficulty.

33 The maximum weight for an item of letter mail is

• (a) in the case of an item of standard mail referred to in item 1 of the schedule, 50 g; and

• (b) in any other case, 500 g.

34 The minimum weight for an item of standard mail in the form of a self-mailer is 5 g.

35 [Repealed, SOR/91-625, s. 6]

36 to 41 [Repealed, SOR/88-613, s. 7]

SCHEDULE(Section 3)

Item	Column I	Column II
	Description	Rate
1	Letter mail not more than 24.5 cm in length, 15 cm in width or 5 mm in thickness
	(1) Letter mail not more than 245 mm in length, 156 mm in width or 5 mm in thickness
	(a) 30 g or less	$0.46 plus any increase calculated in accordance with section 3
	(b) more than 30 g but not more than 50 g	$0.98
	(2) [Repealed, SOR/2004-294, s. 3]
2	Letter mail other than letter mail referred to in items 1 and 3
	(1) 100 g or less	$1.18
	(2) more than 100 g but not more than 200 g	$1.96
	(3) more than 200 g but not more than 500 g	$2.75
3	Letter mail referred to in subsection 3(8) of these Regulations that is not more than 235 mm in length, 165 mm in width or 5 mm in thickness
	50 g or less	$1.08

• SOR/88-613, s. 8
• SOR/90-13, s. 9
• SOR/90-801, s. 9
• SOR/91-625, ss. 7, 8
• SOR/92-696, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/94-197, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/95-305, s. 1
• SOR/95-306, ss. 2, 3
• SOR/98-554, s. 1
• SOR/98-555, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2000-221, s. 3
• SOR/2000-377, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2001-444, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2003-375, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2003-382, ss. 21(F), 22
• SOR/2004-294, ss. 3, 4
• SOR/2005-358, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2006-342, ss. 2, 3
• SOR/2007-295, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2009-13, ss. 1, 2
• SOR/2009-141, ss. 2, 3