Do I need to comply with laws in every country I email?
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Yes. Email compliance is determined by where your recipient is, not where you are. When a US company emails a German resident, GDPR applies. When an Australian company emails a Canadian resident, CASL applies. Your headquarters location doesn't change that.
This means a single campaign to an international list can need to satisfy multiple laws simultaneously: GDPR for EU recipients, CASL for Canadian ones, CAN-SPAM for US ones, LGPD for Brazilian ones, and various APAC laws on top. Each recipient is covered by their own jurisdiction's rules.
Three practical approaches: apply the strictest standard globally (usually GDPR or CASL requirements applied to everyone, which automatically satisfies less strict jurisdictions); use geographic segmentation with different rules by region; or stop sending to certain regions if the compliance burden outweighs the business case.
Ignoring foreign laws because you're based elsewhere doesn't protect you. It just means violations go unnoticed until enforcement action or blocked mail makes them visible. If you send to a global list, the easiest path to coverage is applying the strictest standard to everyone and documenting your consent practices accordingly.
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