Settling permanently in Québec

Fees in effect as of January 1, 2026. They may be modified without notice. You must pay the fees by credit card and online through the Arrima platform when you submit your application.

• $940 - Graduate
• $201 - Partner and each dependent child

The Skilled Worker Selection Program (SWSP) is open to anyone who wishes to settle and work in Québec. It has 4 streams, based on the main occupation you intend to practise: Highly Qualified and Specialized Skills, Intermediate and Manual Skills, Regulated Professions, and Exceptional Talent. You will first need to identify your main occupation, i.e., the profession you want to (and are realistically able to) practice in Québec. You will need to use the NOC (National Occupation Classification) system to identify the TEER (training, education, experience, and responsibilities) category of your main occupation and determine which SWSP stream is right for you.

To apply to the SWSP, you first need to submit a declaration of interest in Arrima. You can submit an expression of interest if you meet all the criteria for one of the program streams. You can do this before, during, or after your studies at Université Laval. The process is free of charge. Expressions of interest are valid for 1 year and can be updated at any time. 

Your profile will be scored (PDF) (document in French only) based on different criteria, such as your age, education, knowledge of French, diplomas from Québec, and stay in Québec, as well as whether you have a validated job offer or work experience. Important: Everything you declare must be true and demonstrable. For example, if you mention work experience you have not had or cannot prove, your application may be rejected for misrepresentation.

Next, the government invites applications for permanent selection. Invitations are based on criteria chosen by the government (SWSP stream, current place of residence, Québec diploma, score, work experience, NOC code, etc.) and may be different for each invitation. As such, even if you meet all the criteria for an SWSP stream, you may not receive an invitation to apply. You can view the invitations that took place in 2025 and 2026.

If you receive an invitation to apply, you will have 30 days to accept it, then 60 days (or 1 year for certain people applying for Stream 3)  to submit your application with all the required documents and make the payment. Your application will then be analyzed. To obtain a CSQ, you will need to meet the general requirements of the SWSP as well as the requirements specific to your stream.  

If you are applying with a partner, both people can submit an expression of interest and include the other person. If one of the people in the couple receives an invitation to apply, they will be the main applicant for selection.

General requirements for the SWSP

• Intend to settle in Québec to work as a salaried employee for a company located in Québec. This excludes employment with a company over which you exercise legal or de facto control (e.g., self-employed, owner, etc.) and employment in an ineligible sector (payday loans, cheque cashing or pawnbroking; production, distribution or sale of pornographic or sexually explicit products or services related to the sex industry).
• Be at least 18 years old.
• Obtain an attestation of learning of democratic and Québec values within the required timeframe. If you have included your partner or children aged 18 and older in your application, they must obtain an attestation as well. There are two ways to get this attestation: by taking the online assessment when MIFI asks you to (if you receive an invitation to apply for a CSQ and submit an application) or by attending an Objectif Intégration information session before or after applying for permanent selection. Note that the attestation is valid for 2 years, and the information session is offered at Option-travail and the Centre R.I.R.E. 2000, among others.
• Demonstrate that you can provide for your basic needs and those of the family members included in your application for 3 months.
• If applicable, have complied with the condition to return to your home country imposed by a scholarship in Québec. 

Additional requirements for individual SWSP streams

Stream 1: Highly qualified and specialized skills

• Have a TEER category 0, 1, or 2 main occupation that does not require a licence to practise in Québec.
• Have at least 1 year of work experience in your main occupation, in or outside Québec, within the last 5 years. Paid and unpaid mandatory internships completed as part of a program of study can count for up to 3 months of work experience. You must have had a work permit during the internship if it was completed in Canada.
• Have the required education.
• Have at least a Level 7 knowledge of spoken French and a Level 5 knowledge of written French.
• If you include your partner in your application, they must declare and demonstrate that they have at least a Level 4 knowledge of spoken French.

Stream 2: Intermediate and manual skills

• Have a TEER category 3, 4, or 5 main occupation that does not require a licence to practise in Québec.
• Have at least 2 years of work experience in your main occupation within the last 5 years; at least 1 of those years of work experience must have been in Québec. Work experience acquired outside Québec may have been acquired in the same main occupation or in another occupation in the same broad occupational category as defined by the NOC (i.e., with the same first digit of the 5-digit NOC code).
• Have the required education.
• Have at least a Level 5 knowledge of spoken French.
• If you include your partner in your application, they must declare and demonstrate that they have at least a Level 4 knowledge of spoken French.

