PSTQ guide: understanding the 4 streams of Québec's Skilled Worker Selection Program

Planning to settle in Québec permanently and work there? The Programme de sélection des travailleurs qualifiés (PSTQ), or Skilled Worker Selection Program, is meant for you, whether you already live in Québec or abroad. Here is how it works and what sets its four streams apart, based on Québec.ca pages.

The PSTQ at a glance

The program is run by the ministère de l'Immigration et de l'Intégration (MII), formerly MIFI; many official pages still show the old name. The PSTQ replaced the former Programme régulier des travailleurs qualifiés (PRTQ) on November 29, 2024, and the department asks people not to compare rounds from the two programs.

The path always follows the same order:

1. You fill out an expression of interest (also called a declaration of interest) in the Arrima platform, free of charge.
2. Your profile goes into the expression of interest bank and gets a score.
3. If your profile meets the criteria of a round and reaches the required score, you may be invited to apply for permanent selection.
4. The department then checks every program condition.
5. If you are selected, you receive a Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ). You then apply for permanent residence with the Government of Canada, which decides on admission.

Everything starts with your main occupation

In your expression of interest, you name a main occupation: the one you intend to practise in Québec and in which you can reasonably expect to hold a job. It matches a five-digit code in the National Occupational Classification (NOC), which lists 516 occupations.

The second digit of that code is the TEER category (training, education, experience and responsibilities), from 0 (management) to 5. TEER 1 covers jobs that usually call for a university degree; beyond that, the usual training gets progressively shorter.

You do not pick your stream. The department assigns it from your main occupation and the related details you declare. Québec.ca offers a search tool that matches a NOC code to its stream (Stream 4 is not in the tool, because it is based on the person rather than the occupation).

Requirements shared by all four streams

Whatever your stream, you must, among other things:

• be at least 18;
• intend to settle in Québec to hold a job you can reasonably do, not with a business you control and not in an excluded sector (payday loans, cheque cashing, pawnbroking, the sex industry);
• meet the criteria that led to your invitation;
• sign a financial self-sufficiency contract covering your needs, and those of accompanying family members, for the three months after you obtain permanent residence;
• obtain the Attestation d'apprentissage des valeurs démocratiques et des valeurs québécoises (attestation of learning about democratic and Québec values), as must accompanying family members aged 18 or over;
• respect any obligation to return home that comes with a Québec study scholarship, if it applies.

Stream 1: Highly qualified and specialized skills

This stream covers TEER 0, 1 and 2 occupations that do not require a licence to practise in Québec.

• Experience: at least 12 months of paid work in your main occupation, full time or equivalent, in the five years before you apply, in Québec or elsewhere. A mandatory internship can count for up to three months.
• Education: a diploma for at least one year of full-time study that is comparable, in Québec, to a DEP or ASP, an AEC or technical DEC, or a university degree. A Québec diploma must total at least 900 hours (secondary or college) or 30 credits (university).
• French: level 7 in speaking and listening and level 5 in reading and writing on the Échelle québécoise des niveaux de compétence en français. An accompanying spouse needs level 4 in speaking and listening.

Stream 2: Intermediate and manual skills

This stream covers TEER 3, 4 and 5 occupations, again with no licence required.

• Experience: at least 24 months in your main occupation over the last five years, including at least 12 months in Québec. Experience from outside Québec counts for one year at most and can come from an occupation in the same broad category (same first NOC digit).
• Education: at least the equivalent of a high school diploma, or a DEP, ASP or AEC of at least one year. A Québec diploma must total at least 600 hours at the secondary level, 900 hours at the college level or 30 university credits.
• French: level 5 in speaking and listening; level 4 in speaking and listening for an accompanying spouse.

Stream 3: Regulated professions

This stream is for people whose occupation appears on the department's list of regulated professions, updated every January 31.

• Document from the regulatory body: you need a licence to practise, or proof of partial or full recognition of your training or diploma dated no more than five years before your application. An acknowledgement of receipt is not enough.
• Timing: the department recommends waiting for your invitation before starting with the regulatory body. Without the proof, an invited person has one year after accepting to submit the application.
• French: level 7 in speaking and listening and 5 in reading and writing for a TEER 0, 1 or 2 occupation; level 5 in speaking and listening for TEER 3, 4 or 5; level 4 in speaking and listening for an accompanying spouse.

Stream 4: Exceptional talent

This stream is meant for a very small number of people who clearly stand out in their field. You must have worked in your main occupation for at least three of the last five years and have recognized achievements. The proof takes one of two forms:

• an achievement that appears on the department's list of achievements;
• a favourable opinion from a partner: the ministère de l'Économie, de l'Innovation et de l'Énergie for strategic sectors, the Fonds de recherche du Québec for research, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec for the arts, or the Institut national du sport du Québec for sport.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a job offer?

A job offer is not among the published general requirements. A validated job offer in your main occupation does, however, add points to your ranking.

Do I have to live in Québec already?

No, but Stream 2 requires at least 12 months of experience gained in Québec.

Track your file with CSQ Tracker Pro

CSQ Tracker Pro is an independent app, not affiliated with the Government of Québec. It offers a simulator that estimates your PSTQ score, the list of Arrima invitation rounds taken from Québec.ca, a step-by-step journey tracker and a PEQ eligibility checker.

Official sources

• Skilled Worker Selection Program (PSTQ)
• About the Skilled Worker Selection Program
• Requirements of the Skilled Worker Selection Program
• Find the NOC code of your main occupation and the corresponding stream
• Invitation to apply for permanent selection
• Understanding the difference between selection by Québec and admission by Canada
• Announcement of the department's new name (in French)

Information checked on November 5, 2026. Rules can change: always check Québec.ca before acting.