Quebec June 4 PSTQ Draw Invites 2,549 Candidates

Québec PSTQ draw June 4, 2026 — Detailed analysis of invitations, streams and what applicants must know

Introduction: What happened and why it matters

On June 4, 2026, Québec held a provincial selection exercise through its Skilled Worker Selection Program (Programme de sélection des travailleurs qualifiés — PSTQ), issuing a total of 2,549 invitations to candidates in the Arrima pool. Selections were executed from Arrima on June 1, 2026 at 6:00 a.m. The majority of invitations targeted highly qualified and specialized workers (42.9% of the invitations). This round is the province’s fifth draw of the year and contains important details for candidates currently in Québec and those who hold Québec credentials. If you are in the Arrima pool, working in Québec, or hold a qualifying Québec diploma, these results change the immediate landscape of who Québec is prioritizing and the concrete thresholds used to invite candidates.

How Québec structured this selection round

Québec ran invitations across the PSTQ’s three main streams relevant to skilled workers: Stream 1 (Highly qualified and specialized skills), Stream 2 (Intermediate and manual skills), and Stream 3 (Regulated professions). Each stream was subdivided into multiple exercises — distinct selection categories with their own eligibility nuances and minimum point thresholds. The invitations were all drawn from the Arrima pool, and each exercise specified occupation TEER levels, required work experience in Québec and/or the last five years, Québec diploma requirements, and French language requirements for both principal applicants and accompanying spouses.

Stream 1 — Highly qualified and specialized skills: what Québec prioritized

Québec issued a total of 1,094 invitations under Stream 1 across four exercises. These exercises targeted workers in TEER 0, 1 or 2 occupations who are currently living in Québec and who meet work experience requirements (12 months’ work experience over the last five years).

Key common requirements across Stream 1:

French language: oral proficiency level 7 or higher and written level 5 or higher for principal applicants.
Accompanying spouses, if applicable, needed oral level 4 or higher.
Education: completion of at least one year of full‑time study in Québec leading to a qualifying Québec diploma. Qualifying credentials included vocational diplomas or attestations, college/technical diplomas, certificates, specialized graduate diplomas, bachelors, masters or doctorates; university-level candidates needed at least 30 credits, other programs at least 900 hours.

Breakdown of the four exercises in Stream 1:

Exercise 1 (Qualifying Québec diploma): 459 invitations. Minimum score: 677 points.
Exercise 2 (Qualifying Québec diploma + priority occupation, TEER 1–2): 239 invitations. Minimum score: 379 points. Targeted mainly health, education and early childhood sectors and specific NOCs such as physician assistants, midwives, pharmacy technicians, counsellors, social/community service workers and early childhood educators.
Exercise 3 (Qualifying Québec diploma + priority occupation, TEER 0–2): 165 invitations. Minimum score: 666 points. Targeted a wider list of priority occupations including engineering managers, various engineering technologists and technicians, chefs, machinists, welders, electricians, carpenters, heavy equipment mechanics, aircraft mechanics, and crane operators among others.
Exercise 4 (Qualifying Québec diploma): 231 invitations. Minimum score: 692 points.

What this structure signals

Québec continues to place a premium on applicants with Québec educational credentials plus strong French proficiency, especially oral French.
Priority occupations in health, education, early childhood and a broad set of technical and skilled trades were explicitly singled out; in some exercises the minimum score requirements were notably lower for targeted priority occupations (for example, 379 points under Exercise 2), reflecting active targeting of those sectors.

Stream 2 — Intermediate and manual skills: who was invited

Québec issued 756 invitations under Stream 2 across four exercises. Stream 2 targeted TEER 3, 4 or 5 occupations, with work experience requirements set at 24 months in the last five years and at least 12 months in Québec for some pathways.

Common requirements across Stream 2:

French language: principal applicants required oral level 5 or higher; accompanying spouses needed oral level 4 or higher.
Education: completion of education equivalent to a Québec high school diploma or a two‑year general post-secondary program, or a one‑year program of at least one year leading to a qualifying Québec credential. Qualifying Québec credentials echoed those listed in Stream 1 and included vocational diplomas (over 600 hours in Québec), college diplomas, specialized graduate diplomas, and university degrees.

