# I just did the census online



## pwm (Jan 19, 2012)

I got an email message from Canada Post a few minutes ago, saying I have a new message from the census people in my epost mailbox. The message contained a code which I used to fill out the survey at the census website. Took about 3 minutes. No paper forms, no postage required. Totally bypassed Canada Post's mail carrier system. 

Very slick. I love technology!


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

did the census online. Well designed. Easy to answer. Slick. Not even particularly invasive. It didn't ask for anybody's income. I guess they know all that already from the CRA. It did ask what i *thought* the value of my house might be, though.


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## pwm (Jan 19, 2012)

Interesting. I didn't get that question. Maybe you got the long version.


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## mrPPincer (Nov 21, 2011)

yeah, that question is on the long version.
I got the long version too, skimmed through it and didn't see any questions that I had any problem with.
I'll fill it out online, probably on the weekend because I'm working this week.


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## Ponderling (Mar 1, 2013)

Yes, I did the short one in a few minutes after dinner.

I hope there is a good uptake on this.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

pwm said:


> I got an email message from Canada Post a few minutes ago, saying I have a new message from the census people in my epost mailbox. The message contained a code which I used to fill out the survey at the census website ...
> 
> Very slick. I love technology!


I chose to do it online the last go round and suspect I will use the online version again this time.


Cheers


*PS*

Did the 2016 census online ... more people in the house than last time but wasn't that much longer.


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## Karen (Jul 24, 2010)

I did mine online, too. I got the short form, and it took me well under five minutes. Several people in another thread said they had a technical problem when they tried to file it, but I certainly didn't; it did exactly what it was meant to do, and I received a confirmation code back immediately.

My only disappointment was that I didn't get the long form; I wanted to see what questions were on it!


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Karen said:


> ... My only disappointment was that I didn't get the long form; I wanted to see what questions were on it!


See here: https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2016/ref/questionnaires/questions-eng.cfm
Questions 1-10 are those found on the short form. I'll be answering only those 10 whether we get the short or long form.


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## Parkuser (Mar 12, 2014)

I've got a long one in the mail, with an access code for the online questionnaire. They were asking about my yearly electricity and gas bills, as well as how much I would sell my house for? Tried to figure this out, a real bummer - not going up much - because everybody hates Ottawa or because they are building like crazy?


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Just throw in a number. Let them check with CREA if they want to know what your address might sell for.


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## 6811 (Jan 1, 2013)

OnlyMyOpinion said:


> See here: https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2016/ref/questionnaires/questions-eng.cfm
> Questions 1-10 are those found on the short form. I'll be answering only those 10 whether we get the short or long form.


Thankfully I didn't get the long form. My patience with surveys (I rarely submit to one) is very short (comes with age I suspect). Also, random answers increase with the length of the survey.


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## carverman (Nov 8, 2010)

I got the short form when I logged in. about 15 questions to do with your age and identity and what languages you speak, whether you live alione or
other people live with you. 


There were a couple questions asking who else might be (or was) living in your home at any time.

Sounds like perhaps a fishing mission to see if there might be some illegal or non-reported individuals that "might be" living with you but perhaps you haven't reported it.
Not sure if Census Canada has connections to CRA (rental income perhaps not reported, or Immigration Canada...(visitors staying with you after their official visa has expired).

of course, they depend on you to answer these surveys honestly.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Yes, somewhere I saw it stated that they would be accessing your financial info from the CRA's data.
Reading this will make us feel better though: Feds made 5,670 privacy breaches last year; CRA worst offender:eek2:


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## CalgaryPotato (Mar 7, 2015)

I didn't find it slick at all, sorry. It was very repetitive, for a large majority of the country who are not native and only speak one language, English or French, it could have been simplified greatly, so you don't have to keep answering slight varieties of the same questions. Also I thought they could have asked more meaningful statistical questions. They can get things like utility costs and property tax costs via other means. 

Then after half an hour working on it, it crashed, wouldn't submit, wouldn't save, now I have to start over... As an IT person I would have been embarrassed to put that out to the public.


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## bgc_fan (Apr 5, 2009)

I only did the short form census, so I can't comment on the long form.

