How many employees trigger OQLF registration under Bill 96?

A business employing 25 or more people in Quebec over a six-month period must register with the Office québécois de la langue française within six months after that period ends. The threshold was 50 before June 1, 2025. Only Quebec headcount counts, including part-time, temporary and casual staff in every Quebec establishment. Independent contractors and volunteers are excluded.

What is a francization certificate and how do you get one?

A francization certificate is the OQLF document attesting that French is generalized at every level of a business. Registration brings an attestation, then three months to file an analysis of your linguistic situation. If the Office finds French already generalized, it issues the certificate. If not, file a francization programme within three months of the request and report progress every twelve months.

Does Bill 96 apply to a company headquartered outside Quebec?

Yes, if it employs people in Quebec. Obligations are measured on Quebec headcount alone, so a company with thousands of employees elsewhere and 30 in Quebec is a 30-employee business for registration. The rules on staff communications, job postings and contracts apply at any size, wherever the head office sits.

Can a Quebec job posting be published in English only?

No. Under the Quebec French language law, a job posting distributed in another language must be published in French at the same time, through a medium of the same nature, reaching an audience of comparable size. English on a major job board and French only on your own careers page does not meet the requirement.

When is a francization committee required?

A francization committee is mandatory from 100 employees in Quebec. It needs at least six members, half of them representing employees and designated by the majority employee association where one exists, and it must meet at least once every six months. The Office can also order a committee at a business with 25 to 99 employees that is required to adopt a francization programme.

What happens if a Quebec employer does not comply?

The OQLF publishes convictions by name. In 2025, Waterco U.S.A. and Club Monaco were each fined $3,000 for failing to comply with an order. Without proof of compliance a business also loses access to Quebec government contracts and subsidies, and since December 17, 2025 it cannot have a job offer validated for a foreign worker.

Bill 96 Quebec: employer obligations and deadlines

Head office in Toronto, Chicago or Boston, a plant in Quebec. Bill 96 is not a translation project. It is an HR compliance file with dates on it that nobody at head office owns.

Bill 96 employers: the count that decides everything

Only your Quebec headcount counts. Employ 25 or more people there over a six-month period and you must register with the Office québécois de la langue française within six months of that period ending. The threshold was 50 before June 1, 2025. Part-time, temporary and casual staff count in every Quebec establishment. Contractors and volunteers do not.

Employees in Quebec	What gets added
Under 5	Nothing extra. Language-of-work rules still apply.
5 to 24	Declare to the Quebec enterprise registrar the share of staff unable to communicate in French. This band since June 1, 2025, 5 to 49 from 2023 to 2025.
25 to 49	OQLF registration since June 1, 2025. No registrar declaration.
50 to 99	OQLF registration and the full francization process.
100 and up	All of the above, plus a francization committee.

Leadership team reviewing a Bill 96 compliance file and its deadlines — The OQLF registration threshold fell from 50 to 25 employees on June 1, 2025.

From OQLF registration to a francization certificate

The four steps

Register on the OQLF portal, which issues an attestation of registration.
Three months from that attestation to file your linguistic situation analysis.
French generalized at every level: the Office issues a francization certificate.
If not: a francization programme within three months of the request, then a report every twelve months.

The certificate is not permanent. A certified business reports every three years on how the use of French is evolving. If the Office finds it no longer generalized, it requires a corrective action plan within two months. See maintaining francization.

The Quebec French language law rules that ignore your size

What	The rule
Staff communications	French: email, intranet posts, notices, including to former employees. An employee may ask for messages addressed to them personally in another language.
Job postings	French at the same time as the other language, through a medium of the same nature, reaching a comparable audience.
Contracts of adhesion	French first when you set the essential terms. The employee then expressly agrees to another version.
Requiring another language	Only after assessing the duties that truly need it, taking all reasonable means to avoid it and checking the language skills already on your team. From the Charter of the French Language, detailed on the Office's francization pages.
Working conditions, application forms, training	Same rule.
Software	French where a French version exists.

The francization committee at 100 employees

At 100 employees in Quebec the committee is mandatory: at least six members, half of them representing employees. It drafts the linguistic analysis, monitors the programme and produces the reports. The Office can also order one at 25 to 99 employees. Full rules on the OQLF francization committee page.

A six-person francization committee working around a table with notes in view — A francization committee needs at least six members and meets at least once every six months.

Signage, packaging and the commercial deadlines

Since June 1, 2025, a trademark or business name on exterior signage in another language needs French markedly predominant: at least twice the space, at least as legible and visible. On products, a description or generic term beside a non-French trademark must also be in French. Non-compliant products made before June 1, 2025 can be sold until June 1, 2027. Source: the OQLF.

What non-compliance actually costs

The Office's 2024-2025 annual report records 10,371 complaints, up 14 percent in a year and 140 percent in five. Registered businesses: 11,509 to 14,366 as of March 31, 2025.

Convictions are published by name. In 2025, Waterco U.S.A. and Club Monaco were fined $3,000 each for failing to comply with an order, per the list of convictions.

The commercial exposure beats the fine. No proof of compliance, no Quebec government contract and no subsidy. Since December 17, 2025, the same proof is needed at 25 or more people in Quebec to have a job offer validated for a foreign worker.

Where to start this week

Count your Quebec headcount over six months. Then pull your latest job posting, employment agreement template and harassment policy. If one is English only, you have your starting point.

An HR self-assessment finds the other gaps. A skills matrix records who works in which language, the evidence the Office asks for. Our HR tools and guides cover the rest.

At Inlead RH (inleadrh.ca), this is an HR file, not a translation budget.