Last verified: October 23, 2026, against the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF). General information, not legal advice. Provincial rules vary; confirm with your privacy officer or counsel, and with the OQLF.
Bill 96 is the Quebec law that strengthened the Charter of the French Language, and for a clinic it reaches the website, online ads, invoices, standard-form agreements and the sign out front. The short version: if your clinic does business in Quebec, its commercial content must be available in French, at least as prominently as any other language.
"bill 96" is searched about 1,600 times a month in Canada (Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, Canada, 12-month average to Sep 2026) and 480 times in the US (Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, US, 12-month average to Sep 2026).
Don't confuse it with Law 25. Law 25 is Quebec's privacy reform: consent, cookies, a person in charge of personal information. Bill 96 is about language. A Quebec clinic website has to satisfy both; see Quebec Law 25 for the privacy side.
What Bill 96 changed in the Charter of the French Language
The OQLF's summary of the legislative changes (opens in a new tab) says the Act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec (its French title is Loi sur la langue officielle et commune du Québec, le français) was assented to on June 1, 2022. It amended the Charter of the French Language, which has been in force since 1977.
For businesses, the OQLF highlights these changes:
- Service. Businesses must offer service in French at all times. Consumers have the right to be informed and served in French.
- Commercial documentation. Already required to be at least in French; the law now confirms that this applies on any medium, websites and social media included.
- Contracts of adhesion. A French version must be provided first, before any other language.
- Signage. French must be clearly predominant on signs visible from outside when a business name or trademark is in another language.
- Francization. Businesses with 25 or more employees must register with the OQLF.
- Workplace. Employers communicate with staff in French and must justify requiring another language for a job.
Does it apply to your clinic?
The OQLF's aide-mémoire for businesses (opens in a new tab) says businesses that operate in Quebec have been required to use French at work and in business since 1977. A private clinic that charges for services in Quebec is a business for these purposes, whatever its size.
Size changes some obligations, not the core ones:
| Clinic size (employees in Quebec) | What changes |
|---|---|
| Any size | Service in French, commercial documentation and signage rules, contracts of adhesion |
| 25 to 49 | Register with the OQLF and assess French use (extended to this group from June 1, 2025) |
| 100 or more | A francization committee as well |
Per the OQLF's francization page (opens in a new tab) and summary of changes, checked October 23, 2026.
The people in your clinic face rules too. The OQLF says members of professional orders (physicians, dentists, physiotherapists and others in Quebec) "doivent avoir une connaissance du français appropriée à l'exercice de la profession" (must have knowledge of French appropriate to their profession), and its professional orders page (opens in a new tab) explains the French exam some orders require. Since Bill 96, members must also provide documents in French, without translation fees, when an authorized person requests them.
Clinics outside Quebec that advertise to Quebec residents, such as an Ottawa clinic with Gatineau patients, should ask the OQLF or counsel how the rules apply to them.
Websites, online forms and ads in French
This is the section most clinics need. The OQLF aide-mémoire lists "vos factures, vos catalogues, vos dépliants, vos sites Web et vos pages de réseaux sociaux" (your invoices, catalogues, brochures, websites and social media pages) as commercial documentation, and states:
- Commercial documentation must be written at least in French, "peu importe le type de support" (whatever the medium). That includes websites and social networks.
- You may also use another language, but only if French appears at least equivalently and the French version is accessible under conditions at least as favourable.
- You are responsible for content you publish even if a third party produced it: "la responsabilité de diffuser du contenu en français appartient à celui ou celle qui rend l'information disponible au public."
For a clinic website, that translates into:
| Website element | What to do |
|---|---|
| Service pages and blog | A complete French version, not a summary page |
| Language switch | French at least as easy to reach as English, for example as the default version |
| Contact and booking forms | Labels, instructions, consent wording and confirmation messages in French |
| Embedded third-party tools | Chat widgets, booking tools and review widgets available in French, since you're responsible for what you display |
| Privacy policy | In French, and in the plain language Law 25 requires |
| Social media pages | French content at least equivalent to any English content |
| Online ads to Quebec audiences | French versions of ad copy and landing pages |
Illustrative example (compliant): A fictional Sherbrooke physiotherapy clinic's site opens in French, with an "English" link in the header. Every page, form and confirmation email exists in both languages, with identical content.
