Avant de payer, vérifiez le permis ; en cas de problème, sachez à qui vous adresser.
If you live in Quebec, there are bodies you need to know: in most trades and risky sectors, one body issues licences, keeps a public register and receives complaints: professional orders for professionals, the College (CICC) for immigration consultants, the OPC for merchants, the AMF for insurance and investments, the RBQ for construction contractors. Keep two reflexes: check the register before you pay, and know that a regulator sanctions the professional but, as a rule, does not get your money back.
1. Living in Quebec: why these bodies matter
Living in Quebec means signing a lease, choosing a mobile plan, opening a bank account, seeing a doctor or a pharmacist, having work done in your home, and sometimes paying an immigration consultant. Behind each of these situations there is a body that sets the rules, checks who is allowed to practise and receives complaints. Knowing it before you have a problem will save you time and help you avoid losing money.
A regulator oversees a trade or a sector to protect the public. It mainly does three things: it issues licences to practise, it publishes the list of people or businesses that are authorized, and it receives complaints from the public.
Don't confuse it with the agencies that provide you a service, such as the RAMQ or the SAAQ: those are covered in our guide to essential government websites. A regulator doesn't treat you or issue your papers: it watches over the people who work for you.
Most of these bodies are Quebec bodies. A few are federal or Canada-wide: the ones covering immigration consultants, banks and telecommunications.
This guide presents them by everyday situation: your professionals, your immigration consultant, your purchases and contracts, your job, your home and your rights.
2. Professional orders: checking and complaining
In Quebec, sooner or later you will deal with a professional: a doctor, a nurse, a pharmacist, a dentist, a notary, an accountant. Their title is reserved for members of their order, and that order is the one that oversees them.
In Quebec, the professional system oversees 55 professions grouped into 46 professional orders, nearly 430,000 people in all. Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, lawyers, notaries, engineers, accountants, certified translators: each belongs to its order. Above the orders, the Office des professions du Québec, a government body, makes sure each order actually protects the public.
Before seeing a professional, check that they are allowed to practise in the member directory of their order.
If you believe a member failed in their obligations, you have two disciplinary remedies:
- ask the syndic of their order, the person in charge of investigating complaints, to open an inquiry;
- file a complaint yourself before the order's disciplinary council.
Note: at the end of a disciplinary process, you receive no money.
Think the bill is too high? You can dispute the fees with the order, generally within 45 days of receiving your account, even if you have already paid it. The first step, conciliation, is free; if it fails, the order's arbitration council can decide, and its decision is final (fees may apply).
To claim damages, you need a civil lawsuit: under $15,000, it goes to the Small Claims Division of the Court of Québec, without a lawyer. And if someone pretends to be a member of an order, contact that order: it is the one that can prosecute them.
3. Immigration consultants: the College (CICC)
Just arrived, or preparing a permit, permanent residence or sponsorship application? You will come across offers from “consultants”. It is a field where scams often target newcomers: knowing who oversees these consultants is your best protection.
Immigration consultants are not overseen by a Quebec order but by a federal body: the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC). Created by a federal law, it replaced the former Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC) on November 23, 2021, a name you will still see on older websites.
The College licenses two types of consultants:
- Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants (RCICs);
- Regulated International Student Immigration Advisors (RISIAs).
Its powers apply to consultants practising in Canada and abroad. It sets training standards, enforces a Code of Professional Conduct and investigates complaints. On the other hand, it gives no immigration advice, processes no applications and influences no decisions.
Only three categories of people may charge you for immigration advice or representation: a licensee in good standing with the College, a member of a Canadian law society, or a member of the Chambre des notaires du Québec. Check a consultant in the College's public register.
The College's complaints process looks at the consultant's conduct and competence, not the amount of their fees: a complaint that only asks for a refund because your application was refused will not be handled. If the person has no licence, the College can take steps to make them stop.
New since July 15, 2026: a compensation fund can pay up to $7,000 per successful claim to a person who suffered a proven financial loss because of a licensee's dishonest act, such as theft, fraud or misrepresentation. Among other conditions, you must have filed a complaint with the College, and its discipline committee must have found the dishonest act. The fund does not replace a civil lawsuit.
In Quebec, one more layer applies. For your procedures with the Government of Québec, a consultant must also be recognized by the minister and listed in the Registre québécois des consultants en immigration. To obtain that recognition, they must among other things hold a valid College licence, show French at level 7 and pass an exam on Quebec rules. RISIAs are not covered by Quebec's definition of a consultant: only the College oversees them.
To choose between a lawyer and a consultant, read our guide Immigration lawyer or consultant.
4. Consumer goods, money, real estate, renovations: who watches businesses
In everyday life you will sign contracts: a mobile plan, a gym membership, a car purchase, an insurance policy, a loan, renovation work at home. For each one, a specific body watches over the business you deal with.
The Office de la protection du consommateur (OPC) oversees the application of consumer laws, receives consumer complaints and sometimes acts as a conciliator between you and the merchant. It also issues a permit to certain merchants, including travel agents, collection agents, vehicle merchants, money lenders, health studios such as gyms, and itinerant merchants, who sell away from their place of business, for example door to door. In several of these sectors, a financial protection plan can reimburse you if the business closes or goes bankrupt.
