The U.S. is targeting Quebec’s controversial French-language law as a barrier to trade, a move that may further complicate Canada’s decisions in responding to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The French-speaking Canadian province adopted the law, known as Bill 96, in 2022 over fierce opposition from the business community.
The law enforces greater use of French in Quebec, requiring companies to use it in workplaces and with clients, write contracts exclusively in French in some circumstances, and have French as the dominant language on the public display of any trademark.
A new report on foreign trade barriers by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative says that businesses have “expressed concerns” about the impact Bill 96 will have on their trademarks for products after June 1, when some of provisions of the law come into effect. The requirements to translate certain trademarks into French is likely to increase costs.
U.S. government officials have discussed putting trade sanctions on Canada over Bill 96, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported last year.
The Trump administration is preparing to impose so-called “reciprocal tariffs” against other countries, based partly on its assessment of non-tariff barriers such as regulations that impede U.S. businesses.
Quebec is a key battleground in Canada’s election and although Bill 96 was not popular with some business leaders, it has the support of many Quebec residents who are concerned about the long-term future of the French language in the province of about 9 million people.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has raised concerns about the law because it contains a clause that allows it to sidestep the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Still, he said during a press conference Tuesday that he would protect it and Canada’s supply management system for dairy products, which was cited by the USTR as a barrier to U.S. dairy exports.
“The French language and Canadian culture, including Quebec culture, and supply management will never be on the table” in trade negotiations, Carney said.
“It is entirely reasonable and responsible that the only French-speaking state in North America protects and promotes the French language,” said Jean-François Roberge, Quebec’s minister of immigration, francization and integration.
Canada’s ban on single-use plastics and its digital services tax are also listed as trade irritants in the USTR report.
Mathieu Dion, Bloomberg News
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