Settling in Greater Montreal: The realities and challenges
Every year, Greater Montreal welcomes thousands of newcomers who arrive with the hope of a better future. However, this hope often collides with the complexities of the high cost of living, scarce housing, and sometimes inaccessible services. Fortunately, community agencies are here to support them on this journey that can be strewn with obstacles.
Who are these newcomers?
Not all newcomers to Quebec have the same immigration status, a reality that plays a decisive role in how their experience plays out. Their status will determine their right to health care, French classes and assistance programs and even their right to work or study. In other words, this status will directly impact their living conditions, safety, and ability to integrate.
The three main status types are:
Non-permanent residents and people without status are the most likely to land in situations of uncertainty and vulnerability.
Significant increase in non-permanent residents
The number of non-permanent residents in Quebec has risen sharply, more than doubling between 2016 and 2021 and then almost quadrupling to over 616,600 as of April 1, 2025.1 A reason for this increase is the post-pandemic border reopening that allowed many asylum seekers, temporary workers and international students to enter Quebec. Other reasons for the increase include increased recruitment of international students by universities and the focus of many companies on hiring foreign workers.
Number of non-permanent residents in Quebec
| Year | # of residents |
| 2016 | 70,860 |
| 2021 | 161,680 |
| 2025 | 616,600* |
*as of April 2025
Profile of non-permanent residents (April 2025 in %)
- Temporary workers – 45%
- Asylum seekers – 30%
- International students – 11%
- People with open permits (spouses, etc.) – 9%
- Other (people on extended visits, people with other temporary permits) – 5%
Nearly 80% of non-permanent residents settle in Greater Montreal, which puts particular pressure on community resources in this territory.
An insecure status leads to difficult conditions
These newcomers often live with uncertainty and face extreme vulnerability and systemic barriers that limit their access to basic services. This reality is a true social emergency, as 40% of non-permanent residents in Greater Montreal live below the poverty line, compared to 7.5% for the entire population, which illustrates the scope of their social and economic vulnerability.
👉 They have the highest observed poverty rate among all at-risk groups.
Coping with struggles on the ground
Community agencies play a central role in welcoming and supporting newcomers to Greater Montreal. They see difficult and complex situations every day on the front line that lead to multiple challenges for these individuals:
🏚️ Growing homelessness among asylum seekers
Both visible and invisible homelessness is mounting. Given the lack of suitable shelters or transitional housing units, some people—including children—find themselves with no other solution.
🏢 Precarious housing
Even people who are not unhoused may still live in temporary, overcrowded or substandard housing that endangers their and their family’s health.
🙋♀️ Women at risk with no access to services
A lack of housing and access to health care and legal support creates a very precarious situation for some women who are victims of violence.
🚑 Barriers to essential services
Language barriers, a lack of knowledge of the system, or a fear of repercussions on their status can keep people from accessing health care or education.
👋 Social and economic isolation
A lack of a network, employment barriers, and financial insecurity exacerbate isolation and vulnerability.
💭 Mental health challenges
Having an uncertain status, being separated from your family, and living in precarious conditions all increase the risk of psychological distress, anxiety and depression.
Centraide: Essential support
Each year, Centraide invests over $2.4 million in 19 agencies whose main mission is to welcome and include newcomers. However, many agencies often do even more and provide this population with cross-disciplinary services in housing, food security, and family support.
These welcome and integration agencies provide:
- Help with administrative procedures (to get government health insurance or enroll children in school or daycare)
- Support to find housing and employment
- Referrals to basic services (health, food, clothing)
- Psychosocial and parental support
- Spaces for socialization and activities to break isolation
The Centre social d’aide aux immigrants (CSAI) has been helping newcomers make Greater Montreal their home since 1947. Lida Aghasi, the agency’s executive director, immediately stresses what the agency does best: “The CSAI’s strength is its agility.” Given constantly evolving immigration experiences, this adaptability is essential to meet the diverse needs of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers.
Main demographic statistics
- 1 out of 3 people in Greater Montreal was born outside the country.
- 27% of the Greater Montreal population belongs to a visible minority group, a rate that reaches 38% on the Island of Montreal.
- Visible minorities experience poverty at a rate that is twice as high (12%) as the rate for non-racialized people (6%).
Sources:
- Institut de la statistique du Québec. (2025). Non-permanent residents by type, by quarter, Quebec and Canada (January-July 2025) [Interactive table, in French only]. Data on international and interprovincial migration. Quebec: ISQ. Retrieved from: https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/produit/tableau/residents-non-permanents-type-janvier-juillet-quebec-canada
All other statistics come from Statistics Canada’s 2021 census.
1 out of 5 people receives our help.
5 out of 5 people benefit from it.
Let’s all lend a hand
Supporting a network of over 375 community agencies also means promoting an inclusive, poverty-free society.