Telemarketer Subscription Rates and File Formats for the National Do Not Call List
Subscription Rates
Organizations on whose behalf telemarketing is conducted, whether done by themselves or through a third party, must register their organization’s information with the National Do Not Call List (DNCL).
Organizations on whose behalf non-exempt telemarketing calls are made, whether done by themselves or through a third party, must subscribe to and access the National DNCL.
There are two subscription options for accessing telephone numbers on the National DNCL: Query and Download.
- The Query subscription allows an organization to check up to 100 numbers at a time in any combination of area codes to determine if those numbers are on the National DNCL.
- The Download Subscription allows an organization to download a file containing a list of telephone numbers that are registered on the National DNCL to compare with the organization’s calling list. Download subscriptions are available for a 1-, 3-, 6- or 12-month period. You can purchase the entire list for Canada (all area codes), or you can purchase only numbers contained in the area codes that cover your marketing territory.
Timeline of changes to subscription rates
- October 2017: Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton Inc. was contracted to act as the National DNCL Operator as of 15 January 2018.
- October 2022: The contract for service for the National DNCL was extended for Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton Inc. to continue to act as the National DNCL Operator for an additional 5 years. A decrease to the List Operator’s portion of the subscription rates came into effect as of 14 January 2023.
- July 2023: Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton Inc. changed its operating name to Oxaro Inc.
- September 2025: The Commission approved an increase to the National DNCL List Operator’s component of the subscription rates. These new rates came into effect as of 15 September 2025.
| Subscription option - by area code | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of area codes | Annual | 6-month | 3-month | 1-month |
| All area codes | $62,166 | $34,011 | $17,835 | $6,112 |
| By individual area code | $3,218 | $1,656 | $854 | $290 |
| Subscription option - by telephone number | |
|---|---|
| Telephone number query | Per query |
| Any area code (maximum 100 queries per query session) | $0.50 |
Accordingly, telemarketers who are required to subscribe to the National DNCL can expect to pay the following as of 15 September 2025, in these hypothetical examples:
- A telemarketer that conducts telemarketing campaigns to all area codes across Canada for a one-year period could purchase an annual subscription for $62,166.
- A telemarketer that conducts telemarketing campaigns in four area codes for one year could purchase a subscription for $12,872, (four area codes at $3,218 each per year)
- A telemarketer that conducts a seasonal three consecutive month telemarketing campaign to all area codes across Canada could purchase a subscription for $17,835 (three-month subscription to all area codes)
- A telemarketer that conducts a limited telemarketing campaign to 50 specific telephone numbers could query those 50 numbers for $25.00. (50 calls at $0.50 each). For example, a business that wishes to place calls to referrals would find this subscription option method cost-effective.
File Formats
Telemarketers can download the National DNCL in two different file formats:
- Comma-separated values (CSV), also known as Flat Text Files; and
- Extensible Markup Language (XML) Tagged Files.
The files are provided for downloading in one Zip file, which includes individual files for each Canadian area code selected. If the full national list is selected, then one Zip file is provided containing a single file with all numbers registered on the National DNCL for Canada.
Flat Text File format:
The complete list in a flat text file consists of one three-digit Canadian area code and seven-digit telephone number per line, with a linefeed at the end of each line. For example:
- 416,1234567
- 416,1234568
- 416,1234569
XML Tagged File format:
When the full list is downloaded as an XML Tagged file, an element indicates what level and value of data are contained in the file.
For the complete national list, the level is “all” and the value is null (Example 1).
For an area code list, the level is “ac” and the value is the area code, such as 416 (Example 2).
Example 1: National List
<list type='full' level='all' val=''>
<ac val='416'>
<ph val='1234567'/>
<ph val='1234568'/>
<ph val='1234569'/>
</ac>
<ac val='905'>
<ph val='1234567'/>
<ph val='1234568'/>
<ph val='1234569'/>
</ac>
</list>Example 2: Single Area Code List
<list type='full' level='ac' val='416'>
<ac val='416'>
<ph val='1234567'/>
<ph val='1234568'/>
<ph val='1234569'/>
</ac>
</list>- Date modified: