Websites and digital communications are among the easiest parts of a business for Quebec consumers to see, compare and report. In 2025-2026, commercial documentation accounted for 33 percent of the 11,125 complaints received by the Office québécois de la langue française. The category includes websites, social media accounts, catalogues and similar commercial material. That put it level with complaints concerning the language of in-store service and well ahead of public signage.
The reason is practical. A website is visible across Quebec at once, a missing French page can be captured in seconds, and an English-only checkout, social post or downloadable PDF is easy to document. For businesses selling into Quebec, Bill 96 website requirements therefore extend well beyond translating the home page. This guide explains how Quebec’s French-language rules apply to websites, e-commerce stores, mobile and web apps, chatbots, social media and downloadable content, as well as the areas businesses most often overlook.
Bill 96 Website Requirements in Quebec: The Legal Basis
Bill 96 does not create a separate section of the Charter labelled “websites”. The obligation comes primarily from the broader rules governing commercial publications and the right of consumers to be informed and served in French.
Under the Charter of the French language, catalogues, brochures, commercial directories, order forms and other documents of the same nature that are made available to the public must be available in French. When another language version is offered, the French version must be accessible under conditions that are at least as favourable.
The OQLF’s guidance on the language of commerce and business expressly includes access to a complete French version of a company website and French content on a company’s social media. These requirements are relevant even when a business operates nationally or internationally rather than exclusively in Quebec.
Our guide to whether Bill 96 applies without a Quebec office looks more closely at the geographic question. Software follows a related but distinct rule. Web applications, mobile applications and other software must generally be available in French unless no French version exists, and the French version must be offered on conditions that are no less favourable than those of another-language version.
What Does a Bill 96 Compliant French Website Look Like?
Having some content in French is not the same as having a French version of a website. In practice, four issues matter repeatedly when businesses review their Quebec websites: completeness, accessibility, quality and currency.
The French Website Should Be Complete
The French version should cover the same customer journey as the English version. A translated home page followed by English product pages is not a complete French experience. Neither is a French marketing site that sends customers into an English checkout, account portal or terms and conditions page. This is one of the most common weaknesses on multilingual sites because businesses often translate the pages managed by their marketing team but overlook content generated elsewhere in the technology stack. The relevant question is not how much of the site has been translated as a percentage. It is whether a Quebec customer can complete the same journey in French.
French Should Be Equally Accessible
Visitors should be able to find and use the French version as easily as the English version. A visible language selector should remain accessible throughout the site. French pages should have stable URLs, whether they use a /fr/ directory, a subdomain or another architecture. Correct hreflang implementation also matters for search engines because it helps Quebec users reach the appropriate French version from search results. A complete French site hidden behind an obscure footer link is a much weaker setup than a genuinely bilingual navigation structure.
The French Version Should Have Comparable Quality
Translation quality matters because simply generating French text does not guarantee a usable French website. Common problems include inconsistent terminology, untranslated navigation strings, broken accents, poorly adapted calls to action, literal translations and French terminology that feels out of place for Quebec customers. Machine translation can be part of a localization workflow, but the finished French content still needs to be accurate and suitable for its intended audience.
For a Quebec-facing commercial website, the goal should be natural Canadian or Quebec French rather than a mechanical copy of the English site.
French Content Should Be Updated With the English
A website can be fully translated at launch and become incomplete a few months later. New products are added. Pricing changes. Promotions go live. Terms are revised. New blog posts appear. Support documentation grows. If those updates appear in English while the French site remains frozen, the two versions gradually diverge. Bill 96 website compliance is therefore better treated as an ongoing publishing process than as a one-time translation project.
Website Content Businesses Commonly Forget to Translate
The visible marketing pages are usually the easiest part. The gaps often appear deeper in the customer journey. Checkout screens and customer account pages may come from the e-commerce platform rather than the website theme. Transactional emails such as order confirmations, shipping updates, password resets and abandoned-cart messages can use a separate language configuration. Terms of sale, return policies, warranties, privacy pages and cookie information also need specific attention. Some of these documents can have additional legal implications under Quebec rules governing contracts.
Our guide to contracts of adhesion under Bill 96 covers that issue separately. Forms are another common source of English-only content. Error messages, validation warnings, empty states, search filters and automated confirmations may not appear until a customer performs a particular action. Downloadable material also matters. Catalogues, specification sheets, manuals and price lists do not cease to be commercial documents simply because they are provided as PDFs.
Third-party tools can create similar gaps. Review widgets, booking systems, payment forms, live chat modules and embedded applications may have their own localization settings.
Even metadata deserves attention. Titles, meta descriptions and image alt text are part of the French digital experience and also affect how French pages appear in search and accessibility tools.
Our e-commerce translation page looks at the different layers of a multilingual online store in more detail.
Bill 96 Requirements for Mobile Apps and Web Applications
Apps require more than a translated App Store description. The interface, onboarding screens, navigation, notifications, account settings, help content and customer support experience all form part of the product.
Section 52.1 of the Charter of the French language provides that software must be available in French unless no French version exists. Where other-language versions are available, the French version must be accessible on conditions that are at least as favourable and have at least equivalent technical characteristics.
For SaaS companies, this makes localization a product issue rather than simply a marketing issue.
A French version that lacks important functionality, appears substantially later than the English release or receives updates less consistently can create problems even if the main interface has technically been translated.
Continuous software development makes this especially easy to overlook.
New strings are introduced every sprint. A French product that was complete on launch day can accumulate untranslated interface elements within weeks if localization is not connected to the development process.
