Quebec: new pilot projects and changes to immigration programs coming in 2021

On Wednesday, October 28, 2020, the Quebec government announced details of three new permanent immigration pilot programs it is planning to launch in 2021 to alleviate labour shortages in the province.

The three new pilots are:

  • the pilot program for personal support workers;
  • the pilot program for workers in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI), information technology (IT) and visual effects;
  • the pilot program for workers in food processing.

Full text of the regulation project is published on October 28, 2020 in the Gazette officielle du Québec, which also announces a 45-day consultation period to collect comments from stakeholders on these programs before their official launch.

Changes have also been announced in the regulations pertaining to the Entrepreneurial Program, Self-Employed Program and Collective Sponsorship of Refugees.

New pilots are designed to “attract and retain people whose skills meet the specific needs of the Quebec labor market” and will last for five years.

Under the PSW pilot up to 550 principal applicants will be selected per year, and their family members will be also eligible for Quebec selection certificates under this program.

The pilot program for the food processing sector workers will provide a pathway to permanent immigration for 550 temporary foreign workers.

550 principal applicants will also be selected under the pilot for those working in artificial
intelligence, information technology and visual effects areas, evenly split between these areas. The aim is to both retain the temporary foreign workers already working in these areas in Quebec and to attract international talent.

Here is a brief summary of what is new in the business programs:

Self-employed applicants – the quota is set to 50 permanent selection applications for the period from November 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021.

Entrepreneurs – Stream 1 (a new business set up with the assistance of a business incubator or accelerator) will see a maximum of 25 applications that will be accepted between November 1, 2020 and September 30, 2021.

Entrepreneurs – Stream 2 (an independent business set up or purchase) is suspended for the next year to allow sufficient time to review it and introduce further changes.

Note, however, there is no limit to applications submitted by self-employed candidates and entrepreneurs in Stream 1 who demonstrate upper intermediate to high proficiency in oral expression and oral understanding or French.

The selection criteria for Regular Quebec Skilled Workers declaring their interest to immigrate to Quebec through “Arrima”, Quebec’s immigration application management system, have also been updated and are now in effect until November 1, 2021.

In addition, Quebec government has introduced changes and a new admission period for applications under the Private Collective Sponsorship of Refugees Abroad Program. A maximum of 750 sponsorship applications of groups of two to five people will be allowed to be submitted between April 6 and May 5, 2021. Sponsorship applications will now have to be submitted online in order to be randomly selected through a draw later on.

According to the government press release, no new refugee sponsorship applications made by designated organizations, both in Montreal and outside the city will be allowed: a temporary ban is introduced until November 1, 2021. This decision has been taken in order to complete the criminal and administrative investigations because of “serious allegations which question the integrity” of certain refugee protection organizations, and introduce changes into the program, if necessary.

Planning to immigrate to Quebec? Contact us for assistance and further information via info@milmantasimmigration.com or fill out this questionnaire.

Pilot COVID-19 testing at Alberta border could reduce 14-day quarantine period to 48 hours if traveller tests negative

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney announced an upcoming pilot project at two border crossings in Alberta where international travellers coming to Canada by land or air may choose to be tested for COVID-19 at the border, which would cut the mandatory self-isolation period from 14 days to about 48 hours, given the test comes back negative. The pilot is a joint project between the province of Alberta and the government of Canada.

The voluntary pilot testing option, a first of its kind in Canada and an important step in facilitating international travel, will be offered starting November 2 at the Coutts land border crossing in southern Alberta and the Calgary International Airport. All travellers who decide not to participate in the pilot are still subject to the standard 14-day quarantine.

It is expected the pilot will be used by Canadian citizens returning to Canada through the province of Alberta and by foreign workers deemed “essential” — truckers, those working in health care and other workers exempt from the imposed federal travel ban.

Once the test proves negative, travellers will be permitted to end their quarantine, providing they follow up with a second test in 4-5 days at a community pharmacy taking part in the pilot program.

Some local medical professionals, while supporting the idea of testing to reduce the quarantine period, are voicing their concerns about using the pilot at the Canada–US border, given the huge infection rates and lack of safe precautions south of the border. However, participants will be further monitored closely for symptoms and will be required to commit to following strict preventive health measures, such as wearing masks in public and avoiding high-risk behaviour. 

Kenney further noted that the pilot project will be expanded to Edmonton International airport early next year if it tests well in Calgary. It is not clear when it will be rolled out to the rest of Canada.

Calgary Airport Authority president Bob Sartor called this trial an “innovative, government-approved, science-based testing trial” and a “lifeline that airports and airline partners need to instill confidence in air travel once again.” Calgary-based airline WestJet, which had to cancel its routes to Atlantic Canada under the weight of the pandemic and 95% business loss, is also anxiously looking forward to its success. 

The number of COVID-19 cases is rapidly rising in Alberta again, but Premier Kenney confirmed Thursday that the Alberta government has so far been quite successful at keeping public restrictions to the minimum while managing to achieve impressive results, and the province plans to keep it that way in order to avoid shutting down the hospitality industry. He further said that the dual goal of the provincial government is to “protect both lives and livelihoods” in Alberta, especially at a time when the economy is being impacted by the energy price collapse. 

It is important to note that the pilot program, while a definite step forward to ease restrictions for many foreign workers and their employers, only applies to Canadian residents and foreign nationals who are already allowed to come to Canada.
 
