The CRTC’s new three-tier approach acts on a government policy direction as well as consumer complaints about inconsistencies in mobile coverage
A standardised methodology for mobile coverage reporting
On 2 October 2026, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced its decision on a new mobile coverage reporting standard. Traditionally, operators have been required to submit coverage data to the CRTC, which would share that data with the Government via Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED). ISED would then use this operator testing data to publish national coverage maps. However, in 2023, the Canadian Government issued a policy direction to the CRTC, instructing it to develop and implement a new “standardised and robust approach” for reporting mobile coverage. Having recognised that many consumers still find that there are significant gaps in mobile coverage, in March 2026, the CRTC launched a consultation on updating that reporting methodology. Alongside the consultation, the CRTC published a report from the Communications Research Centre (CRC), which proposed a new methodology for mobile coverage reporting. Following engagement with stakeholders, the CRTC has now adopted much of the CRC’s proposed approach, with some modifications.
The CRTC will require operators to submit three tiers of signal strength measurements
The new standard has adopted three thresholds for the reporting of signal strengths for outdoor mobile coverage:
Level 1 (Emergency): The signal would be strong enough to support emergency voice calls and deliver public alerts;
Level 2 (Basic): The signal would be strong enough to support voice or video calls with high quality and download speeds of at least 3Mbps and upload speeds of at least 1Mbps; and
Level 3 (Advanced): The signal would be strong enough to support download speeds of at least 10Mbps and upload speeds of at least 2Mbps.
The CRTC will take a phased approach to the revised reporting obligations, only requiring operators to submit data on Level 1 signal strengths in 2027, with future years requiring data for all three levels. Operators will also continue to be required to submit measurements of outdoor coverage for 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G services, but direct-to-device (D2D) satellite services will not be in scope of the new standard. The CRTC’s consultation recognised that D2D is in the early stages of adoption in Canada and is yet to be subject to international harmonisation standards, making the technology’s inclusion “premature”.
Consumers will be able to contest coverage reporting that they feel is inaccurate
The process for the publication of testing results will remain the same under the new standard, with the CRTC sharing the results of operator testing with ISED. However, before sharing that data, the CRTC has stated it will validate operators’ measurements through its own field testing and crowdsourcing. ISED’s coverage maps already have a 250-metre resolution, which will remain unchanged – but operators will be required to submit data at a 50-metre resolution to the regulator too, although this will be confidential. Consumers will also be given the option to challenge the levels of coverage presented by ISED in areas they feel it is not representative of their own experiences. If a discrepancy arises between the CRTC’s validation testing and an operator’s data submission, the regulator will give the operator the opportunity to resubmit updated coverage data, and will not override these submissions. When consumers challenge coverage as it is shown on ISED’s map, the area will be highlighted to show that it is being contested, and the CRTC may then contact the relevant operator and require updates to its coverage data. The regulator’s decision, however, indicates that a full process for reviewing consumer challenges remains under development.
