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Healthcare staffing agencies: what the law still allows for a patient care attendant

The use of agencies ends on October 18, 2026 in the last regions. What is still allowed, the $41.96 an hour cap and the CNESST licence.

October 10, 2026 · Lire en français

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As of October 10, 2026, most hospitals, CHSLDs and residences in Quebec are no longer allowed to rent a patient care attendant from a healthcare staffing agency. The last deadline falls on October 18, 2026. Here is what the law and the regulation say. This text is not legal advice.

The 2023 law

The Loi limitant le recours aux services d'une agence de placement de personnel et à de la main-d'œuvre indépendante dans le secteur de la santé et des services sociaux (2023, chapter 8), the act limiting the use of staffing agencies and independent labour in the health and social services sector, received assent on April 20, 2023.

Its rule is now found in section 668 of the Act respecting the governance of the health and social services system: a provider cannot use a staffing agency or independent labour, except to the extent provided by government regulation.

The regulation and its three deadlines

The Règlement sur le recours aux services des agences de placement de personnel et à de la main-d'œuvre indépendante dans le domaine de la santé et des services sociaux (Order in Council 1485-2024 of October 9, 2024) replaced the first 2023 regulation. Its section 33 sets the deadline by region. The LégisQuébec version up to date as of June 1st, 2026 contains no postponement.

Use allowed until	Health regions	Status as of October 10, 2026
April 1st, 2025	Capitale-Nationale, Montréal, Chaudière-Appalaches, Laval, Montérégie	Deadline passed
October 19, 2025	Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Mauricie et Centre-du-Québec, Estrie, Lanaudière, Laurentides	Deadline passed
October 18, 2026	Bas-Saint-Laurent, Outaouais, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Côte-Nord, Nord-du-Québec, Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Nunavik	Still allowed for eight days

Source: regulation, section 33.

What is still allowed after October 18, 2026

Section 4 of the regulation still allows these providers to use an agency:

A family-type resource
A palliative care hospice
A religious institution that operates an infirmary or long-term care accommodation for its members
A private seniors' residence with 15 rental units or fewer, operated in the operator's main residence
An intermediate resource that takes in 15 users or fewer
The Centre régional de santé et de services sociaux de la Baie-James, the Centre de santé Inuulitsivik, the Centre de santé Tulattavik de l'Ungava and the CLSC Naskapi

Section 5 adds one case: rented staff who work exclusively in Nord-du-Québec, in Nunavik or in the territory of the CLSC Naskapi.

Section 669 of the act allows the minister, because of exceptional circumstances, to authorize a provider to use an agency for the period the minister determines.

$41.96 an hour, the cap for an attendant

Schedule I of the regulation sets the maximum hourly rate for the title of patient care attendant at $41.96. This is the amount the agency bills the provider, not your salary.

The cap does not apply in Nord-du-Québec or in Nunavik (section 18).

What the agency is not allowed to do

Section 9 of the regulation forbids an agency from supplying a provider with:

A person who, less than a year earlier, was employed by a provider in the same health region or in a neighbouring region
A person who has not completed the training required for their job title

Section 10 forbids it from enforcing a non-compete clause against a person who wants to be hired by a provider.

Penalties

Section 816 of the act provides for a fine of $1,000 to $25,000 for a natural person and $3,000 to $75,000 in other cases. It excludes agency staff members.

The CNESST licence

Section 92.5 of the Act respecting labour standards forbids operating a personnel placement agency without a licence issued by the CNESST (Quebec's labour standards and workplace safety board). Section 92.6 forbids a client enterprise from retaining the services of an unlicensed agency, and requires the CNESST to keep a public list of licence holders.

The Règlement sur les agences de placement de personnel et les agences de recrutement de travailleurs étrangers temporaires (regulation on personnel placement agencies and recruitment agencies for temporary foreign workers) protects the employee:

No fees for your assignment, for required training or for help preparing for interviews (section 23)
After 6 months of assignment, the agency can no longer prevent the client enterprise from hiring you (section 23)

Section 95 of the act makes the agency and the client enterprise jointly and severally liable for sums owed to the employee, including wages. Section 41.2 forbids the agency from paying you a lower rate than the client enterprise's employees who do the same tasks in the same establishment, solely because of your employment status.

What this changes for you

Agency work in a CHSLD, a hospital or a large residence ends everywhere on October 18, 2026, except in the North. An attendant who leaves an institution waits one year before an agency can place them in their region or in a neighbouring region. Direct hiring remains open. See where to apply as a patient care attendant.

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Frequently asked questions

Where can a PAB work?

The law names the network's settings: public and private institutions, including hospitals and CHSLDs, intermediate resources, family-type resources, private seniors' residences and palliative care hospices. Since the regulation's deadlines, the attendant there is almost always an employee of the setting itself. See also working in a CHSLD.

Can a patient care attendant still work for an agency in 2026?

Yes, but in few places. Until October 18, 2026, an agency can still place you in seven remote regions. After that date, what remains are small residences and resources with 15 places or fewer, family-type resources, palliative care hospices, infirmaries of religious institutions and the North.

How do I check whether a staffing agency has its licence?

The CNESST publishes the register of agency licence holders on its site. The agency must also display its licence in each of its establishments and put its licence number on its contracts, its invoices and its website (regulation, section 21).