New PR pilot program to attract French-speaking international students to Canada
A new pilot program, to be launched by the federal government on August 26, 2024, aims to bring more French-speaking international students to Canada for higher education and retain more Francophone talent.
This program is one of many made available to French-speaking international students, under the new Francophone Minority Communities Student Pilot (FMCSP). It will enable students to apply directly for permanent residency once they graduate.
The aim is to attract more Francophone students from Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas, where student intake rates have traditionally been lower. To help increase intake rates, the pilot program will feature the following measures:
- Students and their families will be exempt from having to demonstrate that they will leave Canada at the end of their academic program
- Students under this program will only have to show 75% of funds associated with the municipality where their institution is located
- Participants in the program will receive access to settlement services to integrate successfully into Canadian society while they are still studying
Also read: Fluent success: Javier highlights how learning French can help you land a job in Canada
French-speaking international students excluded from the cap
Students admitted to Canadian institutions under the FMCSP will not be included as part of the caps on international students announced earlier this year. Rather, each participating bilingual and French-language Designated Learning Institution (DLI) will receive a certain number of acceptance letters that can be issued to French-speaking international students.
A maximum of 2,300 students can be enrolled under this pilot. A new target for the next year of the program will be announced in August 2025.
“Promoting French is of prime importance to us,” said Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. “By welcoming Francophone immigrants and supporting them in their integration process, we contribute to the revitalization of these communities, while meeting their skilled workforce needs.
“We are all the more determined to help more Francophone international students come to Canada and build a future in our dynamic Francophone communities while contributing to the development of the French-speaking world.”
Also read: Looking to migrate to Canada as a French speaker? These places are welcoming Francophone newcomers
Expansion to the Welcoming Francophone Communities initiative
French-speaking international students and economic migrants will also benefit from more Francophone communities to settle into after 10 more locations across Canada were added to the Welcoming Francophone Communities initiative. These locations include:
- British Columbia: Nanaimo
- Manitoba: Red River (Ritchot, Salaberry, Montcalm and St-Pierre-Jolys)
- Nova Scotia: Chéticamp (including St. Joseph du Moine)
- New Brunswick: Belle-Baie (including Bathurst and the Pabineau First Nation); Caraquet (including Rivière du Nord and Hautes-Terres); and Restigouche West Region (Saint-Quentin and Kedgwick)
- Saskatchewan: Prince Albert
- Ontario: Cornwall, Cochrane District (Route 11 Corridor), and London
Locations drafted into this program are based on their potential to become more welcoming and inclusive Francophone communities outside Quebec: they have French-speaking populations, create environments where newcomer French speakers to Canada feel valued, and where they feel integrated into their host communities.
“Supporting the vitality of our Francophone communities in Canada also means welcoming French-speaking international students and immigrants,” added Randy Boissonault, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages. “This is exactly what this pilot program does.”
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