Illustrative example (non-compliant): A Montreal dental clinic's site is fully in English, with a single French page summarizing services and a booking widget that only works in English.
Marketing emails and texts are commercial content too, so send French versions to Quebec patients and follow the federal consent rules in CASL. The usual principles of medical website design (a page per service, clear calls to action, fast mobile pages) apply to both language versions.
Where Medfy stands. Medfy does not build French-language or bilingual websites. If your clinic is in Quebec, Medfy alone won't produce the French site Bill 96 requires, so confirm what you'd need from another source before relying on Medfy for a Quebec website.
Contracts, invoices and patient documents
Contracts of adhesion. These are standard-form contracts whose terms one party sets and the other can't negotiate. The OQLF's contracts page (opens in a new tab) says that since June 1, 2023, "tout nouveau contrat d'adhésion doit d'abord être remis en français" (any new contract of adhesion must first be provided in French). Only after receiving the French version may the parties expressly choose to be bound in another language. Related documents follow the same rule. For a clinic, think membership agreements, prepaid treatment packages, payment plans and other non-negotiable terms patients sign.
Invoices and receipts. These appear in the OQLF's list of commercial documentation, so they must be at least in French.
Requests from authorized people. As noted above, professional-order members must provide requested documents in French without translation fees.
Clinical record-keeping and consent-to-treatment rules come from your professional order and health legislation as well as the Charter; confirm those with your order.
Trademarks, business names and signage
The OQLF's signage page (opens in a new tab) sets out the rules that took effect June 1, 2025:
- Public signage and commercial advertising must be in French. Another language may appear, but French must be clearly predominant: French text must "occuper un espace au moins deux fois plus grand" (occupy at least twice the space) and be as visible and legible.
- Business names. A name with a non-French specific element (the distinctive part) needs a French generic term alongside it. As an illustration, "Clinique dentaire Smile Bright" follows that pattern, while "Smile Bright Dental" on its own generally doesn't, unless the trademark rule below applies.
- Trademarks. A trademark in another language may be displayed only if no French version is registered. Since June 1, 2025, signs visible from outside that carry such a trademark must also include French terms, such as a generic term, descriptor or slogan.
Addresses, phone numbers and numerals don't count toward the French-predominance calculation.
Timelines and enforcement
| Date | What took effect |
|---|---|
| June 1, 2022 | Most Charter amendments, including the confirmation that websites and social media are covered |
| June 1, 2023 | French version of contracts of adhesion provided first |
| June 1, 2025 | Signage visible from outside; francization extended to 25–49 employees |
From the OQLF's summary of changes, checked October 23, 2026.
Enforcement. Anyone can file a complaint with the OQLF, including anonymously, according to its summary of changes, and the OQLF's complaints page (opens in a new tab) publishes yearly lists of convictions and fines from the Court of Québec. The OQLF also describes itself as working with businesses to bring them into compliance. For the privacy and anti-spam rules that sit beside Bill 96, see PIPEDA and healthcare marketing in Canada.
Want to see where your current site stands on privacy and visibility before a French rebuild? A free marketing audit scores six areas and lists the top fixes. It doesn't assess French-language compliance.
This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm how it applies to your practice with a qualified advisor.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Quebec clinic's website have to be in French?
Yes. The OQLF says commercial documentation must be at least in French whatever the medium, and names websites and social media pages. Another language can appear alongside French if French is at least equivalent and as easy to reach. You're also responsible for third-party content you display, such as widgets. Medfy does not build French-language websites, so a Quebec clinic would need another source for its French version.
Can a clinic's website be bilingual under Bill 96?
Yes, as long as French comes first in substance. The OQLF allows another language on commercial documentation when the French appears at least equivalently and the French version is accessible under conditions at least as favourable. In practice, every page, form and confirmation message needs a complete French version, and the French site shouldn't be harder to find than the English one. Confirm edge cases with the OQLF.
Does Bill 96 apply to Google and Facebook ads?
Ads aimed at Quebec are commercial advertising and commercial documentation, which the OQLF says must be in French, on any medium including social media. Another language can run alongside, but French must be at least equivalent, and on public signage and advertising displays it must be clearly predominant. Run French versions of your ads and landing pages for Quebec audiences, and check specific formats with the OQLF.