Official Languages (Communications with and Services to the Public) Regulations (SOR/92-48)

Short Title

1 These Regulations may be cited as the Official Languages (Communications with and Services to the Public) Regulations.

Interpretation

2 The following definitions apply in these Regulations.

Act

Act means the Official Languages Act. (Loi)

CMA

CMA means a census metropolitan area, excluding Ottawa-Gatineau, as used by Statistics Canada for the purposes of the most recent decennial census of population. (région métropolitaine de recensement)

CSD

CSD means a census subdivision, excluding any census subdivision or any part of a census subdivision within the National Capital Region, as used by Statistics Canada for the purposes of the most recent decennial census of population. (subdivision de recensement)

immigration services

immigration services[Repealed, SOR/2019-242, s. 1]

Method I

Method I[Repealed, SOR/2019-242, s. 1]

regional economic development agency

regional economic development agency means the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario and the Department of Western Economic Diversification. (organisme de développement économique régional)

route

route means

• (a) for the purposes of paragraphs 7(4)(c) and (d), a route on which a federal institution provides the travelling public with a transportation service by aircraft or train that is carried out by a single conveyance, and

• (b) for the purposes of subsection 7(2) and paragraph 7(4)(e), a route on which a federal institution provides the travelling public with a two-way transportation service by aircraft, train or ferry between the starting and finishing points of a flight, train run or ferry crossing that is carried out by a single conveyance between those two points, with or without intermediate stops. (trajet)

2.1 For the purposes of paragraph 32(2)(a) of the Act and these Regulations, English or French linguistic minority population means all persons, in a province in which an office or facility of a federal institution is located, for whom the first language, or one of the first languages, learned at home in childhood and still understood, is the minority official language and those who speak the minority official language at home, as determined by Statistics Canada based on the published data from the most recent decennial census of population.

PART ISignificant Demand

3 [Repealed, SOR/2019-242, s. 3]

Calculation of Population Numbers

4 For the purposes of this Part, the number of persons of the English or French linguistic minority population in a province, CMA, CSD or service area is equal to the total number of the persons for whom the first language, or one of the first languages, learned at home in childhood and still understood, is the minority official language and those who speak the minority official language at home, as determined by Statistics Canada based on the published data from the most recent decennial census of population.

General Circumstances

• 5 (1) For the purposes of paragraph 22(b) of the Act, there is significant demand for communications with and services from an office or facility of a federal institution in both official languages where

  • (a) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has at least 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and is the only office or facility of the institution in the CMA that provides a certain service;

  • (b) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has at least 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CMA that provide the same services and those services are not available in both official languages at a proportion of those offices or facilities that is at least equal to the proportion of that population in the CMA to the total population in the CMA or, if the number representing that proportion of offices is equal to less than one, at at least one of those offices or facilities, the choice of which depends on

    • (i) the distribution of the English or French linguistic minority population within the CMA,

    • (ii) the mandate of the offices or facilities that provide those services, their clientele and their location within the CMA, and

    • (iii) the advice received after consultation with the English or French linguistic minority population that is served by those offices or facilities;

  • (c) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has a population of at least 1,000,000 persons, the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CMA that provide any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (f)(i) to (viii) and those services are not available in both official languages at a number of offices or facilities equal to one plus a proportion of those offices or facilities that is at least equal to the proportion of the English or French linguistic minority population in the CMA, the choice of which offices or facilities depends on
    

    • (i) the distribution of the English or French linguistic minority population within the CMA,

    • (ii) the mandate of the offices or facilities that provide those services, their clientele and their location within the CMA, and

    • (iii) the advice received after consultation with the English or French linguistic minority population that is served by those offices or facilities;

  • (d) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has fewer than 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and does not provide any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (f)(i) to (viii), and at that office or facility during a year at least 5% of the demand from the public for services is in the official language of that population;

  • (d.1) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has fewer than 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and the service area of the office or facility has at least one minority language primary or secondary public educational facility;

  • (e) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has fewer than 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and the service area of the office or facility has at least 5,000 persons of the linguistic minority population;

  • (f) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has fewer than 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and is the only office or facility of the institution in the CMA that provides

    • (i) services of a Service Canada Centre of the Department of Employment and Social Development,

    • (ii) services of a passport point of service,

    • (iii) services of a post office,

    • (iv) services of an office of the Business Development Bank of Canada,

    • (v) services of an office of the Canada Revenue Agency,

    • (vi) services of an office of the Department of Canadian Heritage,

    • (vii) services of an office of the Public Service Commission, or

    • (viii) services of a regional economic development agency;

  • (g) the office or facility is located in a CMA that has fewer than 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CMA that provide any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (f)(i) to (viii) and those services are not available in both official languages at a proportion of those offices or facilities that is at least equal to the proportion of that population in the CMA to the total population in the CMA or, if the number representing that proportion of offices or facilities is less than one, at at least one of those offices or facilities, the choice of which depends on

    • (i) the distribution of the English or French linguistic minority population within the CMA,

    • (ii) the mandate of the offices or facilities that provide those services, their clientele and their location within the CMA, and

    • (iii) the advice received after consultation with the English or French linguistic minority population that is served by those offices or facilities;

  • (h) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD and

    • (i) the service area of the office or facility has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and the number of those persons is equal to at least 5 per cent of the total population of that service area,

    • (ii) the service area of the office or facility has at least 5,000 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population,

    • (iii) the office or facility serves the CSD and is the only office or facility of the institution in the CSD that provides a certain service, the CSD has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population and the number of those persons is equal to at least 5 per cent of the total population in the CSD, or

