Following connection fee ban, Bell rolls out new device handling fee

Bell appears to be one of the first Canadian carriers to stop charging a connection fee after the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) finally banned those types of fees. However, surprising absoluely no one, Bell also introduced a whole new fee to replace it.

MobileSyrup spotted updates to Bell’s website, which no longer lists the $80 connection fee. Instead, we found a new $40 ‘device handling fee’ deep in the website’s fine print. Further, a separate page lists all of Bell’s one-time fees, including the new fee and a description for it:

“A one-time device handling charge ($40) will be applied to your next bill to cover fulfillment costs associated with your device order.

“Not applicable to smartwatches. Additional one-time fees are subject to change over time.”

The new device handling fee will apply to orders completed over the phone, in-store, and online. MobileSyrup also spotted a Reddit post from an in-store worker confirming that the new fee is effective as of May 5, 2026.

In a statement to MobileSyrup, Bell confirmed the fee only applies to device purchases and not to customers who bring their own devices. The carrier also noted the fee “fully complies” with the new CRTC rules:

“The one-time device handling charge is a transactional fee to cover fulfillment costs and applies only to the optional purchase of a device. This charge does not apply to bring your own phone customers. Our practice fully complies with all CRTC rules.”

However, Bell also has a history of flouting CRTC rules. For example, Bell continued locking smartphones despite rules prohibiting the practice, leading the commission to order Bell to stop late last year.

Lower cost, harder to avoid

Bell’s new device handling fee.

There are some notable differences between the new device handling fee and the old connection fee. Most significant is the price — the device handling fee costs just $40, down from $80. On the one hand, at least the new fee is cheaper.

On the other hand, it likely won’t stay that way for long. The old connection fee started as a measly $15 in 2013 and climbed by about $5 to $10 per year until it hit $80 just last year. (Heck, the connection fee went from $60 to $80 between the feds announcing the ban and the CRTC officially implementing it!)

Beyond the price, this new fee is also more difficult to avoid than the connection fee. Bell previously offered to waive or credit the connection fee for online orders, while the device handling fee does apply for online orders. Instead, the only way to avoid the device handling fee is to not buy a device from Bell.

To be fair, not buying a phone from Bell is probably a smart move since it and other carriers tend to inflate the cost of phones and force customers onto more expensive plans when they choose to finance. In other words, avoid the $40 device handling fee and buy your phone outright from the manufacturer (many of which also offer financing options), then grab a cheap bring-your-own-phone (BYOP) plan to go with it. What’s even better about this route is that it means you don’t have to get one of Bell’s overpriced wireless plans and can get something like Freedom’s $40/75GB CAN/US/MEX deal instead.

There’s also the looming question of whether or not this new fee violates the CRTC rules. Specifically, the rule prevents fees that discourage Canadians from switching, but doesn’t apply to “reasonable fees.” These can include things like fees for installing new services at a customer’s home, or fees for additional products or services. One could argue that purchasing a phone counts as an “additional product” — Bell’s statement seems to follow this logic — but I’m not sure others will see it the same way.

Ultimately, it remains to be seen what comes of this new fee. The CRTC’s new fee rules officially come into effect on June 12, so carriers still have some time to make the change. I’m curious to see how many carriers follow in Bell’s footsteps and trade out the connection fee for some other fee, and I’m doubly curious to see how the CRTC reacts to Bell’s new fee.