Postal Code Conversion File [Canada], June 2024, Census of Canada 2021

The PCCF is a digital file which provides a correspondence between the CPC six-character postal code and Statistics Canada’s standard geographic areas for which census data and other statistics are produced. Through the link between postal codes and standard geographic areas, the PCCF permits the integration of data from various sources. The Single Link Indicator provides one best link for every postal code, as there are multiple records for many postal codes. To obtain the postal code conversion file or for questions, consult the DLI contact at your educational institution. New to the June 2022 version, a separate data file is available for retired postal codes. The retired file uses the same record layout as the PCCF file. The same syntax file can be used for both the PCCF data file and the retired data file. The geographic coordinates, which represent the standard geostatistical areas linked to each postal code on the PCCF, are commonly used to map the distribution of data for spatial analysis (e.g., clients, activities). The location information is a powerful tool for marketing, planning, or research purposes. In April 1983, the Statistical Geomatics Centre released the first version of the PCCF, which linked postal codes to 1981 Census geographic areas and included geographic coordinates. Since then, the file has been updated on a regular basis to reflect changes. For this release of the PCCF, the postal codes are directly geocoded to 2021 Census geographic areas. A quality indicator for the confidence of this linkage is available in the PCCF.

邮政编码转换文件（Postal Code Conversion File，下称PCCF）是一类数字文件，用于建立CPC六位邮政编码（Canadian Postal Code）与加拿大统计局（Statistics Canada）所产出普查数据及其他统计数据对应的标准地理区域之间的对应关系。通过邮政编码与标准地理区域的关联，PCCF可实现多源数据的整合。由于多数邮政编码对应多条记录，单链接指示器（Single Link Indicator）可为每个邮政编码提供唯一最优关联。若需获取邮政编码转换文件或有相关疑问，请咨询所在教育机构的数据联络专员（Data Liaison Interface，下称DLI）。2022年6月版新增了停用邮政编码专属数据文件，该停用文件与PCCF采用相同的记录格式，且二者可共用同一套语法文件。PCCF中与各邮政编码关联的标准地理统计区域对应的地理坐标，常被用于绘制数据分布以开展空间分析（如客户、活动分布制图），这类位置信息是营销、规划或科研工作的有力工具。1983年4月，加拿大统计地理信息中心（Statistical Geomatics Centre）发布了首个版本的PCCF，该版本将邮政编码与1981年普查地理区域进行关联，并附带地理坐标。此后，该文件定期更新以适配各类变更。本次发布的PCCF已将邮政编码直接地理编码至2021年普查地理区域，文件中还提供了本次关联匹配的置信度质量指标。