Asylum seekers emergency fund

The asylum seekers emergency fund is a response to an exceptional situation that requires agencies to be quickly given additional and significant resources to provide new immigrants in vulnerable situations with emergency assistance.

What is the asylum seekers emergency fund?

It is a fund that provides community agencies that assist asylum seekers in vulnerable situations with emergency financial support. This fund will enable them to continue their work at a time of mounting needs. It is a response to an exceptional situation in which agencies must quickly be given the resources to help people in need.

What amount from the emergency fund is made available to asylum seekers operated by the various Centraides?

It’s an emergency fund of nearly $5.5 million from the Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale ($4,000,000), the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration ($665,000), Centraide of Greater Montreal ($650,000) and Centraide Québec et Chaudière-Appalaches ($150,000).

This emergency fund is a first step towards alleviating the current crisis at community agencies.

Who is eligible to receive support from the fund?

To be eligible for emergency funding, community agencies must be:

  • Supported by the Quebec government
  • Very active with asylum seekers in vulnerable situations
  • Located in the Greater Montreal, National Capital, Estrie, Montérégie and Outaouais areas
  • In a crisis situation because the growing needs of people in vulnerable situations are affecting their capacity to offer their clients quality services and support

The fund is intended to address the following immediate needs:

  • Assisting asylum seekers with the refugee application process
  • Shelter and housing
  • Clothing assistance
  • Food assistance
  • Material assistance
  • Family support

Is there a call for projects to receive the emergency funding?

No. Given the urgency of the situation, the money is not being disbursed through a call for projects, which would have caused significant delays and would not have allowed for rapid delivery of assistance on the ground.

Which community agencies are being targeted for emergency funding?

To respond to this emergency situation, key community agencies involved in supporting asylum seekers have been identified and prioritized, in collaboration with the relevant ministries, the Table de concertation des organismes au service des personnes réfugiées et immigrantes (TCRI) and other stakeholders, to enable them to quickly provide emergency assistance that will have an impact on asylum seekers.

The assistance is enough to give agencies in crisis a significant boost and allow them to have a real impact on asylum seekers in precarious situations. The number of agencies supported is therefore limited. The distribution of the funds is not targeted but an effort has been made to ensure equity to the areas most affected by the issue. 

Select a Centraide below to see a list of targeted community agencies:

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