Francization in Quebec: Courses, Employer Rules, and Certification

Francization in Quebec is the set of programs and legal obligations under the Charter of the French Language that governs how newcomers learn French and how businesses operate in French. For individuals, the province funds full-time, part-time, and online French courses with weekly financial support. For businesses with 25 or more employees, the law requires registration with the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) and, eventually, a francization certificate confirming French is the working language.

French Courses Funded by the Province

The Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (MIFI) runs courses in several formats so people can pick one that fits their situation. Full-time courses run 25 to 30 hours per week and suit people who can commit to language learning for several months.¹ Part-time courses carry a lighter schedule aimed at people working or raising a family, and they focus on conversational skills and the vocabulary needed for daily life.² Fully online courses broaden access for people who cannot attend in person.³

Beyond general instruction, specialized programs exist for people entering regulated professions like medicine, engineering, or law, and they concentrate on technical terminology. Employers can also arrange on-site training, with instructors delivering lessons directly to staff during the workday.

Weekly Allowance and Other Support

Full-time students can receive a participation allowance of $230 per week for the length of their course.⁴ It is not available to anyone already collecting Employment Insurance, Social Assistance, benefits under the Québec Parental Insurance Plan, or certain other government programs. You need your Social Insurance Number to apply for financial aid.⁵

Two other kinds of help are available. Childcare reimbursement pays up to $25 per learning day for each child who needs care while you attend class. Only one parent can claim it if both are enrolled, and the caregiver cannot be your spouse or a family member. The claim uses form A-0593-CF and must be filed within 60 days of the session start date. A transportation allowance of $25 per week is available if you are already receiving income from another government program such as Employment Insurance, Social Assistance, or CNESST benefits. If you receive the $230 weekly participation allowance, you cannot combine it with the transportation allowance.⁴

Who Qualifies and How to Apply

Government-funded courses are open to people born outside Canada who are at least 16 and living in Quebec. You qualify if you hold Canadian citizenship, permanent residency, a Certificat de sélection du Québec, a Certificat d’acceptation du Québec, a valid temporary residence permit for work or study, or if you have submitted an asylum application. Accompanying spouses and dependent children 16 or older can also enroll.³

Enrollment is done through an online application form on the quebec.ca website. Have your immigration documents ready (permanent resident card, work permit details, or CSQ), plus proof of address and your SIN if you plan to request financial aid. You can track your file through the message centre in your online account.⁶

French Requirements for Regulated Professionals

To join a professional order in Quebec as a doctor, nurse, engineer, lawyer, accountant, or similar, you must show adequate knowledge of French. The standard route is the OQLF’s French-language exam, which is free and lasts about three hours.⁷

The exam has four parts built around a case study in a professional scenario. You discuss the case with other candidates, and assessors evaluate your oral and written French, not your professional knowledge. All four parts must be passed in the same sitting; a partial pass does not carry over. If you fail, you wait at least three months before retaking the entire exam, with no limit on attempts. Sittings are held in Montréal and, less often, in Québec City. There is no remote option.⁷

Professionals who have not yet passed can apply to their professional order for a temporary restrictive permit. These permits last one year and are renewable up to three times, with each renewal requiring proof of an exam attempt during the previous year. After four years, you must have passed or you can no longer practise under a temporary permit.

What the Law Requires of Employers

The Charter of the French Language, originally enacted in 1977 as Bill 101 and expanded by Bill 96, mandates the use of French in Quebec workplaces, commerce, and public life. Since June 1, 2025, any business employing 25 or more people for six months must register with the OQLF within six months of reaching that threshold.⁸

Businesses with 100 or more employees have a further duty: they must form a francization committee of at least six members. At least one-third of the committee represents the workers, and it meets at least twice a year.⁹ The committee analyzes how French is used across the company, drafts a francization program if needed, and supervises its rollout.

