Civil Code of Québec, 1991

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An adoptee or a parent of origin may register a contact veto, or allow contact subject to conditions, before identity is disclosed.

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Before identity is disclosed, the person sought must be told about the information request and allowed to register, keep, or withdraw a contact veto. If later found or able to express will again, that person must be allowed to keep or withdraw the veto.

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If a veto is registered by operation of law, the person concerned must be informed of the first information request and allowed to keep or withdraw the veto.

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An identity disclosure veto or a contact veto may be withdrawn at any time.

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583.10. Unless the parent of origin has registered an identity disclosure veto, the adoptee, including one under 14 years of age who has obtained the approval of his father and mother, of his parents or of his tutor, has the right to

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The adopter must inform the child that they were adopted and must also inform the child about identity disclosure and contact rules.

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For an adoption of a child domiciled outside Québec, the adoptee must be given the parent of origin’s identity and the documents they are entitled to, unless the child’s State of origin law provides different rules.

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A physician may get needed medical information from the relevant medical authorities if the doctor thinks the adoptee’s, a birth parent’s, or certain close relatives’ health warrants it, but only with the person’s consent or, without consent, court authorization. Anonymity must be preserved.

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This division applies to certain adoptable children and to their parents, including where the children have never been adopted.

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Married or civil union spouses, and first-degree direct-line relatives, owe each other support.

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Certain people may start support proceedings for a minor child, and a parent may also act for an adult child who cannot support himself unless the child objects.

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587. In awarding support, account is taken of the needs and means of the parties, their circumstances and, as the case may be, the time needed by the creditor of support to acquire sufficient autonomy. 1991, c. 64, a. 587.

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587.1. As regards the support owed to a child by his parents, the basic parental contribution, as determined pursuant to the rules for the determination of child support payments adopted under the Code of Civil Procedure (chapter C-25.01),

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A parent’s support for a child is based on that parent’s share of the basic parental contribution, with possible adjustments for specified child expenses.

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Parents may make a private child-support agreement that differs from the usual rules if the court is satisfied the child’s needs are adequately provided for.

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The court may award provisional support to the creditor of support during the proceedings.

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Support is payable as a pension, but the court may exceptionally replace or complete it with a lump sum paid all at once or by instalments.

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If support is payable as a pension, it is indexed each year on 1 January under the annual Pension Index.

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If the court considers it necessary, it may order the debtor to provide enough security beyond the legal hypothec for support payments, or it may order a trust to secure those payments.

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If the debtor offers to take the creditor of support into his home, the debtor may be dispensed from paying all or part of the support if circumstances permit.

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A creditor may pursue support remedies against one or more debtors, and the court sets how much each sued or impleaded debtor must pay.

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594. The judgment awarding support, whether or not the support is indexed or recalculated, may be reviewed by the court whenever warranted by circumstances. However, a judgment awarding payment of a lump sum may be reviewed only if it has

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Child support may be claimed for needs that existed before the application, but there are time limits and exceptions.

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A debtor facing claimed arrears may ask to be released from paying all or part of them based on a post-judgment change in condition.

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Parents must share income information and provide required documents when asked, to update child support.

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Every child must respect his or her father and mother, or parents, regardless of age.

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A child remains under the authority of the father and mother, or of the parents, until majority or emancipation.

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Parents have custody, supervision, and education duties for their children, must maintain them, and must exercise authority without violence.

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The father and mother, or the parents, exercise parental authority together.

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The person having parental authority may delegate custody, supervision, or education of the child.

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An unemancipated minor may not leave the minor’s domicile without consent from the person having parental authority.

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603. Where the father or the mother or the parent performs alone any act of authority concerning their child, they are, with regard to third persons in good faith, presumed to be acting with the consent of the other. 1991, c. 64, a. 603;

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A parent may request certain health or social services for a child without the other parent’s consent if there is family or sexual violence by that other parent, but must first obtain an attestation.

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If there are difficulties in exercising parental authority, the person with parental authority may bring the matter to court.

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Parents keep the right to supervise their children’s maintenance and education, and must contribute to those costs according to their means, even if custody is with a parent or a third person.

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The court may deprive parents or another person of parental authority, or withdraw part of that authority, for grave reasons and in the child’s interest, including family violence or sexual violence.

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The court may designate who will exercise parental authority, and may seek the tutorship council’s advice or appoint a tutor in the child’s interest.

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Deprivation applies to all minor children born when the judgment is made, unless the court decides otherwise.

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Deprivation exempts the child from the obligation to provide support, unless the court decides otherwise.

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A parent deprived of parental authority, or of an attribute of it, may have that authority restored if new circumstances are alleged, subject to adoption provisions.

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A child’s relations with grandparents, and sometimes a former spouse of a parent, may be maintained or developed if it is in the child’s interest and, for older children, with the required consent or court determination.

