What is Implied Consent?

Implied consent is a limited, time-bound permission to send commercial electronic messages that arises from a relationship rather than an explicit opt-in. Under Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation, it typically results from an existing business relationship, such as a recent purchase or inquiry, or from a person conspicuously publishing a business contact address without a no-marketing notice. Implied consent generally lasts a set number of months from the qualifying event, after which the dealership must obtain express consent to keep messaging that person. For dealers, this means a customer who bought a vehicle or requested a quote can be contacted for a defined window, but that clock is running. Tracking the type and expiry of consent in your CRM ensures follow-up campaigns stop or convert to express consent before the implied window closes.