The Quebec government manages its own immigration programs providing for skilled worker and business class.
Applicants are assessed under a selection grid comprised of nine major factors. These include: education, employment, experience, age, language, adaptability, suitability of spouse, presence of children and financial self-sufficiency; with a number of criteria and sub-criteria providing for a total of 20 possible elements of assessment.
Quebec also admits immigrants under the Business Immigration program which comprises three sub-categories including Investors, Entrepreneurs and the Self-Employed.
An investor is defined as a foreign national with three years of management experience in a lawful and profitable agricultural, industrial or commercial enterprise, in a government body or an international body and who possesses a personal net worth of $800,000(Rs 2.8crores) accumulated through lawful economic activities. The investor must also undertake to invest $400,000(Rs 1.4crores) for five years, in a prescribed investment.
When assessing applications, the definition of management experience is strictly followed and given a narrow interpretation by the Quebec government authorities. Accordingly professionals such as doctors, dentists, accountants and lawyers do not qualify as management experience.
An Entrepreneur is defined as a foreign national with three years of management experience in a lawful and profitable agricultural, industrial or commercial enterprise and who will establish, acquire or participate in the active management of a lawful and profitable agricultural, industrial or commercial enterprise that will immediately employ three full-time residents of Quebec, other than the foreign national and his accompanying dependants.
For entrepreneurs, there are eight major factors of consideration including: education, experience, age, language, adaptability, financial self-sufficiency, personal net worth, and aptitudes to carry out a business project.
To succeed, the applicant must have a minimum of three years of applicable management experience, possess a personal net worth of $300,000 acquired legally and, have sufficient additional settlement funding to cover the cost of the applicant's first three months of living expenses in Quebec.
Entrepreneur applicants are convoked to interview, at which time the business project, will be assessed. The applicant's aptitudes to carry out a business project are assessed under four criteria including, knowledge of Quebec; market research; financial resources; and feasibility and relevancy of the business project. Applicants are strongly encouraged to undertake an exploratory visit to Quebec prior to a selection interview although some applicants are selected without having completed any such visit.
Self-employed applicants are primarily differentiated from worker applicants in that to qualify the self-employed must have two years of applicable experience, possess a personal net worth of $100,000 (Rs 35 lacs), have sufficient settlement funding and will come to Québec to create employment for himself by practicing a profession defined in the National Occupational Classification.