Updated July 2026. Canada exceeded its 2025 Francophone immigration target for the fourth consecutive year, and announced an expanded push for French-speaking immigration through 2029.
2025 Results
Canada set an 8.5% target for Francophone permanent resident admissions outside Quebec in 2025. The actual result: over 29,500 Francophone permanent residents admitted, representing 8.9% of admissions outside Quebec — beating the target and continuing a four-year streak of doing so.
5,000 New Federal Selection Spaces for 2026
Announced by Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab at a press conference in Moncton, Canada is reserving 5,000 permanent residence selection spaces specifically for provinces and territories to nominate French-speaking immigrants, starting in 2026. These spaces supplement existing Provincial Nominee Program allocations rather than replacing them, aimed at addressing shortages of Francophone and bilingual workers.
Rising Targets Through 2028
As part of the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan, the Francophone permanent resident target outside Quebec rises each year:
- 2026: 9%
- 2027: 9.5%
- 2028: 10.5%
The government has set 12% as its longer-term goal for French-speaking permanent residents outside Quebec by 2029.
How This Fits the Bigger Picture
This builds on existing Francophone immigration measures already in place, including the French-language proficiency category in Express Entry (which has consistently offered some of the lowest CRS cutoffs of any category in 2026), the Francophone Mobility Program, and the Welcoming Francophone Communities initiative — all part of a broader federal push to strengthen Francophone and Acadian minority communities outside Quebec while addressing labour shortages.
Source: IRCC, Canada exceeded its Francophone immigration target for 2025.
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