The CAQ required documents come down to one signed form and a short stack of papers that you give to your employer, not to Quebec. The employer submits the file. That one fact explains most of what goes wrong.
Here is the list as Quebec publishes it, what the official form adds to it, and what the ministry says can send a file back. Everything was checked on October 16, 2026.
At a glance
- You gather, your employer submits
- Photocopies in French or English, never originals
- Form dated March 2026 required
Who sends the CAQ documents, you or your employer?
You gather them. Your employer submits them.
You send the completed, signed form and every supporting document directly to your employer. You also sign section 11 of the form, “Authorization given to employer”, so that the employer can act for you with Quebec’s immigration ministry (MIFI).
If your employer’s job offer and your application are both accepted, the employer sends you two letters: the attestation letter for your CAQ, and the confirmation letter from Service Canada and the MIFI. You need all of them to apply for your work permit. The order of the whole process is in our guide to the Quebec CAQ.
What are the CAQ required documents?
The form, a signed employment contract, your passport, a CV, your diplomas and transcripts, work attestations and your earlier permits.
| Document | What Quebec asks |
|---|---|
| Application for temporary selection | The version dated March 2026, completed and signed by hand |
| Employment contract | Completed and signed by your employer, countersigned by you; Quebec’s form is in French only |
| Passport | Copies of the pages showing your name, place of birth and signature |
| Curriculum vitae | Detailed and up to date |
| Diplomas and transcripts | Copies, with the transcripts that go with them |
| Employment attestations | For work experience relevant to the job, if it applies |
| Earlier permits | Work permit, study permit or visitor record, if it applies |
What does the official form add to that list?
A longer checklist, and a few items the web page does not name. The form’s Part 2 asks you to tick each document you include, and it is compulsory to enclose that list.
- Passport: the pages showing your identity, the issue and expiry dates, and any changes. Send the pages that cover both descriptions.
- Permits: work, study, residence or visitor permits for the last six years.
- Relevé 1, if you have already filed a tax return in Canada or Quebec.
- A work reference for each relevant experience you declare.
- For work abroad, proof that it was legal, issued by a government authority, such as a statement of social security contributions or a notice of income tax assessment.
- Proof of authorization to practise or recognition of your degree, if the job is a regulated occupation. It must come from the Quebec regulatory authority and be no more than five years old.
- A driver’s licence, if the job requires driving a car.
What should the documents look like?
Photocopies, in French or English, and never originals. The form says not to send originals unless it asks for them, because submitted documents are not returned. Quebec may still ask for the originals at any time during processing. Keep a copy of everything.
A document in any other language needs a translation signed and authenticated by a professional translator. If a French or English document carries a seal in another language, the seal has to be translated too.
What can get a CAQ file returned?
Quebec names a few causes, and we report only those.
- Illegible handwriting. If you fill the form by hand, print in block letters in blue or black ink. Quebec says illegible writing could make the application ineligible.
- An incomplete file. The form says an application may be rejected or considered inadmissible if payment, signatures or required documents are missing or in the wrong format.
- Signatures that are not handwritten. Typed or digital signatures are not accepted. A handwritten signature scanned or applied with a stylus is.
- Payment problems, on paper files. If the amount is missing from the credit card form, the payment is returned. If the card is refused, you are not notified and the whole file comes back by regular mail. Applications submitted in Arrima are paid by the employer by credit card in the Employer Portal.
Quebec does not publish a full list of reasons, and we will not guess at the rest. The form also asks you to tell the ministry about any change to your answers within 30 days.
Do you need to prove your French?
Not for the standard list. In-home caregivers are the exception.
No language test is on the worker’s list. In-home caregivers have a separate list: a secondary school diploma and transcript, proof of employment or a vocational training certificate, a passport copy, and proof of level 4 in spoken French on the Quebec scale or level 4 in spoken English. Quebec’s caregiver page has the details.
Coming later: from applications sent as of December 17, 2028, Quebec will ask for level 4 spoken French from workers applying for a CAQ after three years of work in the province. Agricultural workers are exempt.
Where we come in
Castle & Co. checks the CAQ file before it reaches your employer:
- Matching your documents to the form’s checklist, line by line
- Catching what returns a file: the form version, the signatures, the translations
- Coordinating with the employer who submits, so nothing is missing from the envelope
The employer has a list of its own, and our post on Quebec employer obligations covers it. If you want someone to check your file, start your process now.