    • (iv) the service area of the office or facility includes all or part of two or more provinces in which the languages of the English or French linguistic minority populations are not the same;

  • (h.1) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD and the service area of the office or facility has at least one minority language primary or secondary public educational facility;

  • (i) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to at least 5 per cent and less than 30 per cent of the total population in the CSD, the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CSD that provide the same services and those services are not available in both official languages at a proportion of those offices or facilities that is at least equal to the proportion of that population in the CSD to the total population in the CSD or, if the number representing that proportion of offices is equal to less than one, at at least one of those offices or facilities, the choice of which depends on

    • (i) the distribution of the English or French linguistic minority population within the CSD,

    • (ii) the mandate of the offices or facilities that provide those services, their clientele and their location within the CSD, and

    • (iii) the advice received after consultation with the English or French linguistic minority population that is served by those offices or facilities;

  • (j) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to at least 30 per cent of the total population in the CSD and the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CSD that provide the same services;

  • (k) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to less than 5% of the total population in the CSD, the office or facility does not provide any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (l)(i) to (ix) and at that office or facility during a year at least 5% of the demand from the public for services is in the official language of the English or French linguistic minority population;

  • (l) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to less than 5 per cent of the total population in the CSD and the office or facility is the only office or facility of the institution in the CSD that provides

    • (i) services of a Service Canada Centre of the Department of Employment and Social Development,

    • (ii) services of a passport point of service,

    • (iii) services of a post office,

    • (iv) services of an office of the Business Development Bank of Canada,

    • (v) services of an office of the Canada Revenue Agency,

    • (vi) services of an office of the Department of Canadian Heritage,

    • (vii) services of a detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police,

    • (viii) services of an office of the Public Service Commission, or

    • (ix) services of a regional economic development agency;

  • (m) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to less than 5% of the total population in the CSD, the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CSD that provide any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (l)(i) to (ix) and those services are not available in both official languages at a proportion of those offices or facilities that is at least equal to the proportion of that population in the CSD to the total population in the CSD or, if the number representing that proportion of offices or facilities is less than one, at at least one of those offices or facilities, the choice of which depends on

    • (i) the distribution of the English or French linguistic minority population within the CSD,

    • (ii) the mandate of the offices or facilities that provide those services, their clientele and their location within the CSD, and

    • (iii) the advice received after consultation with the English or French linguistic minority population that is served by those offices or facilities;

  • (n) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 200 but fewer than 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to at least 5% of the total population in the CSD, the office or facility does not provide any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (l)(i) to (ix) and at that office or facility during a year at least 5% of the demand from the public for services is in the official language of the English or French linguistic minority population;

  • (o) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 200 but fewer than 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to at least 5% of the total population in the CSD, the office or facility is the only office or facility of the institution in the CSD that provides any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (l)(i) to (ix);

  • (p) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has at least 200 persons but fewer than 500 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to at least 5% of the total population in the CSD, the office or facility is one of two or more offices or facilities of the institution in the CSD that provides any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (l)(i) to (ix) and those services are not available in both official languages at a proportion of those offices or facilities that is at least equal to the proportion of that population in the CSD to the total population in the CSD or, if the number representing that proportion of offices is less than one, at least one of those offices or facilities, the choice of which depends on

    • (i) the distribution of the English or French linguistic minority population within the CSD,

    • (ii) the mandate of the offices or facilities that provide those services, their clientele and their location within the CSD, and

    • (iii) the advice received after consultation with the English or French linguistic minority population that is served by those offices or facilities;

  • (q) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the CSD has fewer than 200 persons of the English or French linguistic minority population, the number of those persons is equal to at least 30% of the total population in the CSD and the office or facility provides any of the services referred to in subparagraphs (l)(i) to (ix);

  • (r) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD that it serves, the number of persons of the English or French linguistic minority population in the CSD has not been determined by Statistics Canada, or cannot be disclosed by it for reasons of confidentiality, and at that office or facility during a year at least 5% of the demand from the public for services is in the official language of that population;

  • (s) the office or facility is located outside a CMA and within a CSD, the number of persons of the English or French linguistic minority population in the service area of the office or facility cannot be determined by Statistics Canada because of the nature of the service area or cannot be disclosed by Statistics Canada for reasons of confidentiality, and at that office or facility during a year at least 5% of the demand from the public for services is in the official language of that population; or

  • (t) the office or facility is located on an island that is accessible only by boat or by plane and the English or French linguistic minority population is equal to at least 30% of the total population of the island.

• (2) For the purposes of paragraph 22(b) of the Act, there is significant demand for communications with and services from an office or facility of a federal institution in the official language that is not the official language of the English or French linguistic minority population where the office or facility is located in Canada and is not an office or facility at which there is significant demand in both official languages under subsection (1).

• (3) For the purposes of paragraph 22(b) of the Act, there is significant demand for communications with and services from an office or facility of a federal institution in an official language where the office or facility is located outside Canada and at that office or facility over a year at least 5 per cent of the demand from the public for services is in that language.

• (3.1) For the purposes of paragraphs (1)(b), (c), (g), (h), (i), (j), (l), (m), (o), (p) and (q), there is significant demand for communications with and services from an office or facility of a federal institution in both official languages if there is currently a significant demand for communications with and services from the office or facility in both official languages under one of those paragraphs and the English or French linguistic minority population referred to in that paragraph has remained the same or has increased based on data from the most recent decennial census of population.

• (4) Subsections (1), (2) and (3) do not apply in respect of

  • (a) services described in paragraph 6(1)(a);

  • (b) an office or facility described in any of paragraphs 6(1)(b) and (e) and subsections 6(2) and 7(2) to (4).