Federal Electoral District Boundary Files

The Federal Electoral District Boundary Files portray the federal electoral district boundaries for which census data are disseminated. A federal electoral district is an area represented by a member of the House of Commons. The federal electoral district boundaries used for the census are based on the Representation Order in effect on January 1 of census year. The files contain the boundaries of all federal electoral districts which combine to cover all of Canada.

There are two types of boundary files: digital and cartographic. Digital files depict the full extent of the geographical areas, including the coastal water area. Cartographic files depict the geographical areas using only the major land mass of Canada and its coastal islands. The files provide a framework for mapping and spatial analysis using commercially available geographic information systems (GIS) or other mapping software.

The Federal Electoral District Boundary Files are portrayed in Lambert conformal conic projection and are based on the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD83). A reference guide is available (92-160-GWE).