Quebec to introduce new immigration stream

A new Quebec Immigrant Investor Program will open on 2nd August, the Quebec immigration ministry (MIDI) has announced.

Quebec’s Immigration Minister David Heurtel made the announcement on Twitter after the regulation was passed on Tuesday.

Heurtel also announced that effective from 2nd August, the province will begin its new declaration of interest immigration system for economic immigration. The system will closely resemble the current Federal Express Entry immigration system.

The revised immigrant investor program QIIP will feature increased investment and net worth requirements for the first time in nearly eight years.

The new program will see an investment requirement of CDN$1.2 million, up from CDN$800,000. The qualifying net worth amount will increase to CDN$2 million, up from CDN$1.6 million.

Created in 1986, the Quebec Investor program is the largest and most popular Canada business and investment immigration program.

In past years, it accepted 1,900 investor applications annually, bringing 5,000 high net worth individuals and their families to Canada each year.

Since the federal government terminated its version in 2014, the Quebec program has dominated the Canada business immigration landscape. It admits more business immigrants than all the provincial nomination programs combined, accounting for CDN$1 billion in direct investment to the province since its inception.

Meanwhile, Heurtel said the province’s new skilled worker system, similar to the federal Express Entry system, will make the province#s immigration more modern, effective and efficient.

It is expected to reduce the processing time for economic immigration to less than a year.

Heurtel has previously called the change revolutionary’ and will give priority to skilled workers who best meet the needs of the Quebec labour market.

During 2018, the Quebec government aims to bring in a total of 31,300 economic immigrants; 26,300 through the skilled stream and a further 4,300 through the business category.

Article published 5th July 2018