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The court may review decisions concerning the children at any time if circumstances warrant it.

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613. The succession of a person opens by his death, at the place of his last domicile. The succession devolves according to the prescriptions of the law unless the deceased has, by testamentary provisions, provided otherwise for the

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614. In settling succession to property, the law considers neither the origin nor the nature of the property; all the property constitutes a single patrimony. 1991, c. 64, a. 614; I.N. 2014-05-01.

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If a person dies leaving property outside Québec or claims against non-residents, letters of verification may be obtained under the Code of Civil Procedure.

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616. Where persons die and it is impossible to determine which survived the other, they are deemed to have died at the same time if at least one of them is called to the succession of the other. The succession of each then devolves to the

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Some persons may inherit if they meet the timing and status rules in this section.

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The State, legal persons, and trustees may receive by will in the ways described in this section.

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A successor who accepts an intestate succession, universal legacy, or legacy by general title is treated as an heir from the opening of the succession.

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Certain persons are unworthy to inherit by operation of law.

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Certain persons may be declared unworthy of inheriting.

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An heir is not unworthy of inheriting if the deceased knew the cause of unworthiness and still gave a benefit or did not change the liberality when able to do so.

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A successor may apply to court within one year to have an heir declared unworthy of inheriting, if the heir is not already unworthy by operation of law.

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A married or civil union spouse who acted in good faith inherits if the marriage or civil union is later declared null after the death.

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Heirs are seized of the deceased’s patrimony, subject to succession liquidation rules.

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A successor is entitled to have heirship recognized within 10 years from the opening of the succession or from the day the right arises.

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An apparent heir must restore anything received from the succession without right when the successor’s heirship is recognized.

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628. Any person who is unworthy of inheriting and who has received property from the succession is deemed to be an apparent heir in bad faith. 1991, c. 64, a. 628; I.N. 2014-05-01.

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True heirs must reimburse obligations of the deceased that the apparent heirs paid from property other than the succession.

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Every successor has the right to accept or renounce the succession.

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No one may exercise an option or make a stipulation about a succession that has not yet opened, even if the person whose succession it is consents.

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A successor has six months from the day his right arises to deliberate and exercise an option, and the period may be extended so he gets 60 days from closure of the inventory. A judgment may not be rendered against the successor as an heir during that deliberation period unless he has already accepted the succession.

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A successor who knows they are an heir must renounce within the deliberation period, unless the court extends it; otherwise acceptance is presumed. If the successor does not know they are an heir, the court may set a time to exercise the option, and failing to do so means renunciation is presumed.

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If a successor renounces within the deliberation period in article 632, the succession bears the lawful expenses incurred up to that time.

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If a successor dies before exercising the option, the successor’s heirs must deliberate and exercise that option within the allotted period.

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A person may have an exercised option annulled on the grounds and within the time prescribed for nullity of contracts.

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Acceptance can be express, tacit, or arise from the law.

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A succession to a minor, certain persons under tutorship or protection mandate, or an absentee is treated as accepted unless it is renounced within the time allowed for deliberation and exercising the option.

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Certain acts by the successor are treated as acceptance of the succession.

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If the successor knows the liquidator has refused or neglected to make the inventory, the succession is presumed accepted unless the successor makes the inventory or applies to court within 60 days after the six-month deliberation period expires.

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Transferring a person’s rights in a succession, whether by gift or for value, counts as acceptance. The same applies to renunciation in favour of coheirs, including gratuitous renunciation, and to renunciation for value even if it benefits all coheirs equally.

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Certain conservatory, supervisory, and provisional administration acts do not alone count as acceptance of the succession.

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Some distributions of a deceased person's belongings, and acceptance of a burial site transfer, do not by themselves count as acceptance of the succession.

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643.1. Remittance of a share of the balance of a demand deposit account to the surviving co-holder under section 3 of the Act respecting remittance of deposits of money to account co-holders who are spouses or former spouses (chapter

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A successor may sell perishable succession property before a liquidator is designated, or give it to charities or other successors if no buyer is found in time.

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Acceptance confirms a transmission that occurred by operation of law at death.

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Renunciation may arise from the law, and express renunciation must be made by notarial act en minute or by a recorded judicial declaration.

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If a person renounces, they are treated as never having been a successor.

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A successor may renounce the succession if the successor has not done anything that amounts to acceptance and if no final judgment has been rendered against the successor as an heir.

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A successor who has renounced a succession keeps the right to accept it for 10 years, unless another person has already accepted the succession.

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A successor who has been unaware of the heirship, or who has not made it known, for 10 years from the day the right arose is deemed to have renounced the succession.

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A successor who acts in bad faith by hiding, concealing, or omitting succession property from the inventory is deemed to have renounced the succession, even if they previously accepted it.

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Creditors of a renouncing successor may apply to court within one year, if the renunciation prejudices their rights, and may accept the succession in place of their debtor.

