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Canada & Community · Compare and contrast two groups (House of Commons and Senate), and put the steps of a process in order

How Does a Bill Become a Law in Canada? Parliament's Steps

Follow a bill through Parliament from first reading to Royal Assent, compare the House of Commons with the Senate, and explain who does what at each step.

Suggested Grades 3–5412 core-passage words20 questions
What you’ll practisePut the main steps a bill follows in order, compare the House of Commons and the Senate (how members get their seats and what each chamber does), and explain what Royal Assent is.

Device/browser voice. Pronunciation and availability vary.

A bill is a proposal

Before a rule becomes a law in Canada, it starts as a bill. A bill is a proposal for a new law, written down so that people can read it, talk about it and vote on it. Many bills are never finished, so a bill is not a law yet.

Bills are numbered. A bill that starts in the House of Commons begins with the letter C, such as C-78. A bill that starts in the Senate begins with the letter S, such as S-4.[1]

Two chambers, one Parliament

Parliament has three parts: the Crown, the Senate and the House of Commons. The two chambers have different members. The House of Commons has 343 seats. Its members are elected by eligible Canadians to represent areas called ridings. The Senate has 105 seats. Senators are appointed by the Governor General, who represents the Crown, and they represent regions, provinces and territories.

Both chambers must agree on a bill. The bill has to be adopted by both Houses in identical form, which means the exact same words. Most bills may start in either chamber, but bills about spending or taxes must start in the House of Commons.[3]

The steps in the first chamber

At first reading, the bill is introduced. There is no debate or vote at this stage. At second reading, members debate the bill's general idea, and its text cannot be changed. If the bill is adopted at second reading, it goes to a committee.

A committee is a smaller group of members. It can hear from witnesses, studies the bill clause by clause and can propose amendments, which are changes to the words. At report stage, members can propose more amendments and the House votes on them. At third reading, members decide whether to adopt the bill in its final form. Then it is sent to the Senate.[2]

The second chamber and Royal Assent

The Senate follows a similar process. If the Senate passes the bill without changes, it tells the House of Commons, and Royal Assent normally follows shortly after. If the Senate amends the bill, the House of Commons decides whether to accept, change or reject the amendments, and the two Houses send messages back and forth.

Royal Assent is the last step. The Governor General grants it, either with a written declaration or in a traditional ceremony. Then the bill becomes law. It takes effect on that date or on a later date named in the law. A bill that is rejected, or that is not finished before Parliament's session ends, stops moving forward.[2]

Fast lesson

Use these checks before you answer the practice questions.

Make a step chart

Write the steps on cards: first reading, second reading, committee, report stage, third reading, the other chamber, Royal Assent. Mix them up and ask your child to put them in order and say what happens at each.

Compare with a table

Draw two columns, House of Commons and Senate. Fill in how members get their seats, how many seats there are and what the chamber does. Then circle what is the same.

Said versus inferred

The article states the steps and who does what. Reasons such as why a committee helps are inference. Ask your child to say which is which.

Neutral and factual

This reading explains a process. It does not name any party or politician, and it does not say whether any law is good or bad.

Common mistakes

Thinking a bill becomes a law after the House of Commons votes yes.

Why this fails: Both chambers must pass the bill in identical form, and then Royal Assent is given.

Thinking amendments can be made at any step.

Why this fails: The text cannot be amended at second reading. Changes are proposed in committee and at report stage, and the other chamber may amend too.

Thinking senators are elected like members of the House of Commons.

Why this fails: Senators are appointed by the Governor General. Members of the House of Commons are elected.

Word Lab

Use the meaning, hear the word, then try it in your own sentence.

bill

noun

a written proposal for a new law

A bill must be read and voted on.

law

noun

a rule made by a government that people must follow

A bill becomes a law after Royal Assent.

Parliament

noun

the group that makes federal laws in Canada: the Crown, the Senate and the House of Commons

Parliament meets in Ottawa.

chamber

noun

one of the two main meeting groups in Parliament

The Senate is one chamber.

senator

noun

a member of the Senate, appointed to the job

A senator is not elected.

riding

noun

an area that elects one member to the House of Commons

Each riding elects one member.

debate

verb

to discuss the good and weak points of an idea in an organized way

Members debate the bill's main idea.

committee

noun

a small group that studies a bill closely

The committee hears witnesses.

amendment

noun

a change to the words of a bill

The Senate proposed an amendment.

identical

adjective

exactly the same

Both chambers pass an identical bill.

Royal Assent

noun

the final approval that turns a passed bill into a law

The Governor General gives Royal Assent.

reading

noun

a named stage when a bill is formally dealt with in a chamber

First reading comes before second reading.

Check your understanding

Choose an answer, explain your choice, and then check. Hints and retries are welcome.

Main idea1. What is the article mainly about?
Show answer and explanation

Answer: The steps a bill follows through two chambers until it becomes a law. The headings follow a bill from proposal, to the two chambers, to the steps and Royal Assent. Voting in elections, bill numbers and choosing the Governor General are not the focus.

Detail2. What is a bill?
Show answer and explanation

Answer: A proposal for a new law. A bill is a proposal for a new law. It only becomes a law after both chambers pass it and Royal Assent is given, so it is not yet a law. Voting and ceremonies are parts of the process, not the meaning of the word.

Compare3. How do members get their seats in the two chambers?
Show answer and explanation

Answer: House of Commons members are elected, and senators are appointed by the Governor General. The article says Commons members are elected to represent ridings and senators are appointed by the Governor General. The first and last options say both chambers get members the same way, and the second swaps them.

