Canada To Reserve 5,000 Federal Selection Spaces To Designate French-Speaking Immigrants

Last Updated On 19 January 2026, 12:47 PM EST (Toronto Time)

Today, the Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, announced that for the fourth consecutive year, the Government of Canada has surpassed its ambitious Francophone immigration target for 2025, accounting for approximately 8.9% of admissions of French-speaking permanent residents outside Quebec.

This accomplishment demonstrates the effectiveness of the initiatives implemented by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and results from close collaboration with the provinces, territories, and community representatives.

As part of the 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan, we will persist in raising our targets for French-speaking permanent residents outside Quebec.

Beginning in 2026, the Government of Canada will allocate 5,000 federal selection positions to enable provinces and territories to designate French-speaking immigrants.

These additional spaces will supplement the annual Provincial Nominee Program allocations and will assist in alleviating the shortage of Francophone and bilingual workers by enticing premier global talent.

Both the surpassing of the 2025 target and this new initiative that supports the provinces and territories delineate the pathway to achieving the 12% goal of French-speaking permanent inhabitants outside Quebec by 2029.

Through the adoption of measures such as the French-language proficiency category within the Express Entry system, the Francophone Mobility Program, and the Welcoming Francophone Communities initiative, the Government of Canada reaffirms its commitment to revitalizing and expanding the demographic presence of Francophone and Acadian minority communities.

These initiatives are consistent with the priorities outlined by the Canadian government in Budget 2025 and underscore the significance of consolidating our efforts to attract top international talent, grow our economy, and address workforce requirements.

What this announcement could be

While IRCC has not published the policy details yet, the most credible clue is the federal immigration levels plan targets for Francophone admissions outside Quebec.

For now, IRCC’s notice is a media advisory and does not yet include the substance of the announcement, but it is expected to be related to French Community Immigration Pilots.

Under the 2026–2028 plan, targets for French-speaking permanent resident admissions outside Quebec are:

• 2026: 9% (30,267)
• 2027: 9.5% (31,825)
• 2028: 10.5% (35,175)

Based on those targets, today’s announcement could reasonably involve one or more of the following:

• new or expanded measures to increase French-speaking permanent resident intake outside Quebec in 2026 and beyond
• operational changes that help Francophone communities attract and retain newcomers (for example, supports tied to community capacity and settlement outcomes)
• selection-focused measures that increase the number of Francophone candidates receiving invitations through existing economic pathways

The key point is that Ottawa has already put hard targets on the table for 2026, 2027, and 2028, and the Moncton press conference is positioned as an immigration announcement for Francophone minority communities outside Quebec.

Why are some experts questioning French selection through Express Entry?

A growing debate is whether category-based selection for French-language proficiency should carry so much weight relative to broad economic competitiveness as measured by CRS.

The reason is visible in the numbers candidates have been watching:

• Recent Canadian Experience Class rounds have required CRS cut-offs in the 500s, including a 511 cut-off in the January 7, 2026, CEC draw.
• By contrast, French-language proficiency rounds in 2025 often reached much deeper into the pool, with CRS cut-offs broadly ranging from the high 300s to the mid-400s, including a widely reported 399 cut-off in December 2025.

This gap has led some practitioners and policy observers to raise concerns that Canada could end up selecting a meaningful share of economic immigrants primarily because they qualify under the French category, even when their CRS is far below what would typically be competitive in CEC-style selection.

Others counter that the French category is an intentional policy lever, designed to help hit Francophone admission targets outside Quebec, and that candidates invited under French-language rounds still need to meet eligibility requirements for one of the Express Entry-managed programs.

This is exactly the kind of tension that makes today’s Moncton announcement high-interest:

Ottawa is trying to scale Francophone admissions outside Quebec quickly, but the method used to do it can create real debate about fairness, economic outcomes, and long-term integration.

For now, IRCC has confirmed the minister will make an announcement today in Moncton focused on Francophone minority communities outside Quebec.

As soon as the press conference concludes, we will update this story with the exact measures, who is affected, and what it means for applicants in 2026.

Stay tuned and check back later for more updates.

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