Quebec's Bill 96: What French Language Requirements Actually Mean For Your Business

Bill 96, which significantly amended Quebec's Charter of the French Language, extended French language requirements well beyond the areas most businesses outside Quebec assume are covered, reaching commercial signage, contracts, and internal employment communications for any business with a genuine presence in the province.

What Bill 96 Actually Changed

Bill 96, adopted in 2022, significantly strengthened Quebec's existing French language charter, expanding requirements around commercial signage, tightening rules for using a non-French trademark on storefronts and packaging, extending French-language contract requirements, and lowering the employee threshold that triggers formal francization obligations with the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF)[1].

Who Is Actually Affected

Any business with a physical location in Quebec, employees working in Quebec, or contracts of adhesion offered to Quebec consumers can fall within scope, this is not limited to Quebec-headquartered companies. A business based elsewhere in Canada with a single Quebec retail location, a remote employee working from Quebec, or standard-form consumer contracts used with Quebec customers should specifically confirm whether Bill 96's requirements apply to that particular touchpoint.

Commercial Signage And Trademarks

Bill 96 tightened requirements around displaying a non-French trademark on exterior signage, generally requiring a sufficient, markedly predominant French presence alongside any trademark shown in another language, with specific rules depending on whether the trademark is registered and how it is displayed[2]. This has required many businesses with recognizable non-French branding to add French generic terms, descriptions, or slogans to their exterior signage to remain compliant.

Employment Communications In French

Employment contracts and many workplace communications directed at Quebec-based employees generally need to be available in French, with specific rules governing when an English version can also be used and under what circumstances. Businesses employing even a small number of Quebec-based staff, including fully remote employees working from Quebec for an out-of-province employer, should confirm their employment documentation meets these requirements rather than continuing to use standard documentation designed for the rest of Canada.

The Compliance Timeline

Bill 96's various provisions phased in on a staggered timeline following its 2022 adoption, with certain signage and trademark requirements and francization threshold changes taking effect over the following several years. A business that reviewed its Quebec compliance obligations once, at an earlier point in this phase-in, should confirm no additional requirement has since come into effect that would now apply to its operations.