The
objectives established during the public consultation held in the summer of
2019 continue to guide Quebec’s immigration planning for 2020 to 2022.
The economic
category has a maximum target of 33,900 newcomers, or more than 65% of planned
admissions. Under this category, the province anticipates welcoming 29,500
skilled workers and 4,300 business immigrants, including investors,
entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals.
The
remaining 18,100 new permanent residents are anticipated to be brought in
through refugee and family reunification programs, among other immigration
programs.
The Quebec
Immigration Department presents its immigration strategy each year. Plans have
only been made public to date with goals for the upcoming year. It describes
the categories into which the province will admit new permanent residents and
the number of new permanent residents the province intends to admit in the upcoming
year. However, the province will develop a multi-year plan beginning in 2024
following a consultation in 2023.
French as Main Target
Because one
of its main pillars is to preserve the French language in Quebec, CAQ’s new
plan places an emphasis on selecting immigrants who already speak the language.
By 2023, the Ministry of Immigration, Francization, and Integration predicts
that 79% of economic immigrants and 66% of immigrants from all categories will
be fluent in French.
As part of
his campaign, Legault pledged to allow only 50,000 newcomers to enter Quebec
annually in this year’s provincial election. Because it is challenging to
integrate newcomers into Quebec society, particularly those who need to learn
French, he believes that this is the greatest number of immigrants that the
province can accommodate.
Immigration to Quebec
Candidates
who wish to immigrate must apply directly to the province through one of its
immigration programs because Quebec selects skilled immigrants based on its own
criteria and procedures.
Candidates
who meet the program’s requirements and are selected will receive a Certificat
de sélection du Québec (CSQ) from the Minister of Immigration, de la
Francisation et de l’Intégration of Quebec.
A candidate
must apply to IRCC for permanent residence as soon as they receive a CSQ and
pass medical, security, and criminal background checks.