Stream 3: Regulated professions

• Have a main profession on the Liste des professions réglementées du Ministère (PDF) (ministerial list of regulated professions; list in French only).
• Have authorization to practise your profession in Québec, or proof of partial or full recognition (PDF) of the equivalence of your training or diploma.
• If your main occupation is in TEER category 0, 1, or 2, have at least a Level 7 knowledge of spoken French and a Level 5 knowledge of written French.
• If your main occupation is in TEER category 3, 4, or 5, have at least a Level 5 knowledge of spoken French.
• If you include your partner in your application, they must declare and demonstrate that they have at least a Level 4 knowledge of spoken French.

Stream 4: Exceptional talent

• Distinguish yourself clearly in your main occupation through exceptional expertise that is likely to contribute to Québec’s prosperity.
• Have a proven track record of achievements related to your expertise.
• Have practised your main occupation for at least 3 out of the last 5 years.
• Have an achievement listed on the Liste des accomplissements du Ministère (PDF) (ministerial list of achievements; document in French only) or have obtained an opinion from one of the Ministère’s partners in one of the 4 targeted fields:
  • Strategic economic sectors
  • Research
  • Arts and culture
  • Sport

Form and further information

Programme de sélection des travailleurs qualifiés (PSTQ)
Processus de présentation d’une demande (PDF)
Processus de présentation d’une demande – volet 3 (PDF) – If you have not received recognition of your qualifications (Stream 3)

The Québec Experience Program (PEQ) is a permanent selection program that allows skilled workers to more easily obtain a CSQ. It has been temporarily and partially reopened until July 2028.

There will be multiple application periods. The first period runs from July 2 to October 31, 2026. It is only open to people who, on November 19, 2025, had earned a recognized Québec degree (for Université Laval, this means a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate degree). All other selection criteria for the program must also be met, including the requirement to be a resident of Québec at the time of application.

Key requirements

At the time you apply, you must:

• Intend to settle in Québec to work as a salaried employee for a company located in Québec. This does not include working for a company over which you exercise legal or de facto control (for example, if you own the company or are self-employed) and the job cannot be in an ineligible sector.
• Be staying in Québec legally.

• Have a PEQ-eligible degree from Québec (i.e., a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate degree) that you earned in the 3 years. For the application period that runs from July 2 to October 31, 2026, you must have earned this degree on or before November 19, 2025. Your Québec degree is not eligible for the PEQ if more than 50% of the program was completed outside of Québec.

  Provide documentation from Université Laval:

  • Ideally, you should provide a scanned copy of your diploma. You can also provide a certificate of completion. At Université Laval, the certificate of completion requested by the MIFI is called an “attestation de diplôme” and is issued by the Secretary General’s Office. You must order it online. Please note: The MIFI will not accept the digital version of this document. You must scan the paper version.
  • Provide your official final transcript from Université Laval with the note “grade obtenu” (degree earned). This is usually sent with your diploma. If you do not have it on hand, you will need to order it in monPortail or request it in person at the Registrar’s Office. Transcripts printed from Capsule are not accepted.
• Have at least a Level 7 knowledge of spoken French and a Level 5 knowledge of written French. On the CSQ application form, you must sign a declaration attesting to your knowledge of French and demonstrate it. You may be asked to attend an interview if further verification is required. You can demonstrate your knowledge of French by providing:
  • The official final transcript from your PEQ-eligible program of study at Université Laval, demonstrating that you have earned at least 75% of your program’s credits in French. Theses, dissertations, internships, and research laboratories may be completed in a language other than French. However, 75% of all other credits must have been earned in French. Note that credits earned abroad (for example, during an exchange program) are counted.
  • Transcript(s) showing that you successfully completed at least 3 years of full-time secondary or post-secondary education entirely in French, either in Québec or abroad. If French is not the only national language of instruction, you will need to include an attestation from the learning institution confirming that your courses were taken in French.
  • Certificates of results from a recognized French language test taken within the last 2 years, such as the TCF Canada or the TEF Canada (see the complete list).
  • If you are a member of a professional order in Québec, your regular licence to practise and a certificate from the Office québécois de la langue française attesting that you have passed its exam in order to obtain a regular permit; this certificate must be no more than two years old.
• If you include your partner in your application, they must demonstrate that they have at least a Level 4 knowledge of spoken French.
• Obtain an attestation of learning of democratic and Québec values within the required timeframe.
• Demonstrate that you can provide for your basic needs and those of the family members included in your application for 3 months.
• Not have a scholarship that requires you to return to your home country after graduation, unless you have already fulfilled that requirement.
  • The Government of Québec has signed student mobility agreements with around 40 countries and one international organization. If you are covered by one of these agreements, you will need to directly contact your country’s or organization’s person responsible for managing exemptions.
  • If your scholarship is administered by the Student Awards and Financial Aid Office (BBAF), please email info@bbaf.ulaval.ca. Make sure to provide your full name and student number.
  • If your scholarship is administered by another unit at Université Laval (like a faculty or department), you will need to request a certificate directly from that unit. Make sure to provide your full name and student number with your request.
  • If your scholarship is offered by someone other than Université Laval, you will need to request a certificate from them directly.

