How do you incorporate a culture, entertainment or leisure business in Quebec?
To incorporate a culture or leisure business in Quebec, you form a business corporation, then declare the CAE code of your main activity, chosen among the 31 codes of the sector.
Production company, recording studio, movie theatre, artist agency, golf club, recreation centre or dance school: incorporation follows the same steps as for any other business. What is specific to your sector is the economic activity code (CAE) you enter in the corporation’s initial declaration. Incorporating a Quebec business corporation costs $497 all-inclusive, including the $397 government fee.
Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 33Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 33The registration declaration must state ( 1 ) the registrant’s name, domicile and, in the case of a natural person, date of birth as well as, if the registrant was previously registered, the registrant’s Québec business number; ( 2 ) any other name used by the registrant in Québec and by which the registrant is identified, either in carrying on an activity, which includes the operation of an enterprise, or for the purpose of the possession of an immovable real right, other than a prior claim or hypothec, if applicable; and ( 3 ) the registrant’s juridical form; ( 4 ) (subparagraph repealed). (…)Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 38Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 38If a legal person is registered on the deposit of its constituting instrument in the register, the legal person must file with the registrar, within 60 days after the date of registration, an initial declaration in compliance with the form and content prescribed for a registration declaration. If the initial declaration is filed after that period, the penalty prescribed in section 86 must be paid at the time of the filing.Regulation respecting the application of the Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 2Regulation respecting the application of the Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 2For the purposes of subparagraphs 7 to 9 of the second paragraph of section 33 of the Act, the classification system for registrants’ activities corresponds to the Classification des activités économiques du Québec published by the Bureau de la statistique du Québec in 1990 and its updates.
For the rest of the process:
- the incorporation steps;
- the cost of incorporating;
- the right time to incorporate;
- choosing a legal structure;
- after incorporation, your GST and QST numbers.
Which CAE code fits a culture or leisure business?
The “Culture, entertainment and leisure” sector has 31 CAE codes, from 9611 to 9699: audiovisual, movie theatres, performing arts, professional sports, sports clubs, gaming and leisure centres.
The codes fall into these groups:
- 9611 to 9619: film, video, audiovisual and sound recording;
- 9621 to 9629: movie theatres and outdoor screenings;
- 9631 to 9639: agencies, artists, theatres and shows;
- 9641 to 9644: professional sports and racetracks;
- 9651 to 9659: golf, curling, skiing, marinas and other sports clubs;
- 9661: lotteries and games of chance;
- 9691 to 9699: bowling, amusement parks, dance, coin-operated games, roller skating, botanical and zoological gardens, recreation centres.
Here are 22 of the 31 codes, with the exact labels of the Registraire des entreprises:
s. 2Regulation respecting the application of the Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 2For the purposes of subparagraphs 7 to 9 of the second paragraph of section 33 of the Act, the classification system for registrants’ activities corresponds to the Classification des activités économiques du Québec published by the Bureau de la statistique du Québec in 1990 and its updates.
No code in the sector carries an asterisk: none is restricted to members of a professional order.
All 31 codes are in our CAE search tool, filtered on culture and leisure.
Which CAE code fits an artist, writer or performer?
If you create or perform yourself, the code is 9632 “Artistes, auteurs et interprètes indépendants”; if you represent or book artists, it is 9631 “Agences de spectacles et d'artistes”.
The code follows what brings in most of your revenue, not your job title:
- musician, actor, writer or illustrator who bills for their works or performances: 9632;
- agency that negotiates contracts and fees for others: 9631;
- show producer or theatre company: 9639 — Autres théâtres et spectacles (other theatres and shows);
- studio that records other people’s music: 9614 — Services d'enregistrement du son (sound recording services).
Still working alone, without a corporation? The CAE code is also requested when you register a sole proprietorship; our guide for freelancers and self-employed workers explains that route and the move to a corporation.
s. 21 (1)Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 21 (1)The following are required to be registered: ( 1 ) natural persons who operate a sole proprietorship, whether or not a commercial enterprise, in Québec under a name that does not include their surname and given name; ( 2 ) general or limited partnerships constituted in Québec; ( 3 ) partnerships not constituted in Québec if they carry on an activity in Québec, which includes the operation of an enterprise, or possess an immovable real right, other than a prior claim or hypothec, in Québec; ( 4 ) legal persons established for a private interest and constituted in Québec; (…)s. 33Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 33The registration declaration must state ( 1 ) the registrant’s name, domicile and, in the case of a natural person, date of birth as well as, if the registrant was previously registered, the registrant’s Québec business number; ( 2 ) any other name used by the registrant in Québec and by which the registrant is identified, either in carrying on an activity, which includes the operation of an enterprise, or for the purpose of the possession of an immovable real right, other than a prior claim or hypothec, if applicable; and ( 3 ) the registrant’s juridical form; ( 4 ) (subparagraph repealed). (…)
Which CAE code fits a business with several activities?
