Quebec immigration (Accord Canada-Québec)
Statutory definition
The Accord Canada-Québec of 1991 is a bilateral agreement under the authority of IRPA s 8. It gives Quebec the exclusive power to determine the volume, selection criteria, and services for economic immigrants destined for Quebec. The federal government retains authority over family class, refugees, admissibility, and citizenship. Economic immigrants to Quebec must obtain a Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) before IRCC will process the permanent residence application.
Explanation
The Quebec immigration system operates as a parallel system to federal Express Entry. Quebec does not participate in the Express Entry pool — economic immigrants to Quebec apply through the Ministère de l'Immigration, de la Francisation et de l'Intégration (MIFI) using Quebec's own skilled worker program (Programme de l'expérience québécoise/PEQ or the regular skilled worker program). The French language requirement for Quebec programs is substantially more stringent than for federal programs, reflecting Quebec's objective of integrating immigrants into the French-language society.