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653. Unless otherwise provided by testamentary provisions, a succession devolves to the surviving married, civil union or parental union spouse and relatives of the deceased, in the order and according to the rules provided in this Title.

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654. The surviving spouse’s heirship is not dependent on the renunciation of his or her rights and benefits arising from marriage, civil union or parental union. 1991, c. 64, a. 654; 2002, c. 6, s. 39; 2024, c. 22, s. 7.

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Relationship is based on filiation by birth or by adoption.

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The degree of relationship is measured by generations, with each generation counting as one degree.

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The provision defines “direct line” and says its degrees equal the number of generations between the successor and the deceased.

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The section defines direct line of descent and direct line of ascent.

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A child born from a sexual assault is treated as the first-degree descendant of the person who committed the assault for succession purposes, even without filiation. Sexual assault may also be proved by a judgment recognizing it.

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If sexual assault is proved, the court may order analysis of a bodily substance sample to establish the offender’s genetic profile.

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The collateral line means the degrees between people who descend from a common ancestor rather than from one another.

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Representation is a legal rule allowing a relative to take a succession when the relative’s ascendant would have taken it but cannot because the ascendant died earlier or at the same time, or is unworthy.

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There is no limit to representation in the direct line of descent.

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Representation does not apply in favour of ascendants, except that the nearer ascendant in each line excludes the more distant.

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663. In the collateral line, representation takes place, between privileged collaterals, in favour of the descendants in the first degree of the brothers and sisters of the deceased, whether or not they compete with them and, between

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664. No person who has renounced a succession may be represented, but a person whose succession has been renounced may be represented. 1991, c. 64, a. 664.

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665. In all cases where representation is permitted, partition is effected by roots. If one root has several branches, the subdivision is also made by roots in each branch, and the members of the same branch share among themselves by

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If the deceased leaves a spouse and descendants, the succession passes to them; the spouse receives one-third and the descendants receive two-thirds.

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667. Where there is no spouse, the entire succession devolves to the descendants. 1991, c. 64, a. 667.

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Descendants who inherit in the same degree and in their own right share equally by heads; if there is representation, they share by roots.

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Unless there is representation, the descendant in the closest degree takes the share of the descendants, excluding the others.

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The parents of a deceased person are privileged ascendants, and the deceased person's siblings and their first-degree descendants are privileged collaterals.

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671. Where there are neither descendants, privileged ascendants nor privileged collaterals, the entire succession devolves to the surviving spouse. 1991, c. 64, a. 671.

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672. Where there are no descendants, two-thirds of the succession devolves to the surviving spouse and one-third to the privileged ascendants. 1991, c. 64, a. 672.

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673. Where there are no descendants and no privileged ascendants, two-thirds of the succession devolves to the surviving spouse and one-third to the privileged collaterals. 1991, c. 64, a. 673.

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If there are no descendants and no surviving spouse, the succession is divided equally between privileged ascendants and privileged collaterals. If there are no privileged ascendants, the privileged collaterals take the whole succession, and vice versa.

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675. Where the privileged ascendants inherit, they share equally; where only one of the privileged ascendants inherits, he takes the share that would have devolved to the other. 1991, c. 64, a. 675.

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Privileged collaterals inherit the deceased’s succession by blood relationship rules.

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Ordinary ascendants and collaterals are excluded from the succession unless the deceased left no spouse, no descendants, and no privileged ascendants or collaterals.

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678. If the ordinary collaterals include descendants of the privileged collaterals, these descendants take one-half of the succession and the other half devolves to the ascendants and the other collaterals. Where there are no descendants

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The deceased’s succession is split equally between paternal and maternal lines, and within each line, heirs take per capita.

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The second-degree ascendant in each line takes the share for that line, unless other ordinary ascendants or collaterals are excluded; if no second-degree ascendant exists in a line, the share passes to the closest ordinary collaterals descended from that ascendant.

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If there are no ordinary collaterals descended from the ascendants in the second degree in a line, that line’s share passes to the ascendants in the third degree, or if none exist, to the nearest ordinary collaterals descended from them, and so on until no relatives within the succession degrees remain.

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682. If there are no relatives within the degrees of succession in one line, the relatives in the other line inherit the entire succession. 1991, c. 64, a. 682.

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683. Relatives beyond the eighth degree do not inherit. 1991, c. 64, a. 683.

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A creditor of support may claim a financial contribution from the succession within six months after death.

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A support contribution may be paid as a lump sum all at once or in instalments.

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When fixing support, the decision-maker must consider the creditor’s needs and means, circumstances, time needed to become self-sufficient, and in some cases the deceased’s prior support payments. It must also consider the succession’s assets, benefits received from the succession, the heirs’ and particular legatees’ needs and means, and any support rights of other persons.