However, for all the comments about getting the information from CRA and other sources, I would say that is not a good idea. Information from CRA is considered sensitive and the fewer links and ways to get the information out of CRA, the easier to keep it secure. Also keep in mind that the idea of the census is to have information as an aggregate for study, not broken down to individual details. It helps to protect your privacy by giving you the option to provide what information you want to provide.

If you want to put random information and not take it seriously, go ahead. But be aware that there are some consequences on how this information is being used. For example, let's say you just want to be funny and state that you have 10 kids and are Muslim, don't be surprised if this information is used to support the construction of a Mosque in your neighbourhood.


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## Kim (Jan 10, 2011)

Huh.
I had the long form hand delivered by some city employee all the way out to my farm. 
Had I known he was coming he could have brought supplies. 
I have a booklet in both english and french compliments of Wayne Smith Chief Statistician of Canada.
I plan on doing it online when I have time to sit down with a bottle of wine.
just quickly looking over it I noticed a question that asks..." Does this person agree to make his or her 2016 National Household Survey Information available in 2108? 
WHAT? 
There are a couple questions that pertain directly to farming and I am wondering about who needs that info. Bill 6 has far reaching implications and I would hate to have our socialist government end up at our gates demanding to inspect our family farm.


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## none (Jan 15, 2013)

Apparently there are some webstie issues b/c so many people are trying to fill out the form at once that the website is crashing.

Crazy that so many people are so excited to fill out the census survey. Good on you Canada. 

https://www.buzzfeed.com/craigsilverman/census-so-lit?utm_term=.bl3jWvbwRo#.pooAw2YZNo


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

It took me about 30 minutes. The code was in mail and we had the long form. It was a little slow and we ended up having to sign in three times. Once in, it was fine, but I do agree the long form was very repetitive.


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## chantl01 (Mar 17, 2011)

Kim said:


> just quickly looking over it I noticed a question that asks..." Does this person agree to make his or her 2016 National Household Survey Information available in 2108?
> WHAT?QUOTE]
> 
> The Canadian Statistics Act keeps the personal information collected in the census private for 92 years. After that time it is made public and becomes the stuff of great interest to genealogists everywhere. In 2013, Stats Canada handed over the 1921 Census to Library and Archives Canada to make it 'discoverable' to Canadians. A more recent addition to the Act states "The information contained in the returns of each census of population taken in 2006 or later is no longer subject to sections 17 and 18 (_all about security and privacy_) ninety-two years after the census is taken, but only if the person to whom the information relates consents, at the time of the census, to the release of the information ninety-two years later."


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## carverman (Nov 8, 2010)

bgc_fan said:


> If you want to put random information and not take it seriously, go ahead. But be aware that there are some consequences on how this information is being used. For example, let's say you just want to be funny and state that you have 10 kids and are Muslim, don't be surprised if *this information is used to support the construction of a Mosque in your neighbourhood*.


Even if I wanted to be funny and put down some false information, it won't do me any good now. There IS a mosque in my neighbourhood and I see them all the time at Freshco.

Years ago, they even had ""religion" in the long form census. I doubt that they still have it now.


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## carverman (Nov 8, 2010)

chantl01 said:


> Kim said:
> 
> 
> > just quickly looking over it I noticed a question that asks..." Does this person agree to make his or her 2016 National Household Survey Information available in 2108?
> ...


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## bgc_fan (Apr 5, 2009)

carverman said:


> Even if I wanted to be funny and put down some false information, it won't do me any good now. There IS a mosque in my neighbourhood and I see them all the time at Freshco.
> 
> Years ago, they even had ""religion" in the long form census. I doubt that they still have it now.


Actually, my mistake. It doesn't appear to be a question on the long form this year. But putting in your real information may be of use when transit planners want to determine things like accessibility access or facilities for retired people. It may take some years to develop, but it is something to consider.


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## none (Jan 15, 2013)

Just did the census - short form.

THAT'S all the conservatives were complaining about??? Yeash - what a bunch of lazy pricks. That was simple.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

none said:


> Just did the census - short form. THAT'S all the conservatives were complaining about??? Yeash - what a bunch of lazy pricks. That was simple.


