On October 31, 2024, the Ministry of Immigration, Francization and Integration of Québec published Québec’s Immigration Plan for 2025. Under the Plan, Québec intends to admit between 48,500 and 51,500 immigrants under the regular immigration stream, in addition to admissions under the “Québec graduate” stream of the Québec Experience Program.
It also includes two temporary measures, effective October 31, 2024 until June 30, 2025 at the latest, to control the growth of permanent immigration in Québec:
- The suspension of intake of applications under the “Québec graduate” stream of the Québec Experience Program: As of October 31, 2024, the government of Québec will not receive any new applications for permanent selection under the “Québec graduate” stream of the Québec Experience Program.
- All applications for permanent selection already submitted under this stream of the Québec Experience Program will continue to be reviewed by the MIFI.
- Anyone already selected by Québec under this stream can pursue their immigration process leading to permanent residence.
- Applications to add family members, including those for dependent children and spouses, are not affected by this suspension. These applications will continue to be received under the “Québec graduate” stream.
- The “Temporary foreign worker” stream of the Québec Experience Program is not affected by the suspension of the intake of applications. It is still possible to submit an application for permanent selection under this stream.
- The temporary suspension of invitations to submit an application for permanent selection under the Regular Skilled Worker Program (RSWP), and the Skilled Worker Selection Program (SWSP) The Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration will not be issuing any invitations to submit an application for permanent selection under the Regular Skilled Worker Program (RSWP) and the Skilled Worker Selection Program (SWSP), which will replace it as of November 29, 2024.
- Those invited to submit an application for permanent selection under the RSWP before October 31, 2024 can submit their application within the 60-day timeframe required by this program.
- Applications for permanent selection already submitted under the RSWP will continue to be reviewed by the MIFI in accordance with the conditions of this program, including after the SWSP comes into effect.
- Applications for job offer validation: The temporary suspension of invitations will not have an impact on the duration of the validity of validated job offers (VJO), which is 18 months.
- When the invitations resume, after June 30, 2025 at the latest, anyone holding a VJO can take advantage of it.
- The Ministry will continue to receive and process applications for job offer validation for employers who wish to submit them despite the temporary suspension of invitations.
Erickson Insights & Analysis
These measures are being put in place in the context of a sharp increase in the number of non-permanent residents and will make it possible to limit the number of admissions of immigrants under permanent immigration programs. A new pluri-annual planning exercise for the period starting in 2026 will take both temporary immigration and permanent immigration into account. This exercise will take place in spring 2025.
Erickson Immigration Group will continue to monitor developments and share updates as more news is available. Please contact your employer or EIG attorney if you have questions about anything we’re reporting above or case-specific questions.