IRCC increases cap for the FMCSP programme

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will accept nearly 700 additional applications through the study-to-permanent residence (PR) pathway of the Francophone Minority Communities Student Pilot (FMCSP).

This increase brings the total number of applications accepted through this pathway to 2,970, up from the previous year’s cap of 2,300.

IRCC will accept these applications from 26 August 2025 to 25 August 2026.

To be eligible for the FMCSP, foreign nationals only need to achieve a level 5 in French proficiency according to the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC), as opposed to the level 7 NCLC required for category-based Express Entry draws.

Key features of the FMCSP

Through the FMCSP, eligible French-speaking students admitted to a designated learning institution (DLI) in Canada (within a selected community) can receive study permit support and ultimately apply for permanent residence after studying through a dedicated, specialised pathway.

Immediate family members accompanying an FMCSP applicant can also receive permanent residence through this pathway.

After applying for permanent residence, both the primary applicant (student) and accompanying immediate family members may be eligible for open work permits (OWP), allowing them to work for most employers and in most occupations in Canada while waiting for a decision.

IRCC defines immediate family members as

• The spouse or common-law partner
• Dependent children
• Dependent children of dependent children

Who is eligible to apply through this pathway?

To be eligible for the FMCSP, international students (as primary applicants) must meet the following requirements:

• Have submitted a study permit application prior to entering Canada.
• Be a citizen of an eligible member country of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF), from a selected region:
• Eligible countries:
  • Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Togo, Tunisia.
  • Middle East: Egypt, Lebanon.
  • Americas: Haiti, Dominica, Saint Lucia.
• Have a letter of acceptance that
  • From a Designated Learning Institution (DLI) that has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with IRCC to participate in the FMCSP
  • Stating that the student is applying under the FMCSP
  • Confirming that the student will enrol in a post-secondary programme taught primarily in French (more than 50% of courses in French)
  • Being a full-time programme lasting at least two years
  • Resulting in a degree or diploma
• Provide French language test results from an approved testing organisation, showing a minimum score of 5 in each of the four skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing) according to the NCLC.
• Prove sufficient available funds (excluding first-year tuition and travel expenses) equal to at least 75% Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) for the municipality where the main campus of the DLI is located.
• Not be inadmissible to Canada, including due to an inadmissible family member.

To accompany an eligible primary applicant under the FMCSP, an immediate family member must

• Meet IRCC’s definition of a family member;
• Have submitted one of the following applications:
  • A work permit application as a family member of the primary applicant
  • A study permit application showing they are a bona fide student with an interest in a study programme, and stating a connection to the primary FMCSP applicant or
  • Application a temporary resident visa (TRV).

How to apply

The instructions and documents required to apply through the FMCSP vary slightly depending on the country from which the student is applying.

To receive relevant instructions, applicants can:

• Access the “How to apply” of IRCC for the FMCSP and select the country from which they are applying.
  • At this point, students must also specify whether they are applying with an accompanying family member who is also applying for a work permit through the FMCSP. Application instructions and required documents will vary slightly based on the applicant’s answer here.
• Once these details have been entered, the site will generate a document checklist relevant to each applicant’s situation. These are linked in the final bullet point of the list as “visa office instructions”.
  • Applicants must download this list and gather all required documents, including application forms, academic documents, proof of funds, and all other required documents.
    • IRCC advises that when submitting the application forms, students must carefully answer certain questions in a specific way to indicate that they are applying under the FMCSP.
      • If applying alone: when asked “Do you have a provincial or territorial attestation letter or do you meet an exemption from submitting a provincial or territorial attestation letter?” applicants must select the answer “Yes, I meet an exemption from submitting a provincial or territorial attestation letter.”
      • If applying with a family member applying for a work permit: when asked “what exemption are you eligible for?” applicants must select the answer “I am an applicant who meets another exemption listed on the IRCC website.”
• Once all necessary documents have been gathered and fully completed, students can now upload their documents to their secure IRCC account.
• Students must ensure that they upload their language test results into the “Client Information” field under the “Optional Documents” section.

Why is IRCC increasing the intake cap for the FMCSP?

IRCC has expanded the FMCSP as part of its mandate to increase the number of French speakers outside Quebec.

As the department with the greatest impact on the languages spoken in Canada (through immigration), IRCC has been tasked by the federal government with increasing the “demographic weight” of French speakers outside Quebec—a population that has declined in recent years.

As part of this objective, IRCC has implemented a number of initiatives to target French speakers from abroad to settle in Canada outside Quebec. These measures include

• The Express Entry French language proficiency categories
• The Welcoming Francophone Communities initiative
• FMCSP

To achieve these goals, IRCC intends to increase the annual proportion of landings that it allocates to French-speaking immigration outside Quebec, as detailed in the department’s Francophone Immigration Policy. This increase will be implemented through dedicated targets for the above programmes.

Under this plan, IRCC intends to dedicate 9.5% of its immigration landings in the year 2026 to French-speaking immigration outside Quebec.