Actually it was the 2011 long census which was non-mandatory that had some people upset (the short census remained mandatory). 
Now, the mandatory long census has been reinstated in 2016 under threat of a $500 fine or 3 mos in jail or both. That has other people upset.
Too bad you didn't get the long version.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

re making personal census data available to the public in 92 years, this caused me to feel somewhat emotional. I found myself wondering if there would still be canada, or even a livable planet, in 2108.

i said yes, because i've gotten a big kick out of seeing my ancestors appearing in various early 19th century censuses (is the plural censii?) again i wondered if there would be any descendants alive, in 2108, to look for our household data.


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## none (Jan 15, 2013)

OnlyMyOpinion said:


> Actually it was the 2011 long census which was non-mandatory that had some people upset (the short census remained mandatory).
> Now, the mandatory long census has been reinstated in 2016 under threat of a $500 fine or 3 mos in jail or both. That has other people upset.
> Too bad you didn't get the long version.


I know - that would have be interesting and personally beneficial assuming that I would then be counted as 4 Canadians.

Meh, it's mandatory - how else are you going to actually make it mandatory if there isn't a penalty for not filling it out? How long does the long form take anyway?


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## scorpion_ca (Nov 3, 2014)

I completed census online this morning and it took me around an hour. Ridiculous.....too many questions along with lot of personal questions.


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## none (Jan 15, 2013)

Boo hoo - this benefits you so I don't get what you're crying about.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

Accurate census data is crucial to making fact-based policy decisions at all levels of government. The alternative is the Harper way: if the facts don't agree with your fantasy-based method of making decisions, then conceal the facts by eliminating the census data. 

So suck it up and answer honestly. And don't spread paranoid gossip about intrusive government snoops. Some of you lack a sense of historical perspective. There was a time when the census form was filled in by volunteer census takers who went door-to door asking the questions. The neighbourhood gossips loved to apply for those jobs. Now that was snooping.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

carverman said:


> ... There were a couple questions asking who else might be (or was) living in your home at any time.
> 
> Sounds like perhaps a fishing mission to see if there might be some illegal or non-reported individuals that "might be" living with you but perhaps you haven't reported it.
> Not sure if Census Canada has connections to CRA (rental income perhaps not reported, or Immigration Canada...(visitors staying with you after their official visa has expired)...


Paranoia runs everywhere. They want to make sure that visitors are: a) not being counted twice, because they may have a residence elsewhere in Canada; and b) are not being improperly included in the census because the census is not supposed to apply to tourists and other visitors to the country.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Since there was never any call to actually eliminate the census or its data, I assume you are referring to the extra ~50 questions of the national household long census? The short mandatory census (and its access to CRA data) does provide valuable data. 
The long census on the other hand contains a number of questions that are NOYFB; questions that duplicate other fed, prov, or local gov't data sources; and questions that a researcher might covet but will not make their way into crucial policy decisions.
Maybe in this age of facebook and twitter users we are supposed to have little concern for sharing our personal information?

In case it was missed, I'll repost that link to paranoid gossip about intrusive government snoops: Feds made 5,670 privacy breaches last year; CRA worst offender


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## LBCfan (Jan 13, 2011)

A friend retired and moved home to India. They recently had a census and he was appallled that they asked his caste. The caste system in India has been outlawed for a lot more than 50 years. 

Governments and their stats are reluctant to change. All of the questions I answerered on our (short) form were about language and marital status (was the lady I live with a legal wife, common-law wife, same-sex wife or other). WTFC. Essentially as usefull as my caste.


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## twa2w (Mar 5, 2016)

LBCfan said:


> A friend retired and moved home to India. They recently had a census and he was appallled that they asked his caste. The caste system in India has been outlawed for a lot more than 50 years.
> 
> Governments and their stats are reluctant to change. All of the questions I answerered on our (short) form were about language and marital status (was the lady I live with a legal wife, common-law wife, same-sex wife or other). WTFC. Essentially as usefull as my caste.


Sorry but can you provide a reference for this. AFAIK the caste system has never been outlawed in India. There has been a law on the books since about 1950 that states the untouchables cannot be discriminsted against but the untouchables were not a part of the caste system.
There have been other actions that allow people of lower castes better access to education and gov jobs etc.

I agree much of the census data is useless. Almost all of the long form data is easily available elsewhere and Imo is none of the governments business.


