The Ministry of Immigration, Francisation and Integration () is a government department in

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

responsible for

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

francisation Francization (in American English, Canadian English, and Oxford English) or Francisation (in other British English), also known as Frenchification, is the expansion of French language use—either through willful adoption or coercion—by more a ...

, and

integration Integration may refer to: Biology *Multisensory integration *Path integration * Pre-integration complex, viral genetic material used to insert a viral genome into a host genome *DNA integration, by means of site-specific recombinase technology, ...

in the province.Ministry of Immigration, Francization and Integration. 2019 December 4.
The organization and its commitments
" ''Quebec.ca''. Retrieved 2020 November 2. Accordingly, it provides a variety of programs for immigrants and immigrant communities in the province. Jurisdiction in matters of immigration in Quebec is shared with the Canadian government, in accordance to the ''

Constitution Act, 1867 The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' ( 30 & 31 Vict. c. 3) (),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 1867'' (BNA Act), ...

'' (article 95) and the 1991 Canada–Québec Accord relating to Immigration and Temporary Admission of Aliens. The federal government pays financial compensation to Quebec in order to ensure the reception and integration of immigrants. The department was previously known as the Ministry of Immigration, Diversity, and Inclusion (''Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Diversité et de l’Inclusion'').

History

The ministry was founded on 5 November 1968, a decision made by then Premier

Jean-Jacques Bertrand Jean-Jacques Bertrand (; June 20, 1916 – February 22, 1973) was a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as the 21st premier of Quebec, from October 2, 1968, to May 12, 1970. He led the Union Nationale (Quebec), Union Nationale party. Me ...

. The reasons for the creation of the ministry were: to prevent French from losing its dominant position in Quebec society as the birth rate of

French Canadians French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the provi ...

fell, and to attract immigrants from the French-speaking world to Quebec. At its beginnings, the ministry opened immigration offices only in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. It also established a network of seven language orientation and training centres, whose goal was to teach French to newcomers. The department was previously overseen by the Minister of Immigration and Cultural Communities as a member of the

Executive Council of Quebec The Executive Council of Quebec (, ) is the cabinet of the Government of Quebec. It comprises ministers of the provincial Crown, who are selected by the premier of Quebec and appointed by the lieutenant governor. Composition Typically mad ...

. On 20 February 1978, Canada and Quebec signed an immigration agreement giving Quebec decision-making power to choose its independent immigrants, who would then have to be approved by Ottawa. On 5 February 1991, the Canada–Québec Accord relating to Immigration and Temporary Admission of Aliens was concluded, giving Quebec more power in the selection of immigrants by offering federal transfers of funds for integration of these, and guaranteeing Quebec an immigration rate proportional to its demographic weight in Canada.

Proposed reform

During the

2022 Quebec general election The 2022 Quebec general election was held on October 3, 2022, to elect the members of the National Assembly of Quebec. Under the province's Fixed election dates in Canada, fixed election date law, passed in 2013, "the general election following t ...

, the

Coalition Avenir Québec The Coalition Avenir Québec (, , CAQ) is a Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist, Autonomism in Quebec, autonomist and conservatism, conservative

(CAQ) government of

François Legault François Legault (; born May 26, 1957) is a Canadian politician serving as the 32nd premier of Quebec since 2018. A founding member of the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), he has led the party since it began in 2011. Legault sits as a Nationa ...

campaigned on getting more immigration powers from the federal government to Quebec. Legault has raised the idea of having a referendum on immigration powers, a pledge that was repeated after the party has increased its majority.

List of ministers

Organization

The structure of the Ministry of Immigration, Francisation and Integration is organized as follows: * Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie ** Minister's office * Deputy Minister — High direction ** General Secretariat ** Legal Affairs ** Communications ** Audit committee ** Internal Audit * Assistant Deputy Minister — Planning, performance and external relations ** Administrative review ** Research, planning and business intelligence ** Ministerial coordination and external relations ** Program evaluation, quality assurance and risk management * Assistant Deputy Minister — Development, Innovation and Organizational Support ** Innovation and Vision 3.0 ** Digital transformation and information resources ** Human resources ** Administration * Assistant Deputy Minister — Immigration and Prospecting ** Immigration operations ** Immigration and prospecting policies and programs ** Prospecting and recruitment operations abroad * Assistant Deputy Minister — Francization and Integration ** Francization services ** Francization and integration policies and programs ** Regional Operations

Laws and regulations

The Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration is responsible with administering the following laws and regulations in relation to Quebec immigration: * ''Act respecting the Ministère de l'Immigration, de la Diversité et de l'Inclusion'' (chapter M-16.1) ** Terms and conditions of the signing of certain deeds, documents and writings of the Ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (r. 2) * ''Québec Immigration Act'' (chapter I-0.2.1) ** Regulation respecting immigration consultants (r. 1) ** Québec Immigration Regulation (r. 3)

Notes

References

External links

English

Official Quebec Immigration site
(English)

(English)
Common Values of Quebec Society
(English)

French

Official Quebec Immigration site
(French)

(French)
Common Values of Quebec
(French)
Regulation respecting immigration consultants
(French) {{Multiculturalism in Canada navbox Immigration to Quebec

Immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

Anti-immigration politics in Canada Migration-related organizations based in Canada