How to Submit a Complaint

If you have a concern about an ad you see or hear currently running in Canadian media, you can submit a complaint. To enable Ad Standards to communicate your precise concern to the involved advertiser, complaints must be received in writing. We encourage you to submit complaints through our Online Complaint Submission Form. You can also mail them if you prefer.

Complaints about advertising submitted by a special interest group are administered as a consumer complaint under the Consumer Complaint Procedure. However, if the special interest group is an “advertiser” as defined in the Code, then the complaint is handled under the Advertising Dispute Procedure.

To submit a complaint online, click the link below to access our Online Complaint Submission Form.

Confidentiality Note: Please note that your complaint and all correspondence between you and Ad Standards about the complaint is confidential and may not be made public. Ad Standards cannot accept or proceed with a complaint if confidentiality is not maintained by the complainant.

Be sure to provide the following information in your submission:

  • Your name, complete mailing address and phone number.
  • Explain the reason or basis for the complaint and, if known, the provision(s) of the Code that may apply.
  • Identify the product or service being advertised.
  • Identify the medium in which the advertisement appears (e.g. television, radio, Internet).
  • For Print Advertisements: identify the name and date of the publication(s) in which you saw the advertisement(s) and include a copy of the advertisement(s).
  • For Out-of-home Advertisements, such as outdoor, transit or similar advertisements: identify the date on and exact location at which you saw the advertisement. (Include a photograph if you can.)
  • For Broadcast Advertisements: identify the station, time and date on/at which you saw/heard the commercial and provide a brief description of the commercial.
  • For Cinema Advertisements: identify the title of the movie, the date of viewing, and the name and location of the movie theatre at which you saw the advertisement and provide a brief description of the advertisement.
  • For Internet Advertisements: identify the date of viewing, website, and include a print-out of the advertisement and other applicable web pages (if any).

To submit your complaint, follow one of these steps:

  • Online, complete the online submission form and submit
  • By mail, send your complaint to:

Ad Standards
33 Bloor St. East, Suite 303
Toronto, ON, M4W 3H1

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