The Quebec government has taken a significant step to protect consumers from soaring ticket prices by introducing new legislation aimed squarely at the controversial secondary market. Tabled on Tuesday, the bill seeks to make it illegal, in most cases, to resell event tickets for more than their original face value.
Closing the Loophole on Resale Platforms
Under the proposed rules, tickets could only be sold above their face value with the explicit consent of the event’s organizer. This move directly targets major resale platforms, including one operated by Ticketmaster, which have facilitated a market where tickets for popular events are often scooped up and resold at massive markups.
The legislation builds upon a 2011 Quebec law that banned merchants from such markups without authorization. However, that law contained a critical loophole: it did not apply to individual sellers. The new bill aims to close this gap, bringing more comprehensive oversight to the entire resale ecosystem.
New Transparency and Consumer Protections
Beyond capping prices, the bill introduces several key consumer protection measures. When resales are permitted, resellers will be required to provide clear disclosures to buyers. They must inform customers that they are using a resale platform and that tickets might be available at a lower price from the original vendor.
Resellers would also have to disclose the name of the original ticket vendor and the last person who owned the ticket, adding a layer of transparency often missing in the current market. Furthermore, the bill mandates that resellers notify buyers of any changes to an event's time or location and prohibits vendors from charging consumers a fee simply to transfer a ticket.
Catalysts for Change and Wider Implications
Public outrage over ticket resale practices has been building for years. The debate reached a flashpoint in 2023 when media reports revealed that free admission vouchers for a memorial honoring Quebec singer Karl Tremblay were being offered on resale sites for as much as $500.
More recently, British singer Olivia Dean publicly criticized Ticketmaster on Instagram in late 2025, calling its service "disgusting" after resale prices surged for her upcoming tour, which includes a Montreal stop at the Bell Centre in August 2026. In response, Ticketmaster capped resale prices at face value for her shows and promised refunds for any markups already paid.
The Quebec bill also includes provisions unrelated to ticketing, targeting subscription services. It would require merchants who allow cancellations without cause to provide "a readily-identifiable button" that customers can use to cancel a subscription easily.
Other provinces have grappled with similar legislation. Manitoba, for instance, scrapped its own ban on marked-up ticket resales in 2023 after finding that out-of-province vendors, not subject to the ban, were dominating the market for events within the province.
If passed, Quebec's proposed law would represent one of the strongest stances in Canada against ticket resale price gouging, potentially setting a new standard for consumer protection in the live event industry.