Try the questions here. Public practice does not save a learning record.

Support · Find it in the text

Support · Find it in the text practice

Each answer is in the article. Point to the sentence.

Locate

1. What do the letters C and S at the start of a bill number tell you?

Locate

2. How many seats does the House of Commons have? How many does the Senate have?

Locate

3. What are the areas called that elect members to the House of Commons?

Locate

4. Which kinds of bills must start in the House of Commons?

Locate

5. What happens at first reading?

Locate

6. Who grants Royal Assent?

Apply · Order and explain

Apply · Order and explain practice

Use the steps and the comparison from the article.

Order

7. Put these in order: third reading, committee, first reading, second reading.

Compare

8. Give one way the House of Commons and the Senate are different and one way they are the same.

Explain

9. What is an amendment, and which steps let members propose one?

Choose

10. A bill has passed third reading in the House of Commons. What happens next?

  1. It goes to the Senate
  2. It becomes a law at once
Explain

11. What happens if the Senate changes a bill?

Explain

12. Is a bill that has passed third reading in one chamber a law? Explain.

Reason · Use the ideas

Reason · Use the ideas practice

Apply what you learned to new situations.

Apply

13. A bill is numbered S-4. Where did it probably start? What is one thing you could not tell from the number?

Reason

14. Why might it help to have a committee study a bill clause by clause before the final vote? This is an inference.

Reason

15. A bill is not finished when Parliament's session ends. What happens to it?

Create

16. Write one sentence that uses 'amendment' and 'committee'.

Research

17. With an adult, find a bill number on the Parliament of Canada website. Is it a C bill or an S bill?

Practice answer key

  1. 1. C means the bill started in the House of Commons; S means it started in the Senate.
    See 'A bill is a proposal'.
  2. 2. 343 in the House of Commons and 105 in the Senate.
    See 'Two chambers, one Parliament'.
  3. 3. Ridings.
    See 'Two chambers, one Parliament'.
  4. 4. Bills about spending or taxes.
    See 'Two chambers, one Parliament'.
  5. 5. The bill is introduced. There is no debate or vote.
    See 'The steps in the first chamber'.
  6. 6. The Governor General.
    See 'The second chamber and Royal Assent'.
  7. 7. First reading, second reading, committee, third reading (report stage comes between committee and third reading).
    Use the steps in the article.
  8. 8. Different: members are elected in the Commons and appointed in the Senate (or 343 seats and 105 seats). Same: both must pass the bill in identical form.
    From 'Two chambers, one Parliament'.
  9. 9. An amendment is a change to the bill's words. It can be proposed in committee and at report stage.
    From 'The steps in the first chamber'.
  10. 10. It goes to the Senate.
    From 'The steps in the first chamber'.
  11. 11. The House of Commons decides whether to accept, change or reject the amendments, and the two Houses send messages back and forth.
    From 'The second chamber and Royal Assent'.
  12. 12. No. It must also pass the other chamber in identical form and receive Royal Assent.
    From the whole article.
  13. 13. It started in the Senate. You could not tell its subject, or which step it has reached.
    The letter shows only the chamber.
  14. 14. A small group can look closely at the exact wording, hear from witnesses and suggest changes before every member votes on the final version. This is an inference.
    Say when you are inferring.
  15. 15. It stops moving forward.
    From 'The second chamber and Royal Assent'.
  16. 16. Answers vary, for example: The committee proposed an amendment to fix one clause.
    Use both words correctly.
  17. 17. Answers vary. Check the first letter of the number.
    Use only facts you can see on the page.

Related skills

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Put it in your own words

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Check your own explanation

This is self-review, not automatic marking.

Compare with a model response

A bill is a proposal for a new law. It is introduced at first reading, debated at second reading, studied by a committee, and voted on at third reading in the first chamber. Then it goes to the other chamber for similar steps. The two chambers are different: members of the House of Commons are elected, but senators are appointed by the Governor General. Both chambers must pass the bill in identical form. Finally, the Governor General gives Royal Assent, and the bill becomes a law.

Sources and revision notes

Source check: 2026-11-13. Grade guidance is an editorial suggestion, not a standardised reading score.

  1. Parliament of Canada — How a Bill Becomes a Law
  2. House of Commons — Legislative Process
  3. House of Commons — The Canadian Parliamentary System
What changed in this edition?

Opened on 2026-11-13. From Parliament of Canada (learn.parl.ca): bill as a proposal for a new law, C and S bill numbering, the order of readings, committee and report stage, Royal Assent and that a rejected bill or one not finished by the end of a session stops. From the House of Commons Legislative Process page: no debate or vote at first reading, second reading debates the general principle and the text cannot be amended, committee hears witnesses and studies clause by clause, report stage, third reading, the Senate's similar process, messages between Houses, Royal Assent by written declaration or ceremony and the effective date. From the House of Commons Canadian Parliamentary System page: Parliament consists of the Crown, the Senate and the House of Commons; 343 House seats with elected members for ridings; 105 Senate seats with senators appointed by the Governor General; bills adopted by both Houses in identical form; spending and tax bills start in the Commons. Seat numbers are as stated on that page on this date and can change. The reasons given for why committees or two chambers help are this lesson's teaching framing and are marked as inference. The family classroom analogy is labelled as an analogy. Details such as the Prime Minister, Cabinet, parties, private bills, hoist motions and named bills were left out so the reading explains the process only and supports no political position.

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