Quebec Temporarily Pauses Two Immigration Programs

Quebec has imposed a moratorium, in other words, a pause on its two major permanent immigration programs: the Regular Skilled Worker Program (RSWP) and the Quebec Experience Program for International Student Graduates (PEQ-Graduates).

Why is Quebec putting a temporary pause on RSWP and PEQ-Graduates Programs?

In September 2024, the unemployment rate for Canadian-born residents in Quebec remained low at 4.6%. However, the situation is different for immigrants, with recent permanent residents facing an unemployment rate of 11%, and temporary residents experiencing an unemployment rate of 12.5%.

The government plans to reassess the number of permanent residents it accepts, by taking them into account in future immigration strategies. Last year, the Quebec government had aimed to admit 6,500 graduates annually under the PEQ-Graduates program and had plans to admit even more graduates in 2025. However, Quebec has temporarily stopped accepting new applications which according to Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge, this decision was made to avoid exceeding comfortable limits, to better manage the inflow.

The moratorium extends to the Regular Skilled Worker Program, which welcomed 25,000 immigrants last year, and the Programme de l’expérience Québécoise (PEQ) workers category which welcomed 5,700 immigrants. New invitations to these programs are also temporarily paused and the government’s new immigration plan is expected to be unveiled by June 30, 2025. The new plan will apply to 2026 and the years following- the moratorium will remain in effect until the new plan is released at the latest. This will be the first time that Quebec’s multi-year plan accounts for temporary residents, a group that has doubled in recent years to approximately 600,000 individuals.

Emna Braham, the CEO and president of the Institut du Quebec (IDQ), warns that the increase in temporary immigration could pose negative long-term effects to Quebec’s economy. This is due to the fact that many temporary foreign workers apply to and fill positions that locals find undesirable, thus may lead to employers relying on lower-paid workers which further discourages employers from seeking workers locally.