“This is an absolutely unacceptable situation,” according to Mounsef Derraji, spokesperson for the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) on immigration affairs. Until last October 13, there were 122,400 applications for permanent residence in the province of Quebec awaiting processing.

And 38,400 of these applications, nearly a third of them, fall into the family reunification category, meaning they are people waiting to join their loved ones in Quebec. Often, the person concerned is a spouse residing abroad eagerly waiting to join their partner in Quebec, or sometimes even a child.

“There are many separated families (because of this), complaints are increasing every day, and people are contacting us to inquire,” says Derraji, originally from Morocco, who obtained this data after questioning François Legault’s government on this matter in the National Assembly.

In the eyes of the Quebec Liberal Party, which forms the official opposition in the National Assembly, this accumulation of applications in the family reunification category constitutes a deviation.

Meanwhile, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government is trying to alleviate the labor shortage through temporary foreign workers. But in the meantime, tens of thousands of people have been waiting for years to join a spouse in Quebec.

And the government continues to organize recruiting missions around the world and keeps looking for people, but it forgets to put an end to the backlog it created itself! The government is responsible for the current backlog. — Mounsef Derraji, spokesperson for the official opposition on immigration in Quebec

Marie-Claude Simard, 39, from Quebec, is one of those who consider family reunification a long road of sorrow.

Seven years ago, Simard traveled to Brazil to join her partner there. In 2019, the two began the necessary procedures to settle in Quebec. But so far, the family reunification process is not yet complete.

“For us, this is unimaginable. We are not just a married couple, but now we have become a family,” said Simard, who gave birth to a child with her husband who is now three years old.

Compared to others, Simard is lucky to live with her husband in his country; this is not the case for many couples who live apart during the reunification process.

Simard is a social work specialist, but she is currently teaching French to Brazilians who wish to immigrate to Quebec. This makes her feel the irony of her personal situation; some of these people have successfully immigrated to Quebec, her home, while she and her partner and child are still waiting for their turn.

Simard also pointed out that she is qualified in two fields currently lacking labor in Quebec. Her husband works in marketing after completing university studies.

“I’m not worried about our integration into Quebec!” said Simard, laughing, while having no idea when she will finally be able to return to her homeland with her husband and child.

“There really is a need for adjustment,” commented the co-president of the Quebec Association of Immigration Lawyers (AQAADI), Stéphanie Valois, adding that there is “either blindness on the part of (Quebec’s) government or a misunderstanding of what is happening on the ground.”

The immigration plan presented by the Minister of Immigration, Francisation and Integration of the Quebec government, Christine Fréchette, on November 1st of this year stipulates that the number of immigrants Quebec will receive in 2024 in the family reunification category will range between 10,200 and 10,600 people.

Given that more than 38 thousand people are currently waiting, Valois is concerned about the potential increase in permanent residence processing delays, which approach an average of three years for spouses and are higher in Quebec than in other Canadian provinces.

Valois is also concerned about 36,400 refugees who are themselves waiting for permanent residence in Quebec.

For his part, Minister Fréchette’s office says it is concerned about the waiting lists but blames the federal government responsible for processing these files, and confirms that it is in “ongoing contact with the federal government to improve processing times and the workflow.”