The French Language Services Act, 1986 (FLSA), modernized for the first time in December 2021, guarantees every individual the right to receive provincial government services in French in 27 designated areas and from central offices. Approximately 80% of Francophones in Ontario live in a designated area. However, those who live outside a designated area can obtain services in French by contacting a ministry’s central office, a branch located in a designated area or by using Service Ontario’s online services.

The preamble to the FLSA states that French is recognized as an official language under the Constitution and that the Legislative Assembly recognizes the contribution of the cultural heritage of the French-speaking population and wishes to preserve it for future generations. The French-speaking presence in Ontario dates back more than 400 years.

The FLSA is part of a series of legal provisions designed to guarantee the language rights of Ontario Francophones. Other provincial acts guarantee Francophone rights, including the Education Act, the Courts of Justice Act and the Child, Youth and Family Services Act.

• In April 2021, Ontario adopted Bill 245, the Accelerating Access to Justice Act, which amends the Courts of Justice Act to expand Ontarians’ ability to file documents in French for all civil, family and Provincial Offences Act proceedings in all Ontario courthouses. These changes came into effect in February 2022.
• In April 2019, Ontario adopted Bill 74, the People’s Health Care Act, 2019. This act is the basis for a restructuring of health care services in Ontario that will be implemented over several years. The Act refers directly to compliance with the obligations under the French Language Services Act. It should be noted that the Ministry of Health is currently conducting a review of the French Language health care planning structure in Ontario.

In June 2009, the Government of Ontario adopted a new, broader definition of the Francophone population to better reflect the Francophone population of Ontario: the “inclusive definition of Francophone” (IDF). Previously, Francophones were defined based on the basis of mother tongue. The “mother tongue” category defined Francophones as only those who had learned French at home at a young age and still understood French at the time of the census. However, the IDF is based on three census questions concerning mother tongue, language spoken at home, and knowledge of official languages. Data from the 2021 Statistics Canada Census and based on the inclusive definition of Francophone indicates that Ontario has 652,540 Francophones, an increase of 30,125 since the 2016 Census. The 2021 Census identified 591,860 Francophones under the mother tongue criterion and 582,695 under the first official language spoken criterion. The IDF therefore makes it possible to identify, respectively, a 10% and 12% increase in the Ontario Francophone population. Additionally, according to Statistics Canada, approximately 1.5 million people speak French in Ontario.

A policy adopted in 2010 governs the Ontario government’s French Language communications and is accompanied by guidelines. The ministries and classified agencies are required to take into consideration the specific needs of Ontario’s Francophonie when developing and implementing communications strategies. An update of this policy and its guidelines is planned for 2025.

Also in 2010, the province adopted the Act to proclaim Franco‑Ontarian Day, which recognizes September 25 each year as the day set aside to celebrate their language and heritage. In 2020, the Franco‑Ontarian flag was recognized as an official emblem of Ontario.

On June 24, 2011, Ontario adopted Regulation 284/11 under the FLSA; this regulation requires agencies that provide services on behalf of the Government of Ontario to comply with the FLSA.

In 2011, a new policy on designated bilingual positions in the provincial public service came into effect. For the first time, formal expectations concerning the management of designated bilingual positions were an integral part of the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement’s policy on human resources.

In June 2021, Ontario’s Francophone Economic Development Strategy was launched. It strengthens the French Language Services Strategy while also supporting the development of a qualified bilingual workforce. Additionally, in 2023, the Ontario Public Service (OPS) Bilingual Human Resources Initiative was launched to improve the OPS bilingual workforce’s ability to deliver high-quality and timely French Language services to Ontarians. This initiative covers the areas of recruitment, retention, training, management, and data collection for designated bilingual positions.

In December 2021, the Ontario government modernized the French Language Services Act for the first time. The changes include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Ontario has adopted a new active offer regulation, which came into effect on April 1, 2023, so that the availability of services in French is brought to the attention of the recipient on first point of contact. This regulation sets out nine specific measures to provide a framework for the active offer, including a welcome in French, signage in French at or near the entrance, and continued use of French if the services are offered in several stages.
• Ministries and their agencies are accountable to, and must report to, the Executive Council on the application of the FLSA and on the quality of the French Language services they offer.
• In practice, through the Ontario Public Service’s annual internal strategic planning process, ministries provide key performance indicators on their bilingual human resources capacity. The ministries also complete an annual report on their provision of services in French, which is used, in particular, to draft the Ministry of Francophone Affairs’ annual report to cabinet.
• A new provision requires the Act to be reviewed at least once every 10 years, to ensure that it meets the changing needs of the Ontario Francophone community.

Ontario also has a French Language Services Commissioner within the Ombudsman’s Office. He or she is responsible for conducting investigations under the French Language Services Act, either in response to complaints from the public or on his or her own initiative, for preparing reports on investigations, and for monitoring the progress made by government agencies in the delivery of French language services in Ontario.

The Ministry of Francophone Affairs oversees the implementation of the French Language Services Act. It provides information about the Ontario Francophone population and participates in the development of government-wide policies on implementing the FLSA. The ministries, supported by their coordinators and heads of French services, ensure the development and delivery of services to the population.