Canadians expect their mail to be private. The federal government is now moving to change that.

In the 2026 Spring Economic Update, the government quietly proposes amending the Canada Post Corporation Act to allow law enforcement to “search and seize mail.” It’s hidden in the official document. (Page 145, Annex 2. In the pdf document, page 153.)

That should concern anyone who values basic privacy.

For decades, mail has been treated differently for a reason. A letter isn’t just an object—it’s personal communication. Weakening the legal protections around it isn’t a small technical fix. It’s a shift in how much access the state can have to your private life.

The government points to the phrase “as authorized under an Act of Parliament” as reassurance. It shouldn’t. That wording doesn’t limit power—it enables it. It opens the door for current or future laws to expand when and how mail can be searched.

This is how civil liberties erode. Not in one dramatic move, but in quiet changes that lower the bar.

And make no mistake: this was done quietly. Not in a stand-alone bill. Not front and centre for public debate. It’s tucked into an economic update, where most Canadians would never think to look for changes to their privacy rights.

If this change is so reasonable, why wasn’t it introduced openly and debated on its own?

Canadians deserve clear answers before the rules around their private correspondence are rewritten.

Because once governments give themselves new powers like this, they rarely give them back.