How to verify a Quebec contractor's licence in 2026 (3-minute guide)
Quebec has arguably the most open licensing register in North America — the full active-licence dataset is published daily under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY-4.0). Homeowners get exceptionally clean self-verify access. This guide walks the RBQ public portal in six steps.
Data provenance — open dataset under CC-BY-4.0
AskBaily's Quebec licence cache refreshes nightly from the Données Québec open-data dataset (licencesactives), published by RBQ under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Commercial use and redistribution are explicitly permitted with attribution to “Régie du bâtiment du Québec / Gouvernement du Québec.” Every RBQ licence check surfaced in AskBaily carries that attribution.
Our cache is refreshed nightly. For material decisions — signing a contract, sending a deposit — also check the live RBQ portal for the very latest status.
The source of truth: Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ)
Quebec's Building Act (R.Q. c. B-1.1) requires every contractor performing construction work over $25,000 CAD to hold an RBQ licence. The RBQ publishes every licence — active, suspended, revoked — on a free public portal available in English and French.
Six steps to verify
- Step 1
Get the 10-digit RBQ licence number
Quebec RBQ licences follow the format XXXX-XXXX-XX — exactly 10 digits, usually dash-formatted. Every RBQ-licensed contractor in Quebec must display this number on contracts, invoices, advertising, and vehicles. For any construction work over $25,000 CAD in Quebec, the contractor MUST hold an RBQ licence — it is a statutory requirement under the Building Act (RBQ Act R.Q., c. B-1.1).
- Step 2
Open the RBQ public lookup
Navigate to the RBQ 'Verify a contractor's licence' page — rbq.gouv.qc.ca/en/online-services/licence/check-a-contractors-licence/ (English) or rbq.gouv.qc.ca/citoyen/outils-en-ligne-et-demandes/verifier-une-licence-dentrepreneur.html (French). The tool is free, public, requires no account. Enter the 10-digit number and click Search / Rechercher.
- Step 3
Read the licence status
RBQ publishes status labels in French. Look for 'Active' / 'En vigueur' (valid). Other values indicate a problem: 'Suspendue' (suspended), 'Révoquée' (revoked), 'Expirée' (expired), 'Restreinte' (restricted). Any non-active status means the contractor cannot legally perform construction work above the $25,000 CAD threshold until resolved. Restricted licences mean the contractor can only perform work in specific subclasses — read the detail carefully.
- Step 4
Read the licence classes and subclasses
RBQ classifies licences into 17+ classes with extensive subclasses. Class 1.1.1 (General Building Contractor — Residential) is the baseline for residential renovation. Class 1.2 is Commercial. Subclasses cover specific trades — 4.1 concrete, 8.1 electrical, 15.1 HVAC. A contractor listed as subclass 8.1 only cannot legally bid a full residential remodel; you need someone with 1.1.1 or 1.1.2 for multi-trade residential.
- Step 5
Confirm the financial guarantee and insurance
RBQ requires a financial guarantee (cautionnement) — contractor-specific amount, typically $20,000 CAD for small residential. Quebec additionally requires $2,000,000 CAD in civil liability insurance for residential GCs. Ask the contractor for a current Certificat d'assurance responsabilité civile — compare the expiration date to your project schedule. Quebec has the strictest civil liability floor of any Canadian province.
- Step 6
Check for decisions and dispositions
RBQ publishes 'Décisions' — disciplinary orders, convictions, and suspensions — on each licence record. Click the 'Décisions' or 'Dispositions' tab if visible. A single administrative sanction from years ago is minor. Multiple enforcement actions or a pattern of consumer complaints (plaintes) is a serious signal. When in doubt, call RBQ directly at 1-800-361-0761 — their consumer line is fluent in English and French.
Red flags
- Licence statut is Suspendue, Révoquée, Expirée, or Restreinte
- Contractor's class/subclass does not cover your project type
- Business name or legal entity on RBQ does not match the contract
- Décisions tab shows multiple unresolved RBQ enforcement actions
- No current Certificat d'assurance responsabilité civile (required minimum $2M CAD)
- No cautionnement (financial guarantee) posted
Use AskBaily's free tool
Our /tools/contractor-check queries AskBaily's RBQ cache (refreshed nightly from Données Québec, attribution: Régie du bâtiment du Québec / Gouvernement du Québec, CC-BY-4.0). Free. No sign-up. Bilingual status labels translated into English. If the read differs from the live RBQ portal, always trust the live portal — our cache lags by 12-24 hours by design.
Frequently asked questions
Does every Quebec contractor need an RBQ licence?
For construction work over $25,000 CAD (labour + materials combined), yes — statutorily. For work below that threshold, some small handyman-scope work may be performed without an RBQ licence, but the protections of a licence (financial guarantee, civil liability, warranty through APCHQ or ACQ) disappear. Most Quebec homeowners hiring for renovation should insist on an RBQ-licensed contractor regardless of project size — the downside of hiring an unlicensed contractor is carrying all the risk yourself.
What does APCHQ / ACQ mean on the RBQ record?
APCHQ (Association des professionnels de la construction et de l'habitation du Québec) and ACQ (Association de la construction du Québec) are industry associations. Many RBQ contractors additionally carry APCHQ or ACQ warranties (Garantie de construction résidentielle, Garantie ACQ) for new-home and major-renovation work. A warranty-backed contractor is a stronger choice than a bare-minimum RBQ holder, especially for additions and new builds. The RBQ record notes warranty programme enrolment.
The RBQ portal is in French. Do I have to speak French?
The English version of the portal covers the full licence lookup flow (rbq.gouv.qc.ca/en/). The underlying licence detail renders some fields in French (statut, décisions, classes) because those are legal terms in Quebec French. The AskBaily glossary: Active = En vigueur; Suspended = Suspendue; Revoked = Révoquée; Expired = Expirée; Restricted = Restreinte. For anything ambiguous, call RBQ at 1-800-361-0761 — their staff are bilingual.
How fresh is AskBaily's Quebec data?
AskBaily refreshes its Quebec licence cache nightly from the open-data dump published by Données Québec. That dataset (licencesactives) is updated daily by RBQ and contains approximately 25,000-30,000 active licences. Our cache is usually 12-24 hours behind the RBQ live portal. For material decisions — signing a contract, sending a deposit — always also check the live RBQ portal just before you act. AskBaily is a convenience layer; RBQ is source of truth.
Attribution — where does your Quebec data come from?
AskBaily's Quebec licence data is sourced from the Données Québec open-data portal (donneesquebec.ca/recherche/dataset/licencesactives), published by RBQ under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY-4.0) licence. We credit Régie du bâtiment du Québec / Gouvernement du Québec as the source on every RBQ licence check surfaced by AskBaily. This is a genuine open-data partnership — Quebec is one of the most data-friendly jurisdictions in North America.
What's an RBQ Class 1.1.1 vs 1.1.2?
Both are General Building Contractor — Residential. Class 1.1.1 covers homes up to 3 storeys and not more than 600 m². Class 1.1.2 covers larger residential (up to 6 storeys). For a typical home renovation, 1.1.1 is fine. For condo-tower or multi-family projects, 1.1.2 is required. Always check the class matches your project scope before signing.