Postal Code Conversion File [Canada], January 1988, Census of Canada 1986

The Postal Code Conversion File (PCCF) provides a link between the six character postal code and the standard geographical areas for which Statistics Canada produces data. To obtain the postal code conversion file or for questions, consult the DLI contact at your educational institution. This version of the PCCF represents postal codes as of January 1991 and the Standard Geographical Classification and other geographic areas of the 1986 Census as of January 1, 1986. Postal codes have also been linked to the 1987 Representation Order of the federal electoral districts. In April 1983, the Geography Division released the first version of the Postal Code Conversion File, which linked postal codes to census geographic areas and included geographic coordinates. Since then, the file has been updated on a regular basis to reflect postal code changes provided by Canada Post Corporation. Every five years, the postal code linkages on the PCCF are “converted” to the latest census geographic areas. The original PCCF was linked to the 1981 Census geographic areas. Since then, the PCCF has undergone one “conversion”, following the 1986 census.