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## dogcom (May 23, 2009)

none said:


> Apparently there are some webstie issues b/c so many people are trying to fill out the form at once that the website is crashing.
> 
> Crazy that so many people are so excited to fill out the census survey. Good on you Canada.
> 
> https://www.buzzfeed.com/craigsilverman/census-so-lit?utm_term=.bl3jWvbwRo#.pooAw2YZNo



I read in the paper that many people where very exited about filling in the census. These people are nuts I hate filling that crap out and thought some of the questions were really dumb. For example it asked for everyone in the house what time they left for work and it wanted the hour as well as the minutes.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

dogcom said:


> ... some of the questions were really dumb. For example it asked for everyone in the house what time they left for work and it wanted the hour as well as the minutes.


This kind of data allows senior federal analysts to make important, far reaching conclusions about commuting to work. While I'm certain you probably have a copy on your bedside table like the rest of us :eek2:, I'll just remind you that _Commuting to work: Results of the 2010 General Social Study_ published by Statistics Canada in August 2011 revealed lots of important stuff at the national level. For example it concluded that:
1.The larger and more populous the region, the longer it takes to get to work (30 minutes rather than 26)
2. Commuting takes longer by public transit than by car (44 minutes rather than 24)
3. Low residential density neighbourhoods are less conducive to public transit (who knew?)
4. Traffic congestion makes commutes longer and affects many workers (so that's the problem!)

In spite of more detailed local data that your community might have, and perhaps a federal MP who sits on the wrong side of the floor, this type of study might be used to provide well-spent federal infrastructure money to YOUR community. By 2026 you may be able to take the bus and spend 4 minutes less time commuting.

So your co-operation and time were well spent. Thank You!
For the less inclined there is that cute reminder on the outside of the census envelope that says "*Complete the Census - it's the law*" 

For your bedside table: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-008-x/2011002/article/11531-eng.pdf


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## LBCfan (Jan 13, 2011)

twa2w said:


> Sorry but can you provide a reference for this. AFAIK the caste system has never been outlawed in India. There has been a law on the books since about 1950 that states the untouchables cannot be discriminsted against but the untouchables were not a part of the caste system.
> There have been other actions that allow people of lower castes better access to education and gov jobs etc.


I'll start with "google is your friend". Read articles 14-18 of their constitution.

I commend your good work, your prize for pettiness is here.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

OnlyMyOpinion said:


> ...
> The long census on the other hand contains a number of questions that are NOYFB; questions that duplicate other fed, prov, or local gov't data sources; ....[/URL]


Except that, due to North Americans' collective obsession with being anonymous to their own governments, we have made our legislators put provisions in the Acts preventing different departments from sharing data. And we refuse to allow the use of a universal identifier (such as SIN), so it is very difficult for one agency, such as Stats Can, to match data from it's records to another department's.


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## Kim (Jan 10, 2011)

Lucky me I also received an AGRICULTURE 2016 Census

Had about 60 questions starting with confirming our name and location. asking how much land we had, what it was worth, what we grew, how many hours we worked, if we held other jobs, income, costs, what machinery we had and it's value. What kind of ownership was in place and if we had a succession plan. What kind and how much livestock we owned and it's value. if we sold anything direct to the public, if we were organic, if we had any alternative power sources.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

OhGreatGuru said:


> ... And we refuse to allow the use of a universal identifier (such as SIN) ...


AFAICT ... this is more than a decision by the public.

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada recommends against this. The Auditor General's report says that private industry using it for more than the legally required uses has jeopardized the integrity of the SIN and has increased the risk of SIN fraud/abuse.



Cheers


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## fraser (May 15, 2010)

I did the short census on line and was happy to do it. I am also pleased that the Government has brought back the long form census. Far to many business, charitable, and church organizations were complaining about no longer having the data.

We are a mobile, changing society. I have no problem with the survey. The previous Government has already admitted that it was a mistake to end the long form survey. They had many complaints from interested parties. It was cancelled for purely political reasons. The decision had nothing to do with privacy concerns, cost, whatever. Pure political grandstanding to their core base of supporters. Same reason why we are having several of the laws turned back by the Supreme Court.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

To be accurate, the long form census never went away. It did not end, nor was it cancelled. 
It was made voluntary rather than mandatory. It is the mandatory nature and threat of a fine and jail time for the long census that have been brought back.