Employers cannot require knowledge of a language other than French for a job unless the position genuinely demands it, and even then they must first take all reasonable steps to avoid imposing that requirement. Job postings that do require another language must state the reasons.¹⁰

Getting the Francization Certificate

Certification runs in three stages. First, the business registers with the OQLF by providing the number of employees, its legal structure, and the nature of its activities. The OQLF issues a certificate of registration in return. Second, within three months of that registration, the business submits a self-evaluation of how French is currently used across internal communications, client-facing documents, software, signage, and management operations.⁸

If the OQLF finds French use sufficient, it issues the francization certificate. If not, the business develops a francization program (a detailed plan to expand French use at every level) and submits it for approval within three months. During implementation, progress reports go to the OQLF every 12 months. Once the OQLF is satisfied that French use has been adequately generalized, it grants the certificate.

Keeping the Certificate

Certification is ongoing. A certified business must maintain the level of French use that earned the certificate and file a report with the OQLF every three years documenting that standard. For businesses with a francization committee, the committee prepares that report.¹¹ If French use slips, the OQLF can revoke the certificate or require a new francization program, which restarts the 12-month reporting cycle.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Charter violations carry different penalties for individuals and businesses. Individuals face fines from $700 to $7,000 on a first offense. Corporations and other entities face $3,000 to $30,000. Those minimums and maximums double on a second offense and triple on any offense after that.¹²

More serious violations, such as providing false information to the OQLF, carry steeper penalties: $2,000 to $20,000 for individuals and $10,000 to $250,000 for other entities on a first offense. Directors and officers of a business in violation face fines at double the individual rate, even where the underlying offense was committed by the organization.¹³ Persistent non-compliance can also lead to revocation of the certificate, which can affect eligibility for government contracts and subsidies.

Consumer and Public-Facing Rules

The Charter gives consumers and the public the right to be informed and served in French.¹⁴ The practical implications reach across commercial activity:

Every inscription on a product, its packaging, and any accompanying documents (including warranties and instructions) must be in French. Menus and wine lists follow the same rule.
Public signs and commercial advertising must be in French. Other languages may appear alongside French, but French must be markedly predominant.
Catalogues, brochures, order forms, invoices, and receipts must all be drafted in French.
Software sold in Quebec, including games and operating systems, must be available in French unless no French version exists.
Standard-form contracts must be in French. A customer can choose to be bound by a version in another language, but only after receiving the French version first.
The name of an enterprise must be in French.

Translations are always allowed, but the French version cannot be less prominent or available on less favorable terms.¹⁵

Workplace Rights and How to File a Complaint

Every worker in Quebec has the right to carry out their activities in French. An employer cannot dismiss, suspend, transfer, or otherwise penalize you because you speak only French, because your knowledge of another language is insufficient, or because you exercised a language right under the Charter.¹⁶ Internal documents like employee handbooks, performance reviews, and workplace communications must be available in French.

If your employer has violated these rights, you can file a complaint with the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST). The deadline is short: 45 days from the date of the dismissal or sanction. You start by completing the complaint questionnaire on the CNESST’s website, after which the commission verifies admissibility. If the complaint proceeds, the CNESST offers free mediation. When mediation fails or is declined, the file can be transferred to the CNESST’s legal affairs department, and you may be represented by a CNESST lawyer at no cost. The case is ultimately heard by the Tribunal administratif du travail, which can order reinstatement, payment of lost wages, or changes to your disciplinary record.¹⁶

1
Gouvernement du Québec. Description of Full-Time French Courses for Canadian-Born Persons
2
Gouvernement du Québec. Applying for Admission to Part-Time French Courses for Immigrants
3
Gouvernement du Québec. Conditions for Admission to Fully Online French Courses for Immigrants Living in Quebec
4
Gouvernement du Québec. Financial Assistance for Full-Time French Courses for Immigrants
5
Gouvernement du Québec. Faire une demande d’admission aux cours de français à temps complet pour les personnes immigrantes
6
Gouvernement du Québec. After Submitting Your Application for Admission to Full-Time French Courses for Immigrants
7
Gouvernement du Québec. French Knowledge Assessment by the Office québécois de la langue française
8
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Section 139
9
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Sections 136 and 137
10
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Section 46
11
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Section 136
12
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Section 207
13
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Sections 206 and 208
14
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Section 5
15
Gouvernement du Québec. Charter of the French Language – Sections 51, 52, 55, 57, 58, and 63
16
Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail. Complaint Concerning a Prohibited Practice