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687. Where the contribution is claimed by the spouse or a descendant, the value of the liberalities made by the deceased by act inter vivos during the three years preceding the death and those having the death as a term are considered to

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A contribution for a spouse or descendant may not exceed the difference between one-half of the share they could have claimed if the whole succession, including liberalities, had devolved by law, and what they receive from the succession.

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If the succession’s assets are not enough to fully pay contributions owed to a spouse or descendant, the court may reduce certain liberalities.

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690. Any alienation, security or charge granted by the deceased for a prestation clearly of smaller value than that of the property at the time it was made is presumed to be a liberality. 1991, c. 64, a. 690.

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Benefits under certain retirement plans or life-insurance contracts are treated as liberalities in specified circumstances, but rights under those benefits may be transferred or seized to pay support due under the chapter.

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Education or maintenance costs and customary presents are not treated as liberalities unless they are manifestly exaggerated, considering the deceased person’s means.

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Reduction of liberalities is taken against one or more beneficiaries, and the court may fix each sued beneficiary’s share if needed.

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If the parties do not agree, the court sets the conditions for payment of the reduction, including guarantee and payment terms. Payment in kind cannot be ordered, but the debtor may be discharged at any time by handing over the property.

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Property is valued at the condition and value rules stated here for a succession.

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If the deceased has no qualifying spouse or relatives, if all successors renounce, or if no successor is known or claims the succession, the State takes the succession property situated in Québec by operation of law.

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The State is not an heir, but takes the bequeathed property when all known successors renounce the succession, or six months after death if no successor is known or claims the succession.

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The Minister of Revenue exercises seisin of a succession that falls to the State.

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The Minister of Revenue acts as liquidator of the succession, subject to the Unclaimed Property Act.

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The Minister of Revenue must account to the Minister of Finance when a liquidation ends, publish notice of that end, and state the residue of the succession and the time allowed for successors to assert heirship rights.

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The Minister of Revenue must transfer the residue of a succession to the Minister of Finance after accounting, and qualifying heirs may recover those amounts from the Minister of Revenue within 10 years, with daily compounded interest.

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An heir who claims the succession before liquidation ends takes it as it is, but may claim damages if legal formalities were not observed.

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A person with the required capacity may, by will, direct how all or part of their property will devolve on death instead of following the law.

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A will is a revocable legal act, and it cannot be made jointly by two or more persons.

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705. The act is a will even if it contains only provisions regarding the liquidation of the succession, the revocation of previous testamentary provisions or the exclusion of an heir. 1991, c. 64, a. 705; I.N. 2015-11-01.

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A person may not renounce, even in a marriage or civil union contract, the right to make a will, dispose of property in contemplation of death, or revoke testamentary provisions, except within the limits of article 1841.

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707. The capacity of the testator is considered relatively to the time he made his will. 1991, c. 64, a. 707.

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A minor may not dispose of property by will, except for property of little value.

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A court may confirm a will made by an adult after tutorship or homologation of a protection mandate if the will’s provisions and the circumstances of its making allow it.

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Section 710 is repealed.

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A tutor or mandatary may not make a will for the person represented, whether alone or together with that person.

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A will may only be made as a notarial will, a holograph will, or a will made in the presence of witnesses.

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Wills must follow the required formalities, or they are void. A will that fails the requirements for its own form can still be valid if it satisfies the requirements of another form.

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A defective holograph will or witnessed will can still be valid if it meets the essential requirements and clearly contains the deceased’s last wishes.

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No one may make the validity of a will depend on a formality not required by law.

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A notarial will must be executed by a notary, with a witness or, in some cases, two witnesses, and the will must note the date and place it was made.

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A notarial will must be read by the notary, and the testator must then declare it expresses the testator’s last wishes and sign the will with the witness or witnesses and the notary.

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If special formalities for certain wills apply, the act must state why they were observed.

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719. The notarial will of a testator who cannot sign contains a declaration by him to that effect. This declaration also is read by the notary to the testator in the presence of two witnesses, and it compensates for the absence of the

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A notary must read a blind person’s notarial will to the testator in the presence of two witnesses, and must also include and read a declaration that the notary has done so.

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Rules for a deaf testator’s notarial will: the testator reads the will, and if able, reads it aloud; the declaration must also be made or read in the prescribed presence depending on whether the testator can speak.

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If a person cannot speak aloud and wants to make a notarial will, the person must convey those wishes to the notary in writing.

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A qualifying deaf person may make a notarial will through a sign-language interpreter.

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A notary must not execute a notarial will if the notary is the testator’s spouse or a close relative by blood or by marriage/civil union within the third degree.

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A notary who drew up a will may be named as liquidator if they do that job without pay.

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A witness to a notarial will must be named and described in the will, and most adults may serve as witnesses.

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A holograph will must be written entirely by the testator and signed by the testator.

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