The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) oversees insurance, investments, deposit institutions other than banks, and mortgage brokerage. Banks, for their part, fall under federal rules: the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) makes sure they comply with consumer protection measures. If your bank does not settle your complaint, you can turn to the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI) once 56 days have passed since you complained to the bank, or sooner if the bank gave you a detailed written response and closed your file. Its service is free and it can recommend a solution. Since November 1, 2024, it is the only external body for all banks: you may still see the former ADRBO on older websites.
The Organisme d'autoréglementation du courtage immobilier du Québec (OACIQ) oversees real estate brokers and issues their licence. Before signing with a broker, check their record.
The Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ) sees to the qualification and integrity of construction contractors. Its register of licence holders tells you whether a contractor holds a valid licence, who provides their bond and whether claims have been made against them.
A mobile, internet or TV problem your provider refuses to fix? The Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS) is an independent body created in 2007 at the direction of the Government of Canada and funded by the industry. You must first try to settle the problem with your provider.
5. Work, housing, rights, public services and language
Finally, other bodies protect your everyday rights: as a worker, as a tenant, as a user of public services, when your personal information is collected, or when you are not served in French.
The CNESST enforces rights and obligations at work: labour standards, pay equity, occupational health and safety. It is the body to turn to if your employer does not respect your rights.
The Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL) is not a regulator but a specialized tribunal: it has exclusive jurisdiction to hear all applications relating to a dwelling lease.
The Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (CDPDJ) is independent from the government. It upholds the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and investigates, among other things, situations of discrimination and exploitation.
The Protecteur du citoyen, Quebec's parliamentary ombudsman since 1969, does not report to the government. It handles complaints free of charge against Government of Québec departments and bodies, such as the immigration department or the RAMQ, and against the health and social services network. It does not intervene if you have already brought an action before the Court of Québec or the Superior Court over the same facts.
The Commission d'accès à l'information (CAI) is both an administrative tribunal and an oversight body. It upholds the right of access to public bodies' documents and the protection of your personal information, in the public sector as well as in private businesses.
The Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) receives and handles complaints about breaches of the Charter of the French Language. To learn what this law guarantees, read our guide to Bill 101.
6. Quick reference: who to contact
Keep this quick reference handy: when a problem comes up, find your situation in the left column.
| Your situation | Body | Level |
|---|---|---|
| A professional (doctor, lawyer, notary, engineer…) | Their professional order | Quebec |
| An immigration consultant | The College (CICC), plus the Quebec register for Quebec procedures | Federal (+ Quebec) |
| A merchant or a consumer contract | OPC | Quebec |
| Insurance, investments, mortgage broker | AMF | Quebec |
| A bank: the rules | FCAC | Federal |
| A bank: complaint still unresolved after 56 days | OBSI | Canada (external body) |
| A real estate broker | OACIQ | Quebec |
| A construction contractor | RBQ | Quebec |
| Mobile, internet, TV | CCTS | Canada (independent) |
| Your employer | CNESST | Quebec |
| Your landlord | TAL | Quebec |
| Discrimination, harassment | CDPDJ | Quebec |
| A Quebec department or public body | Protecteur du citoyen | Quebec |
| Your personal information, access to a public document | CAI | Quebec |
| A service not offered in French | OQLF | Quebec |
7. Frequently asked questions
The most common questions about regulators.
How do I know whether a professional is allowed to practise?
Look up their name in the public register of the body that oversees them: the member directory of their professional order, the College's register for an immigration consultant, the OACIQ register for a real estate broker, the RBQ licence register for a contractor. If you cannot find them, don't pay.
Do I have to complain to the business or the professional first?
Very often, yes. The CCTS requires that you first try to settle the problem with your provider; the College recommends trying to resolve the dispute with the consultant; and the inquiry form of a professional order asks what you did to settle the situation. Keep a written record of these steps.
Can the College of consultants speed up my immigration file?
No. The College gives no immigration advice, processes no applications and has no influence on decisions. It only oversees consultants. Be wary of anyone who claims to obtain a favour through it.
My consultant works from abroad. Can the College act?
Yes. The College's legal powers apply to immigration and citizenship consultants whether they practise in Canada or abroad. Check first that the person appears in the College's public register.
8. See also
These related guides may be useful:
- Common scams in Quebec — how to recognize and report fraud.
- Getting foreign diplomas recognized — if you practise a regulated profession yourself.
- Quebec labour standards — the rights the CNESST enforces.
- Tenant rights in Quebec — what to bring before the TAL.
9. Official sources
The official sources used for this guide:
- Composition of Quebec's professional system — Office des professions du Québec (in French)
- Disciplinary remedies against a member of a professional order — Gouvernement du Québec (in French)
- Disputing a professional's fees — Gouvernement du Québec (in French)
- Lawsuits before the courts — Gouvernement du Québec (in French)
- Who we are — College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants
- Compensation Fund — College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants
- Getting represented in immigration procedures — Gouvernement du Québec
- Find a recognized immigration consultant — Gouvernement du Québec (in French)
- Conditions for recognition as an immigration consultant — Gouvernement du Québec (in French)
- Mission and mandates — Office de la protection du consommateur
- External complaints bodies for banks — Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
- A single external complaints body for banking (November 1, 2024) — Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
- Statement on the independent evaluation of the banking complaints body (July 2026) — Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
- How to complain to your bank — Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
- Our mission — Régie du bâtiment du Québec
- Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services
- La CNESST — mission (in French)
- Commission d'accès à l'information — English page
Author's note: one reflex to keep. Before paying someone who claims a title — consultant, broker, contractor, professional — look up their name in the official register. Two minutes of checking are worth more than months of proceedings.