Our software and SaaS localization service explains how translation can be integrated into a continuous release workflow.
Chatbots and AI Assistants on Quebec Websites
Chatbots have become another customer service channel that businesses need to consider. If a chatbot is available to Quebec customers, a user should be able to interact with it in French. Large language models can usually generate French automatically, but that alone does not make the customer journey complete. The underlying knowledge base, predefined answers, error messages, escalation instructions and transfer to a human agent also need to work in French. A chatbot that begins a conversation in French but sends the customer to English help articles or English-only support when the question becomes more complex creates the same type of gap as a partially translated website. Accuracy also matters.
For support, legal, technical or product information, relying entirely on real-time machine translation can introduce terminology inconsistencies or factual distortions. Reviewed French source material gives the system a more reliable knowledge base.
Our guide to customer service obligations under Bill 96 covers support channels in more detail.
Bill 96 and Social Media in Quebec
A company’s digital obligations do not stop at its website. The OQLF treats business social media content as part of commercial communications, and Quebec consumers have a right to access French content on company social media accounts. For brands actively targeting the Quebec market, that means Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok and other customer-facing platforms should form part of the French-language strategy. Businesses can use bilingual posts, publish French versions of content aimed at Quebec or maintain a dedicated French-language account. Paid social advertising targeted specifically at Quebec should also be available in French. Replies and community management matter as well. When a customer contacts a company in French through a social platform, the business should be able to respond in French.
A national Canadian account that publishes almost everything in English and only occasional French posts is very different from an account where Quebec customers can genuinely access the brand’s commercial content in French. For companies producing a large volume of social content, a dedicated Quebec content calendar is often more natural than translating every national post word for word. It also gives the brand room to use Quebec French, local references and messages specifically relevant to the market.
Can Machine Translation Make a Website Bill 96 Compliant?
Automatic website translation is now available through most major content management and e-commerce platforms. The important distinction is between the translation method and the result. A business can use machine translation as part of its workflow, but automatic translation does not remove the need for complete, accurate and usable French content.
Typical problems on unreviewed machine-translated sites include inconsistent product terminology, mistranslated legal content, European French where Canadian French would be more appropriate, untranslated fragments and interface elements that are not picked up by the translation plugin. These issues become particularly visible on product pages, terms and conditions, checkout screens and customer support content.
Our article on AI translation and Bill 96 compliance looks at where automatic translation can be appropriate and where human review remains important.
For businesses that already use automated translation, our AI translation review service focuses on correcting and validating the resulting French rather than retranslating the entire site from scratch.
What Happens After an OQLF Website Complaint?
A website complaint can lead to a review of the French and English versions of the site. The issue may concern missing pages, incomplete French content, commercial documentation or another part of the customer journey. A business that receives a notice should therefore treat the site systematically rather than correcting only the URL identified in the original complaint.
The same missing translation pattern may appear across dozens of product pages or platform-generated screens.
Companies can face fines of $3,000 to $30,000 per offence under the Charter, with higher penalties for repeat offences.
Our Bill 96 fines and penalties page covers the penalty framework. If a complaint has already been filed, our guide to responding to an OQLF complaint explains the practical steps that follow.
Bill 96 Website Requirements FAQ
Our Website Is in English With Only the Main Pages Translated Into French. Is That Enough?
Not necessarily. If customers still encounter English-only product pages, checkout screens, legal information or support content, the French version is incomplete. The relevant issue is the customer journey rather than the percentage of website traffic that comes from Quebec.
Do We Have to Automatically Redirect Quebec Visitors to French?
Automatic geolocation is not the requirement. What matters is that the French version is available and easy to access. A clear language switcher and properly configured French URLs usually create a better experience than forcing every Quebec visitor onto the French version regardless of language preference.
Do Blog Posts Have to Be Available in French?
Context matters. Commercial and promotional content aimed at customers in Quebec has a much stronger connection to the French-language requirements than a technical resource written for a global specialist audience. A promotional article linked prominently from a Quebec-facing home page should therefore be treated differently from an international developer article with no particular Quebec audience.
Do Downloadable PDFs Have to Be in French?
Commercial documents do not become exempt simply because they are PDFs. Catalogues, brochures, product specifications, manuals and price lists made available to Quebec customers should be included when auditing the French version of a website.
Is a Bilingual Instagram Account Enough for Quebec?
A single account can work if French content is consistently available and the French version is not treated less favourably. Publishing almost exclusively in English and adding an occasional French post is a different situation from making the brand’s commercial social content genuinely accessible in French.
How to Bring an English Website Into Bill 96 Compliance
For an English-only site, the most effective approach is usually to work through the customer journey rather than translating pages according to the website menu. Start with areas that have direct transactional or legal consequences, particularly checkout flows, customer accounts and legal documentation. Product and service pages come next because they are among the most visible parts of the site and are directly connected to purchasing decisions. Support material, FAQs and customer service content should follow so that the French experience continues after the sale. Marketing pages, landing pages, articles and campaign content can then be incorporated into the ongoing publishing workflow. The language architecture should be set up early. Stable French URLs, a visible language switcher and correct hreflang implementation ensure that each translated page can actually be found by users and search engines.
Once the site itself is covered, the same review should extend to social accounts, downloadable documents, apps, automated emails and third-party tools. Our Bill 96 compliance checklist can be used to review the rest of the business at the same time. For the translation itself, Frenchside’s website translation service covers corporate, e-commerce and content websites for the Quebec market. Our French translation rates page provides pricing information based on content volume.
This article provides general information on Quebec language requirements and does not constitute legal advice.