I don't know if leaving the NOYFB questions of the long census unanswered would land you in trouble, but I suspect if you tried to fill in the long survey on-line with basic data and leave some of the later questions unanswered, that it would not accept your survey as complete. 
You would probably have to order a paper copy of the long census if there were questions you did not want to answer.

I guess it could be called pure politics, but I consider it an invasion of my privacy to be sending details of my daily life to a government agency for no good (IMO) reason. It is interesting that religion is no longer (for some time now I believe?) an acceptable question to ask. That I would call politics (or political correctness). I'm not sure now what church organizations would get out of the long survey.


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## fraser (May 15, 2010)

Some church organizations, and schools boards for that matter, use the information to determine the best areas for church planting, ie building a church and hoping people will come. They often base it on demographics and look for areas where there are families with infants or small children. Several church organization actually made presentations to the former Government asking them to bring back the long census for this very reason.

I get more concerned about on line businesses and vendors who have our pre authorized bank or credit card facilities and retail organizations that store customer credit and debit card info on their in store hard disks than I do about the Federal or Provincial government agencies. My Visa card has been compromised twice in the past eighteen months. It is a PITA. 

Then there are the credit card/ATM skimmers. I go with the 80/20 rule. I believe that 80 percent or more of data leaks leading to fraud or possession of confidential data come from commercial sources or from sloppy people who do not take the care or time to shred tell tale hard copy information.


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## agent99 (Sep 11, 2013)

Just completed. 5 min.

Is that all there is? 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCRZZC-DH7M

Can you imagine how those poor souls in Fort McMurray could fill in their census?


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## Bowzer (Feb 25, 2015)

Any statistician would explain that an "optional" survey is useless. Only a mandatory survey gives representative data and can be compared against previous years. Giving people the option to opt out means certain groups and demographics aren't represented. You can start getting political in figuring out what groups aren't represented and what that means.


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Bowzer said:


> Any statistician would explain that an "optional" survey is useless...


Really? Which statisticians have told you this, or is this your own learned opinion? 

I know of at least one statistician, Wayne Smith, the Chief Statistician of Canada who does not call the 2011 voluntary national household long survey "useless". 

In fact he concluded that:
_"we can say that the National Household Survey produced a rich and robust database of information."_; that, _"The results of this validation process, with some specific exceptions, confirmed the good quality of the estimates, and provided evidence that some of the concerns prior to the collection of the NHS had not materialized"_; and that, _"While the 2011 National Household Survey does not entirely rise to the data quality of the 2006 Census long form, the estimates that have been published are, nonetheless, robust and entirely usable."_

Useless indeed.


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## agent99 (Sep 11, 2013)

OnlyMyOpinion said:


> I know of at least one statistician, Wayne Smith, the Chief Statistician of Canada who does not call the 2011 voluntary national household long survey "useless".
> 
> In fact he concluded that:
> _"we can say that the National Household Survey produced a rich and robust database of information."_; that, _"The results of this validation process, with some specific exceptions, confirmed the good quality of the estimates, and provided evidence that some of the concerns prior to the collection of the NHS had not materialized"_; and that, _"While the 2011 National Household Survey does not entirely rise to the data quality of the 2006 Census long form, the estimates that have been published are, nonetheless, robust and entirely usable."_


I heard him say something along those lines on a CBCinterview. However, it did sound like he was trying to be diplomatic, not wanting to ruffle political feathers


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

pwm said:


> Interesting. I didn't get that question. Maybe you got the long version.


Our household got the long form and we just filled it online today.

Took around 30 minutes.

Examples of questions on the long form: countries your parents were born in, modes of daily transport, time you leave home in the morning, length of commute, value of home, # of rooms, $ of electric bill, mortgages, utilities, who pays the bills, how many hours you work in a week, how much you worked last year, where you lived 5 years ago. There were no questions on religion or income amount.


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## Kim (Jan 10, 2011)

I just finished the long form census online as well. And it took approx. 30 minutes. I was asked all the same questions as you james4beach, except $ of electric bill, mortgages and utilities. No questions on religion.

I felt it was a lot less invasive than the agricultural census I filled out on Sunday which asked $ values from everything from land to inventory to income.

