In the legal sense, discrimination occurs when:

• The landlord’s words or actions result in an exclusion or distinction;
  
• This exclusion or distinction is based on a ground listed in the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms (sex, religion, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, etc.);
  
• This exclusion or distinction violates your right to equality.

Discrimination, as it pertains to housing, arises when you are prevented from renting the dwelling of your choice.

A landlord cannot refuse to rent a dwelling to you based on any of the grounds of discrimination listed in the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms ("the Charter").

The Charter forbids discrimination based on one or more personal characteristics. These characteristics include race, colour, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, civil status, age, religion, political convictions, language, ethnic or national origin, social condition, a handicap, or the use of any means to palliate a handicap.

Yes. A landlord can refuse to rent a dwelling to you if he thinks you are insolvent (unable to make your rent payments).

However, a landlord must not confuse insolvency with unemployment. You may be unemployed yet still fully capable of paying your rent with your employment insurance or social assistance benefits. It is discriminatory for a landlord to refuse to rent you a dwelling simply because you are unemployed.

To avoid this situation, you can give the landlord:

• a copy of your present lease that shows the rent you pay;
  
• a letter of reference from your present landlord;
  
• proof of your income (sufficient to pay your rent).

Nobody is going to state outright that they are discriminating against you. And no alarms are going to sound if someone does. To know if you are being discriminated against, you must read between the lines.

If a landlord refuses to rent a dwelling to you, feel free to ask why. Sometimes, the reason clearly indicates a violation of your right to equality under the Charter. If it does, you'll know that it's a case of discrimination.

Sometimes, the landlord or owner will be less blatant. Harsh stares, a disrespectful attitude, a change in behaviour, an abrupt manner in dealing with you: all these may be signs that a landlord or owner has a discriminatory attitude.

If you have been refused a dwelling without good reason, you can ask a friend to visit the landlord and find out if the dwelling is still for rent. Also, check if the “for rent” sign is still posted. If so, this may be proof of discrimination.

Here are some common examples of discrimination:

• You call a landlord inquiring about a place to rent. He seems very interested in showing you the dwelling. However, upon seeing you with children, he explains that his building is very quiet and that children would surely disturb the other tenants.
  
• While you and a landlord discuss your ability to pay rent, the landlord gets agitated when you tell him that you’re a student. He says that students are too noisy and never pay on time.
  
• You visit a dwelling for rent. Upon hearing your heavy accent, the landlord says that the dwelling has already been rented.
  
• You visit an apartment. The landlord explains that the other neighbours, because of their age, would not be happy living next to a same-sex couple.

If you believe that you have been refused a dwelling for unlawful reasons, try to find out why you were turned down. If the reason given seems discriminatory, you can inform the landlord that the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms prohibits him from refusing to rent the dwelling on those grounds. You can also let him know that you have the right to file a complaint with the Commission des droits et libertés de la personne.

If you do take your complaint to the Commission, the onus is on you to prove that you were the victim of discrimination. Your file must clearly show this. Any evidence will help: the landlord’s letter explaining the refusal, testimony from someone who visited the dwelling with you, a voicemail message from the landlord – all can be offered as evidence of discrimination.

A derogatory word or gesture towards you cannot constitute the sum of your proof. That's why it's a good idea to ask another person to visit the apartment with you. If anything odd happens, you will have a witness.

If the Commission des droits de la personne decides your complaint is valid, it will initiate an investigation and issue recommendations. It will also decide whether or not your complaint should be heard before the Tribunal des droits de la personne.

It’s important to note that the Régie du logement has no jurisdiction in a discrimination case if a landlord has refused to rent a dwelling to you. The Régie only has the power to intervene if there is a contract (be it written or oral) between a landlord and a tenant. So you can only file a complaint with the Régie during the course of a lease.

You can begin by calling the Commission to explain the situation. If it falls within their jurisdiction, they will send you a form that you must complete and return in order to file a formal complaint. It must be filed within two years of the discriminatory act or the time when you became aware of it.

This form contains questions you must answer: the contact information of the people involved, the form of discrimination, a summary of the facts, what you are seeking, etc.

You can also file a complaint by telephone, by mail, or in person at the office of the Commission that is closest to where you live.

Once the complaint has been filed, the Commission will carry out an investigation. They will gather any evidence (testimonies, confessions, pertinent documents, etc.) and use it to determine whether you have in fact been the victim of discrimination.

The Civil Code of Québec contains a provision that formally prohibits landlords or any other persons (neighbours, representatives of the landlord) from harassing you in an effort to get you to leave or to disrupt your peaceable enjoyment of the premises.

Harassment can come in the form of words and gestures, which, by themselves, may seem harmless, but violate your rights when taken together.

Harassment consists of intentional and repeated gestures and words that are vexatious, contemptuous, and unwelcome by the person to whom they are directed. They infringe on your rights, dignity, and integrity.

The following acts can constitute harassment: repeated telephone calls, misplaced comments and gestures concerning your gender or race, sexist or racist jokes, hurtful words, insults, blackmail, etc.

You are entitled to the peaceful enjoyment of your dwelling and the right to dignity and integrity. As such, you can file a complaint with either of the following:

• The Régie du logement: The Régie does not have jurisdiction to hear discrimination claims. Such a complaint should be filed with the Commission des droits de la personne. The Régie can, however, intervene if a request to cancel the lease is made as a result of harassment. Harassment coming from the landlord or tenants may be considered a violation of the right to peacefully enjoy property or a reduction in services. This could lead the landlord or tenant to file a complaint with the Régie.
  
  
• The Commission des droits de la personne: The Commission is equipped to hear complaints based on the illegal grounds of discrimination set out in the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.

Nothing prevents you from filing complaints with both the Régie du logement and the Commission des droits de la personne at the same time. For example, if a landlord is constantly harassing his tenant by making racist remarks, the tenant can file a complaint with the Commission on the basis of race discrimination. He can also go before the Régie du logement to request that his lease be cancelled due to loss of peaceful enjoyment of his dwelling.

A person found guilty of harassment may be ordered to pay punitive damages. This means that on top of paying the tenant an amount of money as compensation for the inconveniences caused, she may also have to pay an amount as punishment for the unlawful harassment.

The claim you file with the Régie du logement must be written and signed by you. You have to clearly and precisely explain your loss of peaceful enjoyment. The claim must be filed at the office of the Régie du logement in your region. The cost of filing is around $60. If you are receiving social assistance, you do not have to pay the fees, as long as you bring proof of your situation.