ARTICLE · 10 FEBRUARY 2017

Update: Navigating Québec French Language Requirements

Ridout & Maybee LLP

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On November 9, 2016, final amendments to the Regulation respecting the language of commerce and business and the Regulation defining the scope of the expression "markedly predominant" for the purposes of Charter of the French Language were published.

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On November 9, 2016, final amendments to the Regulation respecting the language of commerce and business and the Regulation defining the scope of the expression "markedly predominant" for the purposes of Charter of the French Language were published and registered in the Gazette officielle du Québec. These amendments subsequently came into force on November 24, 2016. All signs installed after November 24, 2016 will therefore have to comply with the new rules. Existing signs will have until November 24, 2019 to comply.

To summarize the new rules:

Trademarks remain exempt and do not need to be translated into French.
Where a non-French trademark is displayed on outdoor signage, a "sufficient visual presence" of French must also exist.

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