COMMERCIAL PUBLICATIONS, WEBSITES AND SOCIAL MEDIA As a general rule, commercial publications, which now include publications on websites and social media platforms, must be written in French. However, the rule applies only to the official platforms of businesses with an establishment in Québec and when the publications target the Québec public. Commercial publications may use both French and another language together, so long as the French version is displayed at least as prominently as the other language. A commercial publication may also have two versions, one exclusively in French, the other exclusively in another language, provided that the French version is as accessible and at least of equal quality to the other version. For websites, this can be done through a separate French version of the site. When applied to social media, the French language rule means that a business with an establishment in Québec can have an account in French and an account in another language. It can also have one account, provided that every publication targeting the Québec public be displayed at least as prominently in French as in another language. When interacting with a Québec consumer, businesses must reply in the language of the consumer’s choice (e.g., if a Québec consumer comments on a publication in French, the business must reply in French). Note that the law recognizes that businesses cannot control the language used in sponsored ads. CONTRACT PREDETERMINED BY ONE PARTY A contract predetermined by one party (i.e., a contract in which essential stipulations were imposed or drawn up by one of the parties and were not negotiable) must be drawn up in French.
Although most people in Montréal are bilingual (English and French), Québec is predominantly French- speaking and has a long tradition of adopting measures aimed at increasing the use of French in commerce.
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Doing Business in Québec
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