Forms and surveys
Does Microsoft Forms store data in Canada?
Microsoft Forms (Microsoft 365)
No.
Microsoft Forms does not offer storage in Canada. It is owned by a US company, so the US CLOUD Act can require it to produce data it controls, wherever that data is stored.
Tier 5: Data leaves CanadaNo Canadian storage option, whoever the owner is.
Checked 2026-10-13 against the vendor's own pages.
The facts, claim by claim
- Where data is stored
- United States for Canadian tenants. Forms has no specific data residency commitment; tenants outside the EU, Europe and Australia default to the US
- Where it is processed
- United States
- Support and backups
- Not stated on the pages read
- Owner
- Microsoft Corporation (Redmond, WA) · Parent country: United States
- Servers run by
- Microsoft data centres in the US · US company
- Customer-held keys
- Not recorded
- Certifications
- Not recorded (blank means not checked, not none)
- Worth knowing
- A trap for Canadian Microsoft 365 tenants: mail and files stay in Canada, but Forms responses are stored in the US.
- Caveats
- Microsoft page last updated 2026-10-08.
What the rules say about this
- US CLOUD Act: The owner is a US company: storing data in Canada does not take it out of reach of US legal process.
- Nova Scotia public bodies: Storage outside Canada needs the head of the public body's approval and a report.
- Federal Protected B: Canadian facilities are the principal option departments must evaluate; this listing offers none.
- Québec Law 25: A privacy impact assessment is required before personal information leaves Québec.
- OCAP®: Data held by any outside vendor is not in the Nation's possession, whoever owns the vendor.
Summaries only; each rule page links the law or regulator. Not legal advice.
Canadian alternatives to Microsoft Forms
Other forms and surveys listings that are Canadian-owned, not US-owned, or self-hostable.
| Listing | Tier | Stored in Canada? | Owner | Servers run by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SimpleSurvey | Tier 2: Canadian-owned, data in Canada | Yes | Canadian | US company |
Sources
All checked 2026-10-13. Claims about storage and ownership rest on the vendor's own pages (or its parent's); supporting links can include regulators and program lists.
- Where the data is stored: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/enterprise/m365-dr-service-other?view=o365-worldwide
- Who owns it: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/privacystatement