Quebec Suspends Two Immigration Programs Until 2025

Quebec Immigration Minister Jean-Francois Roberge rises during question period at the legislature in Quebec City, on Oct. 24, 2024. The Canadian Press/Jacques Boissinot

The Quebec government says it will pause two provincial immigration programs that act as pathways to citizenship in an effort to “better regulate” the number of new arrivals to the province.

The province will be freezing the use of the Regular Skilled Worker Program, which is aimed at people wanting to immigrate to Quebec as a skilled worker, and the Quebec Experience Program, used by international students to fast-track their citizenship.

The two programs lead to Quebec Selection Certificates, which allow immigrants to apply for permanent Canadian residency. The programs will be suspended starting on Oct. 31 until June 30, 2025.

Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge said in a social media post on Oct. 30 that the changes are being made to limit the number of permanent immigrants admitted in 2025. “Our objective is clear: we want to equip ourselves with the necessary means to better regulate immigration in Quebec,” he said.

During an Oct. 31 press conference, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said he respected the plans put forth by the Quebec government, but said it was “still incomplete” because it does not mention temporary residents.

“We’ve been saying for months to Mr. Legault to give us the plan to reduce temporary residence that he’s been clamouring for, and we haven’t seen his share of it,” Miller said. “We still haven’t seen a single thing from them when it comes to temporary residence reductions, and it’s something we need to see.”

In August, the province also announced it would freeze certain temporary foreign worker applications in Montreal for a period of six months. In October, it introduced legislation that would put a cap on the number of international students in the province, with Roberge noting that foreign student numbers had surged 140 percent from 50,000 in 2015 to 120,000 in 2024.

Quebec has been feuding with the federal government over the last year on its immigration policy, with Quebec Premier François Legault warning the number of asylum seekers the province had taken in was putting strain on public services and housing.

In early 2024, Legault requested Ottawa give Quebec expanded powers over immigration, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rejected, saying the province already has “more powers over immigration than any other province.”

Quebec has also been asking the federal government to reimburse it $1 billion, which is the amount it says has been spent on accommodating asylum seekers. The province said it spent $576.9 million on social support for asylum seekers in 2023, a year where it took in a total of 160,651 individuals.

Quebec has also called for Ottawa to introduce a national quota system to distribute asylum seekers more evenly throughout Canada. As of Jan. 1, 2024, Quebec was estimated to be home to 54 percent of all asylum seekers in the country.

Last week, Ottawa announced plans to cut the number of new permanent residents entering Canada over the next three years. Canada’s immigration targets will fall from 500,000 new permanent residents in both 2025 and 2026 to 395,000 in 2025 and 380,000 in 2026. It will drop to 365,000 in 2027.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.