Breakdown of the exercises in Stream 2:

Exercise 1 (Qualifying Québec diploma): 229 invitations. Minimum score: 624 points. Required a Québec university, college or secondary diploma with at least 600 hours of study (900 hours at secondary vocational or college level; 30 credits at university level).
Exercise 2 (Qualifying Québec diploma + priority occupation, TEER 3): 256 invitations. Minimum score: 330 points. Targeted priority occupations such as medical laboratory assistants, nurse aides/orderlies and pharmacy technical assistants.
Exercise 3 (Qualifying Québec diploma + priority occupation, TEER 3–5): 90 invitations. Minimum score: 653 points. Priority occupations included cooks, food and beverage servers, kitchen helpers, light duty cleaners, concrete finishers, tilesetters, roofers, painters, heavy equipment operators and construction trades helpers.
Exercise 4 (Qualifying Québec diploma): 181 invitations. Minimum score: 652 points.

Implications for intermediate and manual skill workers

Quebec is actively selecting candidates with vocational training and work experience in intermediate and manual occupations, while maintaining measurable French performance thresholds that applicants must meet.
Some priority occupations allowed significantly lower minimum points (e.g., 330 points under Exercise 2), which can present viable pathways for applicants in targeted health support roles.

Stream 3 — Regulated professions: controlled access and targeted selection

Stream 3 accounted for a reported 677 invitations across five exercises. This stream is reserved for candidates practicing a regulated profession listed on the Ministère’s List of Regulated Professions, and as such includes a mix of high‑skilled health and regulated professional occupations.

Common and variable features:

All candidates must practice a regulated profession that appears on the Ministère’s official list.
Some exercises imposed stronger French language requirements; others varied by occupation and TEER level.

Exercise-level details:

Exercise 1 (Qualifying Québec diploma + TEER 0–2 occupations): 73 invitations. Minimum score: 562 points. Education thresholds similar to other streams (30 credits at university level; 900 hours otherwise). French oral 7+ and written 5+ required for principal applicants; spouses needed oral 4+.
Exercise 2 (Priority occupation, TEER 1–2): 393 invitations. Minimum score: 275 points. This exercise targeted a wide range of regulated health and clinical professions with NOCs including specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine, surgeons, general practitioners and family physicians, veterinarians, dentists, audiologists, pharmacists, dietitians, psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nursing coordinators and supervisors, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and many paramedical occupations.
Exercise 3 (Priority occupation, TEER 1–2): 118 invitations. (Source lists this exercise without separate numeric threshold in the extract beyond its category.)
Exercise 4 (TEER 0–2 occupations): 71 invitations.
Exercise 5 (TEER 3–5 occupations): 22 invitations.

What regulated-profession invitations mean

Lower minimum scores in some priority exercises (for example, 275 points under Exercise 2) indicate the province is prioritizing specific regulated health and clinical roles, likely to meet labour needs within regulated health services.
Regulated-profession applicants must ensure they appear on the Ministère’s List of Regulated Professions and meet French proficiency and credential requirements specific to each exercise.

Who is directly affected by this round

The draw targets a clear set of applicant groups:

Workers currently living in Québec who have created an Arrima profile and meet the PSTQ eligibility rules for the relevant stream and exercise.
Holders of qualifying Québec diplomas: candidates who completed at least one year of full‑time study in Québec leading to a recognized Québec credential (vocational diplomas, college diplomas, university degrees, etc.) and who can document required credits or hours.
Applicants in priority occupations named in the exercises: health‑sector roles, education and early childhood occupations, a broad set of engineering technologists, technicians and trades, and intermediate/manual occupations such as cooks, concrete finishers, roofers and heavy‑equipment operators.
Professionals in regulated occupations listed by the Ministère — especially in clinical and health fields covered by Stream 3.
Accompanying spouses of invited applicants, where specific French thresholds are required for spouses to meet the exercise conditions.

Practical impact for applicants and immediate actions

This selection round has practical consequences for candidates who meet the announced criteria:

– If you were already in the Arrima pool:
– Verify that your profile accurately reflects your Québec education (dates, credits/hours, diploma type), current principal occupation (correct NOC), and verified French language levels. The draws were executed from Arrima, so any mismatch could cause missed invitations.
– Check whether your occupation appears on one of the priority lists used by specific exercises: if it does, you could be eligible under a lower points threshold in that exercise.
– Review your work‑experience records so you can demonstrate the required 12 months or 24 months of work experience in the last five years where applicable.

