Starting May 2, households will begin receiving the Census accompanied by a letter and instructions for filling out the questionnaire. Meanwhile, one in four households will be asked to complete the Long-form questionnaire, previously called the National Household Survey. Respondents may choose to complete the questionnaire online or on paper.

Completing the census is mandatory for all residents. Canadian citizens, landed immigrants, refugee claimants, and holders of work or study permits must answer the questionnaire. Households who do not file these forms may be subject to penalties based on the Statistics Act. More importantly, the census is an opportunity for everyone to be counted as an integral part of the Canadian society and contribute to nation building.

Participation in the census helps build and strengthen communities. The information gathered is essential input in planning for important services such as health care, language classes, educational programming in schools, family services, housing, and skills training for employment. Also, for every person missed in the 2016 census, Manitoba loses $46,000 in federal transfer payments over the next five years. These funds directly support the economic and social fabric of the province. To know more ways by which your census information helps communities, watch the video at the Statistics Canada site.

If you want to review the questions asked, and why they are asked, you can go to this page: short-form questionnaire and Census information in many languages or Review Census 2016 Questions. For general information on the census, you can download The census and you. This document is available in 13 languages. It is also important to note that all census information are kept confidential.

The census questionnaire must be completed in English or French. However, the questions are available in 11 ethnic languages and 11 aboriginal languages, as well as in braille, audio and sign language (video) formats. If you need a copy of the questions in a language other than English or French, help in completing the questionnaire, or any other assistance for completing the census, call the Census Help Line (CHL) at 1-855-700-2016. You can call Monday to Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 8 p.m., or on Saturday and Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.