If you’re guilty of anything on this page, get yourself to prison!
TAKING YOUR SPOUSE’S LAST NAME. In most Western countries it’s fairly easy for a person to change her (or his) last name upon marriage. The gender equality movement meant that it wasn’t automatic, and women were able to keep their last name after marriage. But in Quebec, a law passed in 1981 makes it nearly impossible to do so. The procedures for name change in Quebec leave the decision up to the director of civil status, who needs a serious reason, and the way the law is written, getting married is not a good enough reason.
BABY WALKERS. You know those little wheeled soft seats with their attached disc-like table contraptions your parents put you in when you weren’t-quite-walking-yet that allowed you to bump around the house and feel like you were walking? Well, apparently they were pretty much terrible for you. They may delay motor development, and can lead to injury. Canada banned them in 2004. Walkers are illegal to buy and sell, and possession can earn a fine of up to $100,000 and a six-month prison term.
SECOND-HAND MATTRESSES. Canada got serious about bedbugs and has outlawed the import of used mattresses. Anyone moving to Canada is prohibited by the Canada Border Services Agency from bringing their used mattress into the country, unless they can verify that the mattress has been cleaned and fumigated.
PAYING WITH PENNIES. The Canadian Currency Act defines legal tender when it comes to coins. Specifically, a one-cent coin is only legal tender up to 25 cents. So if you buy a cup of coffee and only have pennies to pay with, you could, technically, be in trouble. Nobody’s going to arrest you, but the cashier does have the right to reject all-pennies. Likewise, if you only have five cent coins, your money’s only good up to $5; it’s good for $10 if you have coins that are worth anywhere from 10 cents to less than $1; you can pay for as much as $25 in $1-coins; and as much as $40 “if the denomination is $2 or greater but does not exceed $10.” Whew, got all that?
There haven’t been mail deliveries on Saturday in Canada since 1969.