Quebec requests $1B from the Federal Government to offset increasing asylum seeker expenses

The Quebec Government is requesting a $1billion reimbursement from Ottawa for the cost of supporting an increasing number of asylum seekers. The province claims it spent $576.9 million in 2023 on social services for migrants, in addition to $470 million in 2021 and 2022. As of Dec. 31, 55 percent of asylum seekers in Canada - 160,651 out of 289,047 - are in Quebec. The province has requested the Federal Government to distribute asylum seekers more evenly across Canada and curb the influx by tightening visa policies.