Quebec relaxes immigration rules for Haitians.
Quebec's Immigration Minister Yolande James recently unveiled a new program that will allow residents of Quebec to sponsor their children over 21 years of age, brothers, sisters, as well as their siblings' spouses and dependent Although Quebec has no plans of exceeding its plan to welcome between 52,000 to 55,000 new immigrants, the province will accept up to 3,000 new immigrants from Haiti under this new initiative.
Minister James explained the cap by stating that they want to ensure that the new immigrants accepted under these special measures are able to efficiently integrate in society, and that by accepting more they would be doing a disservice to the newcomers.
Although Minister James wants to approach this in a "responsible" manner, she also made note of the fact that the Federal government is yet to extend the same courtesy to Haitian families. "Quebec alone isn't able to help all of Haiti," she said.
The Quebec government is also allowing the main sponsor to have a co-sponsor should additional funds be required to support an application. Previously anyone wanting to sponsor a family member needed to demonstrate that they were financially able to support those family members for five years.
"Anyone who's residing in Quebec can now say 'You know what? I think you're great. I know this is a situation that's very difficult and this is my way to be able to contribute. I will co-sign,'" James said.
Immigrants will not be chosen on a first-come first serve basis, rather immigration officials will access the applicant’s distress level and their ability to integrate in Quebec.
Quebec as also vowed to further assist Haitian students currently in the province by exempting them from paying tuition fees for the winter season.
Source: MigrationExpert
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