Please note that MIFI may at any time require further proof or an interview to verify your knowledge of French or any other information provided in the application.

You are not eligible for the PEQ if:

• You have a scholarship that requires you to return to your home country after graduation, unless you have already fulfilled that requirement.
• You completed more than 50% of your program of study outside of Québec.
• You intend to start your own business or be self-employed (for example, working for Uber or delivering for Amazon).

How to apply

You must apply for the Québec Experience Program (PEQ)—including filling out the form, uploading supporting documents, and paying the processing fees—entirely on Arrima. You can use your existing Arrima account if you have one. Make sure all of your documents are scanned in colour and only provide one PDF per type of document.

Form and further information

Several key pieces of information are provided directly in the Québec Experience Program – Québec Graduates Stream application form (in French only). Be sure to read it in its entirety. You can also refer to these web pages, which are also only available in French:

• About the Québec Experience Program (PEQ)
• Eligibility requirements for the Québec Graduates stream
• How to apply
• Tutorials
• Frequently asked questions

The Québec Experience Program (PEQ) is a permanent selection program that allows skilled workers to more easily obtain a CSQ. It has been temporarily and partially reopened until June 2028.

There will be multiple application periods. The first period, which runs from July 2 to October 31, 2026, is only open to people who, on November 19, 2025, had the 2 years of recognized work experience required by the program. All other selection criteria for the program must also be met, including the requirement to be a resident of Québec at the time of application.

Among others, this stream is intended for partners of international students who have an open work permit.

Key requirements

• Intend to settle in Québec to work as a salaried employee in a role you are realistically able to fill.
• Be staying in Québec legally.
• Meet the requirements for your stay.
• Have worked for a company located in Québec in a TEER category 0, 1, 2, or 3 position according to the National Occupation Classification (NOC) for at least 24 of the past 36 months. Changes in employer or job are permitted, as long as the jobs are still within one of those categories. See our National Occupational Classification page for more information on this topic. You must also be employed in a job that meets these criteria at the time you submit your application. Note that you cannot be working for a company over which you exercise legal or de facto control (for example, if you own the company or are self-employed) and the job cannot be in an ineligible sector. For the application period that runs from July 2 to October 31, 2026, you must have earned the 24 months of recognized work experience on November 19, 2025.
• Have a Level 7 knowledge of spoken French.
• If you include your partner in your application, they must declare and demonstrate that they have a Level 4 knowledge of spoken French.
• Obtain an attestation of learning of democratic and Québec values within the required timeframe.
• Demonstrate that you can provide for your basic needs and those of the family members included in your application for 3 months.

How to apply

You must apply for the Québec Experience Program (PEQ)—including filling out the form, uploading supporting documents, and paying the processing fees—entirely on Arrima. You can use your existing Arrima account if you have one. Make sure all of your documents are scanned in colour and only provide one PDF per type of document.

Form and further information

Several key pieces of information are provided directly in the Québec Experience Program – Temporary Foreign Worker application form (in French only). Be sure to read it in its entirety. You can also refer to these web pages, which are also only available in French:

• About the Québec Experience Program (PEQ)
• Eligibility requirements for the Québec Graduates stream
• How to apply
• Tutorials
• Frequently asked questions

If you want to immigrate to Québec to invest, start a business, or be self-employed, you will need to apply to one of the dedicated programs.