Quebec invited 233 skilled workers in Arrima draw

Quebec issued the Invitations to Apply to 233 candidates under the Regular Skilled Worker Program (RSWP) on December 16. The details for the draw were released on December 22. Invitations were issued to candidates who had an Expression of Interest (EOI) in Quebec’s online registration portal, Arrima.

What is Arrima?

Arrima, the online portal, was introduced in 2018 that managed the pool of applications for RSWP and simplify the application intake system that was formerly based on a “first-come, first-served” approach.

Candidates 18 years of age and older interested in immigrating to Quebec through the RSWP must first create an EOI profile in Arrima, and then they are placed in the pool of candidate.

MIFI then invites the most qualified candidates based on current provincial market labour needs and the person’s strong potential to integrate into Quebec society, along with other criteria.

The invited candidates have limited time to submit a complete immigration application, pay the required fees and present all other required documents.

Once file is completed and submitted, the province’s immigration ministry examines the application and assigns it a score using the RSWP selection grid which takes into account criteria such as:

• Level of education;
• Age;
• Work experience
• Validated job offer;
• Language skills (French and English);
• The ability to support yourself and your family for the first three months after your arrival in Quebec;
• Relationships with Canadian citizens or permanent residents in Quebec.

In this draw, there were two categories of candidates invited. One group required to have a validated offer of employment while the other ground that was invited were staying in Quebec as a diplomat, consular officer, a representative for the United Nations or any intergovernmental organization that carries out operations in Quebec. The draw could have also included people who are members of the staff of any such official, as these occupations are also covered under Section 26 of the Quebec Immigration Regulation.

Quebec’s immigration programs are managed by the province based on selection criteria and processes that are distinct from Canada’s immigration programs.