Careers

Working in Montreal

As Québec’s metropolis, Montréal is a premier destination for career advancement and quality of life. Montreal is a safe, cosmopolitan, multicultural, and diverse city with a rich artistic personality. It offers a great urban, green and active living environment. The city unites history and modernity, culture and nature, and is a reflection of its residents. Dynamic, innovative and effervescent, it enjoys a thriving economy and incomparable quality of life. Festivals and large-scale events follow one another and punctuate the seasons. Montreal is not only a city: It’s a welcoming environment where each family member can find a place and thrive.

WORK PERMIT OR VISA

If you’re considering settling in Québec for a predetermined period for a precise job, the status of temporary worker suffices. You’ll get a work permit authorizing you to work for one to three years for a company. Under certain conditions, you can ask for a renewal, for a total duration not exceeding five or six years. And if you want to switch employers, you’ll need a new work permit.

If you’re rather thinking of building your career in Québec and making your life here, request a permanent resident visa. Valid for an unlimited period and for the members of your family, it grants you the same rights as Canadian citizens, with the exception of voting rights and the right to a Canadian passport.

Entry to Canada for foreign workers who settle in Québec is a competence shared by both levels of governments. In Québec, the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles manages the selection of immigrants and supports their integration. As for the federal government, it grants admission to applicants.

FOR MORE INFORMATION :
Living in Montréal

YOUR CONTACT POINTS :
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC)
Ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles

COST OF LIVING

With highly competitive prices for daily purchases, affordable tuition and free healthcare, Québec City and Montreal are great places to live.

Thanks to a low cost of living, buying power here is one of the highest in the world. It’s true for lodgings, which can be half the cost of other North American or European major cities. It’s also true for healthcare, child rearing and daily expenses (food, clothing, etc.).

FINDING A PLACE TO LIVE

It could be interesting at first to settle temporarily in a furnished apartment rented per week or month. This way, you can get a feel for various neighbourhoods and evaluate your needs. You can then rent an apartment or a house by signing a 12-month lease with a landlord. Most leases start on July 1st, making that day “Moving Day”! The Régie du logement du Québec is the agency that manages your rights and obligations as tenant. In 2013, the average rent for an apartment with two rooms, a kitchen and bathroom was $720 per month in Montreal and $760 in Québec City.

FOR MORE INFORMATION :
Ministère de l’Immigration et des communautés culturelles
Régie du logement du Québec

HEALTH IN QUÉBEC

To benefit from free healthcare, you must register with the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec upon your arrival.

Drug insurance is also mandatory.

YOUR CONTACT POINTS :
Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec
Signing up for health insurance
Drug insurance
Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association (CLHIA)

QUÉBEC DRIVER’S LICENCE

Under certain conditions, it is possible to keep your foreign driver’s license. In most cases, however, a Québec driver’s license is required. Depending on your country of origin, you’ll obtain your Québec driver’s license in exchange for your current license or after a driving exam.

YOUR CONTACT POINT:
Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec