Quebec family reunification delays

This article is written like a personal reflection, personal essay, or argumentative essay that states a Wikipedia editor's personal feelings or presents an original argument about a topic. Please help improve it by rewriting it in an encyclopedic style. (March 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

This article possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. (March 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Quebec family reunification delays refer to Quebec immigration policies that have resulted in a delay between the demand for family reunification and the fulfilment of such requests. Marked by quantitative restrictions and wait times that have more than tripled, families face a prolonged process to reunite with their family members. By 2024, this increase in wait times of more than three years contrasts with other Canadian provinces, where the process usually takes 13 months.^[1] The family reunification policy adopted by the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government was described by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as causing "enormous distress among the families affected".^[1]

The lengthy wait period for family reunification has exposed many couples to intense emotional stress, amplifying concerns related to fertility, parenthood, and testing the stability of their marital unions.^[2] Being in the midst of administrative delays while processing their applications, these couples face the difficult situation of living apart for years. This circumstance has put so much pressure on some relationships that some have contemplated separation as a solution to the emotional wear and tear experienced.^[2] Moreover, it has contributed to difficult decisions such as unwanted abortion.^[3]

A study conducted by the Institut Universitaire Jeunes en Difficulté (IUJD), involving 146 families who experienced reunification in Quebec, showed how repeated relational disruptions can have significant psychosocial consequences for children both in the short and long term.^[4] The traumatic effects of family separation on children are well-documented, including higher rates of PTSD and depressive disorders that can persist into adulthood, negatively impacting academic performance, relationship formation, and mental health. The family separation policy has been actively opposed by health professionals and medical organizations, being described by the American Academy of Pediatrics as "government-sanctioned child abuse" and by Physicians for Human Rights as consistent with the legal definition of torture and temporary enforced disappearance under international human rights law.^{[original research?][5]}

The website of Québec Réunifié has published a report showing how Quebec is the only government that imposes quotas. Wait times for family reunification are the longest in the world, noting that even far-right European governments do not implement measures comparable to the quotas mentioned.^[6] Multiple authoritative sources have classified the situation as a critical humanitarian crisis.^[7][8]