Sarah Boily has been Director General of the Official Languages Branch and Co-Champion of Official Languages at Canadian Heritage since October 2021.

Sarah has more than 25 years of experience in the federal public service, including nearly 20 years in the field of official languages at Canadian Heritage and the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. Since the beginning of her mandate, she has led the development of the 2023–2028 Action Plan for Official Languages while supporting the parliamentary process for Bill C-13, which resulted in the Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada’s Official Languages receiving Royal Assent in June 2023.

More recently, in support of implementing the modernized Official Languages Act, she led the work that resulted in the tabling of two draft regulations in the House of Commons. At the end of November 2025, the draft regulation concerning administrative monetary penalties was tabled in Parliament, followed on April 15, 2026, by the draft regulation concerning the use of French within federally regulated private businesses.

In 2025, she initiated a major transformation initiative for Canadian Heritage’s official languages support programs to simplify and modernize processes while improving client access and experience.

In her current role, she maintains various collaborations and ongoing dialogue with partners from community, governmental, and academic sectors.

Before joining Canadian Heritage, Sarah held several positions at Employment and Social Development Canada, Health Canada, and the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, where she developed a second-language learning strategy. She holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the École nationale d’administration publique, as well as two Bachelor’s degrees in Education and Science from University of Ottawa.