Declare first the code of the activity that brings in most of your revenue, then the code of your second activity; an “Other…” code of the sector fits when nothing matches exactly.
The Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises requires you to declare, in the initial declaration, the business’s two main activities, in order of importance, with the code for each. Example: a video production company that also rents out its studio for sound recording declares 9615 first, then 9614.
s. 33LPLE, s. 33The registration declaration must state ( 1 ) the registrant’s name, domicile and, in the case of a natural person, date of birth as well as, if the registrant was previously registered, the registrant’s Québec business number; ( 2 ) any other name used by the registrant in Québec and by which the registrant is identified, either in carrying on an activity, which includes the operation of an enterprise, or for the purpose of the possession of an immovable real right, other than a prior claim or hypothec, if applicable; and ( 3 ) the registrant’s juridical form; ( 4 ) (subparagraph repealed). (…)
The sector has “Other…” codes when your activity has no label of its own:
- 9619 — Autres services relatifs aux films et au domaine de l'audiovisuel (other film and audiovisual services);
- 9629 — Autres salles de cinéma (other movie theatres);
- 9639 — Autres théâtres et spectacles (other theatres and shows);
- 9644 — Autres champs de course (other racetracks);
- 9659 — Autres clubs sportifs et services de loisirs (other sports clubs and recreation services);
- 9699 — Autres services de divertissement et de loisirs (other entertainment and recreation services).
In our search tool, code 9655 carries the same label as 9699; this guide only cites 9699.
Has your activity changed? The code is corrected with an updating declaration.
s. 41Act respecting the legal publicity of enterprises, s. 41The registrant must update the information required by sections 33 to 35.2 to be contained in the register concerning the registrant by filing an updating declaration within 30 days after the date on which any change occurs, unless a shorter period is prescribed by law. (…)
Which CAE code fits a campground, a museum, a radio station or a photographer?
Several activities close to culture and leisure belong to other sectors of the CAE tool: lodging, education, communications, manufacturing, retail, photography or business services.
If one of them brings in most of your revenue, your first code is in that sector:
- Food service, bars and lodging: codes 9111 to 9221, including 9131 Terrains de camping et parcs à roulottes (campgrounds and trailer parks) and 9149 Camps de vacances (summer camps);
- Education and training: 8551 Musées et archives (museums and archives), 8561 Bibliothèques (libraries);
- Transportation, storage and communications: 4811 Radiodiffusion (radio broadcasting), 4812 Télévision (television);
- Manufacturing: 2831 Industrie de l'édition du livre (book publishing), 3994 Industrie de la fabrication de supports d'enregistrement et de la reproduction du son (recording media manufacturing and sound reproduction);
- Retail: 6593 Galeries d'art et magasins de fournitures pour artistes (art galleries and artist supply stores);
- Personal and other services: 9931 Photographes (photographers), in the “Other services” sector;
- Business and professional services: if you mainly sell consulting, management or marketing to cultural businesses;
- a company that holds the shares of your cultural business: 7215 — Sociétés de portefeuille (holdings), see our holding company guide.
For public funding, see our directory of business grants, which lists federal, Quebec and regional programs.
Start your business online — $497 all-in
Complete online incorporation: articles of incorporation, initial declaration with the REQ and your NEQ — $497 all-in, government fees included.
Frequently asked questions about culture and leisure businesses
Is a dance school part of education or leisure?
In our CAE tool, leisure: code 9693 “Salles, studios et écoles de danse” (dance halls, studios and schools) is classified in the “Culture, entertainment and leisure” sector, not in “Education and training”.
Are golf clubs, ski resorts and marinas part of this sector?
Yes: 9651 “Clubs de golf” (golf clubs), 9652 “Clubs de curling” (curling clubs), 9653 “Installations de ski” (ski facilities) and 9654 “Location de bateaux et ports de plaisance” (boat rentals and marinas) are all codes of the “Culture, entertainment and leisure” sector.
Does a professional athlete have a CAE code of their own?
Yes: code 9642 is titled “Athlètes professionnels et promoteurs indépendants” (professional athletes and independent promoters). An incorporated team falls instead under 9641 “Clubs sportifs professionnels” (professional sports clubs).
Which CAE code fits a video content creator?
No label names content creators. If most of your revenue comes from videos you produce, 9615 “Production de films et de vidéos” (film and video production) is the closest; if you are first a performer or writer, 9632 “Artistes, auteurs et interprètes indépendants” (independent artists, writers and performers) may fit better.