– If you hold a Québec diploma:
– Ensure your credential details in Arrima match the program length requirements (e.g., at least 30 credits for university-level; 900 hours for certain vocational or college programs; more than 600 hours where specified).

– If you practice a regulated profession:
– Confirm your profession is on the Ministère’s List of Regulated Professions and that your Arrima profile reflects any licensing or regulated status details required by Québec.

– French proficiency:
– Note the recurring strict French oral requirements (level 7 in many Stream 1 and Stream 3 exercises) and written requirements (level 5 in some cases). Accompanying spouses often had to meet at least oral level 4. Candidates whose French profiles do not meet these thresholds should consider ways to document or improve their French competency where possible.

Understanding the point thresholds and priority occupation effects

The draw shows a dual approach:

Higher general thresholds for broadly competitive categories (e.g., 677, 692, 666 points in some Stream 1 exercises) indicate that when Québec casts a wider net it still expects strong comprehensive scores from candidates.
Much lower thresholds for tightly targeted priority‑occupation exercises (e.g., 379 points in Stream 1 Exercise 2; 330 points in Stream 2 Exercise 2; 275 points in Stream 3 Exercise 2) indicate Québec will lower the numerical barrier when aiming to fill specific labour gaps in sectors like health and certain technical trades.

For applicants, this means that occupying a named priority NOC can materially change your chances — even if your overall PSTQ score is lower than those required in the general exercises.

What applicants should pay attention to next

Focus on these concrete items:

Arrima profile accuracy: any credential, date, hours/credits, NOC designation, or language score mismatch could disqualify you from an invitation even if you nominally meet the exercise criteria.
French evidence: ensure you can document the oral and written French levels required by your target exercise. Québec places clear emphasis on oral French capacity, particularly in many Stream 1 and Stream 3 exercises.
Work experience timing: verify that your work experience falls within the last five years and meets provincial minimums (12 or 24 months depending on stream and exercise).
Québec diploma eligibility: if you completed programs in Québec, confirm the credential type, program length and the required credits/hours are recorded on your profile exactly as required by the exercise you target.
Priority occupation lists and NOC alignment: if your occupation appears among the enumerated NOCs in an exercise, confirm that your principal occupation in Arrima matches that NOC; this can allow you to benefit from a lower minimum score.
Spouse language level: accompanying spouses must in many cases meet minimum oral French levels; make sure their profiles reflect the correct language evidence.

Why this update is important for Québec immigration planning

This draw demonstrates Québec’s targeted, multi-pronged selection strategy: maintaining high thresholds for general competitive categories while opening lower-score pathways for occupations in clear labour shortage areas, particularly in health and regulated professions. For candidates, understanding this duality is critical — you may be more competitive through a priority-occupation route than through a general highly‑qualified exercise, depending on your profile. For employers and sector stakeholders within Québec, the draw signals which occupations the province is actively trying to bolster through immigration selection.

Numbers and timing to note from the June 2026 round

Total invitations reported: 2,549 candidates invited (draw executed from the Arrima pool on June 1, 2026 at 6:00 a.m.).
Stream 1 (Highly qualified and specialized skills): 1,094 invitations across four exercises.
Stream 2 (Intermediate and manual skills): 756 invitations across four exercises.
Stream 3 (Regulated professions): 677 invitations across five exercises.
This was Québec’s fifth PSTQ draw of the year.
Examples of minimum point thresholds used by different exercises: Stream 1 exercises included thresholds of 677, 379, 666 and 692; Stream 2 included 624, 330, 653 and 652; Stream 3 included 562 and 275 in specific exercises.
Applicants were required to show specified French proficiency levels, Québec education credentials (with required credits or hours), and relevant work experience within defined lookback periods.

Final considerations

Québec’s June 2026 PSTQ round is a reminder that selection is both score-driven and sector-driven. Candidates who pay attention to the precise exercise definitions — including TEER categories, priority occupation lists (with specific NOC codes), Québec diploma requirements, French proficiency thresholds and the timing of work experience — will be better positioned to evaluate their chances and to update Arrima profiles accordingly. This round favored candidates already living in Québec and those with Québec education and regulated‑profession status, while also carving out lower‑score paths for high‑need occupations.

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