“There are no changes now at the border to be clear,” said the Minister of Health, Patty Hajdu. 

If you are planning to come to Canada, either temporarily or permanently, Milmantas Immigration can help you prepare a complete, persuasive application that meets all requirements. To get started, contact us at info@milmantasimmgiration.com.

pgp sponsorship

Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship Program 2020

The wait is over: on October 13, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) launched its much-awaited Parents and Grandparents (PGP) Sponsorship Program for 2020. Canadian citizens and permanent residents 18 or over who wish to sponsor their parents and/or grandparents to come to Canada may now submit an interest to sponsor form online.

The interest to sponsor form will stay open until 12 p.m. EST on November 3, 2020. After the submission period is over, IRCC will perform a draw to randomly select 10,000 potential sponsors from the received and verified entries, who will then have 60 days to submit a full sponsorship application. 

Persons with disabilities who are unable to submit their expression of interest online will have to request an alternative format of the form (paper copy, Braille or large print) from the IRCC Client Support Centre at 1-888-242-2100 or by email by/before November 3, 2020.

What Is Important To Know

For those planning to sponsor their parents and/or grandparents:

  • It is a draw. The online interest to sponsor form is only a lottery entry showing an intention to sponsor. The draw performed by IRCC at a later time will determine who will be able to submit a full application.
  • Only one form per sponsor is allowed; duplicate entries will be removed before the draw. 
  • If there are discrepancies in the information on the interest to sponsor form and a subsequently submitted full application to sponsor, the application may be rejected.
  • If a mistake is made on the form, look up how to deal with it in the instructions on IRCC’s website. DO NOT submit a duplicate form (see above*).
  • The onus is on a potential sponsor to prove that they satisfy the eligibility requirements for being a sponsor, including the minimum necessary income requirements.
  • It does not matter when a potential sponsor completes the online form, as long as it done while the submission period is open.
  • New this year: due to the financial hardships of the COVID-19 pandemic, the minimum necessary income for the 2020 tax year will be calculated without the additional 30%. However, the 2019 and 2018 tax years are still subject to the 30% addition to the minimum necessary income. This temporary public policy does not apply to sponsors residing in Quebec, as this province has its own financial requirements, different from those of IRCC.
  • A confirmation number will be issued when the form is successfully submitted — save it for checking the winning entries later on.

What Else Is New This Year

Canadian siblings who would like to sponsor the same parent are allowed to submit one interest to sponsor form each for the same parent; their forms will not be considered duplicates. 

*Removing duplicates: 

In prior years, duplicate entries resulted in all entries found for a particular applicant being removed, thus preventing the sponsor from participating in the draw, while this year, only the last entry will be kept. We would strongly caution against submitting multiple forms, since the content of the website does not have the authority of a law — would you rather risk a refusal? A federal court appeal is a complex and costly endeavour. We have requested policy clarification from ICCRC — stay tuned and check our website for updates, as we will post the answer. 

So, to sum it up, the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of this year’s PGP program.

The Good 

  • With the immense financial burden of COVID-19 measures, easing the income requirements for prospective sponsors for the year 2020 is a laudable measure: those with income affected by the pandemic will not be disqualified from sponsorship for three more years; also EI for 2020 can be included in the total income.
  • Also new this year: Canadian siblings who would like to sponsor the same parent will be able to submit one interest to sponsor form each for the same parent: it is not considered a duplicate. It takes a lot to raise a child: this may be a good time to collect dividends on parental efforts. 
  • The submission period lasts for three weeks, so everyone interested in sponsoring could have an opportunity to participate.

The Bad

  • The quota for this year is only 10,000 sponsor slots (though next year IRCC promises to increase it to 30,000). 
  • From the “first come —first served” concept, IRCC returns to the draw again, claiming their commitment to fair and equitable treatment of all Canadians and permanent residents. Is it indeed fair? Obviously, when demand far outweighs supply, there will always be winners and losers, discontent and frustration, regardless of the system. But in a well-functioning democracy there should always be a certain expectation of public services and a way to gauge its performance — something that cannot be replaced by a lottery system. From a psychological prospective, the certainty of having your loved ones with you in Canada prevails over the prospect of lengthy backlogs — something to consider, given that some potential sponsors may wait even longer to win the PGP lottery or never be selected altogether.

The Ugly

  • As previous “PGP lottery” experience has shown, many potential sponsors who were later selected submitted their interest to sponsor forms without meeting the qualification requirements. Each such instance is a wasted spot — when a sponsor is found ineligible, the spot is not released back in the pool. Even with a two-stage draw from sponsored parents and grandparents was 17,000, while 20,000 spots were announced to open. This means three thousand loving family members who were not able to reunite with their children and grandchildren — and with this system may never succeed. This could easily be prevented by a very simple intake management of the interest to sponsor form, such as adding fields like “enter your income on line 150 of your 2019/2018/et cetera tax return” and not allowing ineligible applicants to proceed further when the number is below the threshold. This does not require advanced computer knowledge or significant resources. All it takes is the political will to do so. 

Conclusion

If you are planning to sponsor your parents and/or grandparents to Canada or any other immigration category, Milmantas Immigration will be happy to help you prepare a complete, persuasive application that meets all requirements and verify if you are eligible at the first stage. Contact us at info@milmantasimmigration.com.