The office
Frequently asked questions
The questions most often asked at the office. If yours is not here, write to us: the answer may well end up on this page.
Clear answers before your first step
Some questions come up often, even before an appointment with a notary is made.
Here you will find answers to common questions about consultations, notarial acts and various personal or family situations.
These answers give general guidance. Your situation may nevertheless call for a different analysis depending on the facts and documents involved.
Find your answer quickly
The questions are grouped by topic so you can more easily find the information that matches your situation.
Consultations and appointments
How a meeting works and how to prepare for it properly.
Do I need an appointment?
Yes. Meetings are by appointment, which makes it possible to prepare the file and set aside the time your questions need. You can reach the office by telephone or through the contact form.
In which languages can I be received?
French, English or Spanish. Say which you prefer at the first contact: meetings, explanations and preparatory documents will follow that language. Understanding exactly what you are signing is the very condition of valid consent.
How much do your services cost?
There is no imposed tariff for notaries in Québec. Fees are set according to the time spent on the file, its complexity and the nature of the work required, and they are presented to you before the work begins. A simple will and a will that organises the transfer of a business are not the same work.
How long should I allow?
It depends mostly on third parties whose pace no one controls. A property sale follows the date set in the promise to purchase if the file is complete; settling an estate takes several months, notably because the certificates from Revenu Québec and the Canada Revenue Agency are needed before any distribution; homologating a protection mandate also takes several months.
What do I bring to the first meeting?
Valid identification, and any document connected to your request even if it is incomplete or old. Better to bring a paper and learn it is of no use than to have to book a second appointment. The printable sheet below lists what to bring by type of file.
What to bring to a first meetingCan an act be signed remotely?
The law allows, under certain conditions and where the notary is in Québec, for a notarial act to be received remotely. It is a regulated possibility that does not suit every file: it is a question to raise at the first contact rather than at the end.
Notarial acts and services
To better understand the role of the notary and the steps that may require their involvement.
What is the difference between a notary and a lawyer?
A notary is a public officer: they advise every party to an act impartially and receive authentic acts. A lawyer represents one party’s interests, particularly in a dispute. You consult a notary so that things are done properly, and a lawyer once they have gone wrong.
Does a notarial will have to be probated after death?
No, and that is its practical difference from the other forms. A holograph will and a will made before witnesses must be probated by the court or by a notary after death, which takes weeks and blocks the estate meanwhile.
WillsWhat is the difference between a power of attorney and a protection mandate?
When each one applies. A power of attorney works while you are capable and ceases to have effect the day you are declared incapable, which is to say exactly the day people assumed it would be useful. The protection mandate takes over from there, and only once it has been homologated.
Protection mandateIs a notary compulsory to buy a house?
For the hypothec, yes: a deed of immovable hypothec must be received by a notary, en minute, on pain of nullity under article 2693 of the Civil Code of Québec. Without a notary there is no valid hypothec, and therefore no financing.
Real estate lawPersonal and family life
Answers to questions about family, couples, travel and certain stages of life.
Is a de facto spouse an heir in Québec?
As a rule no: in Québec a de facto spouse is not a legal heir, however long you lived together. Since 30 June 2025, spouses in a parental union, that is, who became the parents of the same child born or adopted from that date, are the exception and take one third of the estate.
Common-law partnership agreementCan a notary solemnise a civil marriage?
Yes. In Québec a notary entitled to receive notarial acts may solemnise civil marriages without special permission. Unlike a court clerk, who solemnises at the courthouse, a notary can do so wherever you choose.
Civil marriageCan the notary travel, or receive the act remotely?
A notarial act does not have to be signed at the office. The law allows a notary to receive an act elsewhere, and also to receive it remotely, under certain conditions and while the notary is in Québec. It is a question to raise at the first contact, because the answer depends on the act and on the situation: just say where the person is (at home, in hospital, in a residence or abroad) and you will be told what is possible.
My child is travelling without me: is a document needed?
The Government of Canada strongly recommends a consent letter when a child travels without one or both parents. It is not compulsory, but it can be asked for at the border; received before a notary, it carries a certain date and the signatories’ identity has been verified.
Child travel authorizationDidn’t find the answer to your question? Contact us.
Next step
A question about your situation?
Write to us or call the office. We will tell you which steps to follow and which documents to prepare.
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