All I could think of as I filled out the census today is that I felt my family is becoming a minority on so many levels it's weird saying I am Canadian.


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## LBCfan (Jan 13, 2011)

james4beach said:


> Our household got the long form and we just filled it online today.
> 
> Took around 30 minutes.


I thought from your posts that you live in the US. Do non-residents get asked/required/permitted to fill one out. I thought the census was for residents of Canada, not Canadian citizens living abroad.


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## BoringInvestor (Sep 12, 2013)

bgc_fan said:


> If you want to put random information and not take it seriously, go ahead. But be aware that there are some consequences on how this information is being used. For example, let's say you just want to be funny and state that you have 10 kids and are Muslim, don't be surprised if this information is used to support the construction of a Mosque in your neighbourhood.


Did you cite this example as a possible negative consequence?


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

LBCfan said:


> I thought from your posts that you live in the US. Do non-residents get asked/required/permitted to fill one out. I thought the census was for residents of Canada, not Canadian citizens living abroad.


He has kept his Canadian residency plus is filing a Canadian tax return in addition to the US tax return so that is why he has received a census. He writes a lot about the portion of time in the US, which is probably what made it look like he has given up his Canadian residency.

Part of the complication is that he has had to get rid of his TFSA as well as Canadian ETFs.



> I'm a dual tax resident in both US & Canada. Under the tax treaty I've determined that my tax residency home is in Canada, and I file two returns: Canada as resident, US as non-resident.


http://canadianmoneyforum.com/showthread.php/91362-Do-you-get-TFSA-room-back-as-returning-resident


Cheers


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## bgc_fan (Apr 5, 2009)

BoringInvestor said:


> Did you cite this example as a possible negative consequence?


It's only negative to someone who isn't fond of Muslims. Otherwise, the information just gets consolidated and can be used as a reason to build a Mosque in that neighbourhood. But given that religion isn't a question, you can make the argument that community organizations, or other entities that are using census data to decide where to place a community centre or daycare could use that information (assuming that there are other people doing the same thing) and make a business case to place such a building in the neighbourhood.

The point is: if you want to be funny and give false information, just be aware that information is used to develop business cases for infrastructure, community planning, transit, etc. Of course, if there are really big outliers the data point may get thrown out, but that's a statistical thing. It may seem funny to give bad information, but when that information is then used to justify a business case for something you don't like, don't complain since it was on you.


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

LBCfan said:


> I thought from your posts that you live in the US. Do non-residents get asked/required/permitted to fill one out. I thought the census was for residents of Canada, not Canadian citizens living abroad.


I am a dual resident. I have residences in both Canada and the US, and I consider the Canadian one to be my permanent residence. For example, all my important mail, and all my primary banking is in Canada.

This month for example I'm spending nearly all of my time in Canada.

The census asked where I go for work, and I specified "outside of Canada". They are aware that some residents spend substantial time outside of the country.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

^^^

+1 ... think of all those people who cross the border, work in a US town then cross the border again to come home to their primary residence.

Or while I was a traveling consultant, most of my work sites were in Canada with only a small amount of time at US work sites. Some of my co-workers went three years or more going US work site to US work site, with only three day (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) at home in Canada.


Cheers


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## agent99 (Sep 11, 2013)

Today I received a reminder in our mailbox to complete the census. (we completed it last weekend). The reminder is printed on some type of stiff plasticized paper. Doesn't look too biodegradable! Cost of sending out the letters and reminders by mail must be quite high, especially seeing they want us to do complete the census on-line, if we can.


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## bgc_fan (Apr 5, 2009)

agent99 said:


> Today I received a reminder in our mailbox to complete the census. (we completed it last weekend). The reminder is printed on some type of stiff plasticized paper. Doesn't look too biodegradable! Cost of sending out the letters and reminders by mail must be quite high, especially seeing they want us to do complete the census on-line, if we can.


I can't really blame them for sending out the letters by mail. The fact that they don't send out the whole package is some cost saving measure.

Let's be honest here, the census is basically based on who is in the place of residence at a given point in time. There is no central e-mail database for that sort of thing. Land lines are passé and you can't guarantee any old records of owner/resident contact information. Old fashioned mail is probably the only way to at least notify and provide instructions. I am a little surprised that they send a reminder so soon though.


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Loved the census online. Finally


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