Official Languages Act (OLA)

The Official Languages Act (OLA) is Canada's federal statute recognizing English and French as the country's official languages. It provides for their equal status, rights and privileges in federal institutions, as described by FedNor's overview of official languages obligations.

The Act requires federal institutions to serve and communicate with the public in both official languages where the Act and its regulations apply. Treasury Board contracting policy carries that duty into purchasing, so the OLA shapes how federal solicitations are written, published and administered. See the Treasury Board policy text for the contracting requirements.

Which organizations the OLA covers

The OLA applies primarily to federal institutions. It does not govern provincial, territorial or municipal governments, provincial Crown corporations, or publicly funded academic institutions, schools and hospitals. The guidance on providing content in Canada's official languages sets out this scope. Its procurement requirements are applied alongside the Official Languages (Communications with and Services to the Public) Regulations and Treasury Board contracting policies and directives.

The Act is not the language framework for NATO. NATO has its own official languages, English and French, and maintains approved terminology that becomes mandatory throughout NATO and its structures once approved by the North Atlantic Council, as explained in NATO's article on a common language.

How official languages obligations run through a federal procurement

Official languages obligations apply to every phase of federal procurement, including planning, supplier communications, solicitation documents, contract requirements and contract administration. They apply to all contracts and contractual arrangements regardless of dollar value. The Treasury Board contracting policy notice states this directly.

Federal contracting authorities must also communicate with suppliers and contractors in both official languages and provide procurement information in both. The Treasury Board directive on contracting sets out that duty.

Bilingual tender notices and solicitation documents

Federal institutions using CanadaBuys must make tender opportunities available in English and French. Web content that a federal institution publishes or controls is also subject to official languages requirements, according to the CanadaBuys guidance on official languages content.

In procurements led by Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), the client department is responsible for professionally translated technical material that it originates. That includes statements of work, specifications, evaluation criteria, drawings and reports. PSPC ensures the procurement package is complete, and contracting authorities publish the applicable information bilingually. The PSPC and client responsibilities matrix details this split.

Procurement documents are generally bilingual, but a solicitation can identify sealed or incorporated documents available in only one official language under a specific clause, such as clause 4010T. An example appears in this tender amendment.

Contractors who serve the public for a department

Where a contractor communicates with or provides services to the public on behalf of a federal department, the contract must clearly state the applicable official languages requirements. This comes from the Treasury Board policy on official languages.

Professional services solicitations can add a language-of-work clause. These clauses identify whether work must be performed in English, French or both, and specify the language of deliverables and progress reports.

What the OLA means for a supplier bidding on federal contracts

Expect language requirements to be part of the bid, not an afterthought. Some calls for proposals require bidders to attest that they can deliver services in both official languages under the OLA. One example is this call for proposals.

• Check each solicitation for a bilingual capacity attestation and answer it only if you can meet it during performance.
• Confirm that proposed personnel meet any stated language proficiency requirements.
• Plan for bilingual meetings or materials where the contract calls for them.
• Check the language of work and the language of deliverables before pricing.
• Look for sealed or incorporated documents that are available in one official language only.

Because these obligations continue through contract administration, a bilingual commitment made at bid stage carries into delivery.