MFOR in the Capitale-Nationale: funding skills in Quebec City

MFOR in Capitale-Nationale: how it works

The Workforce Training Measure (MFOR), business component, gives Capitale-Nationale employers direct financial support to train employees already on staff. Once run under the Emploi-Québec name, it is delivered by Services Québec under the Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale.

According to the Institut de la statistique du Québec (ISQ), the Capitale-Nationale administrative region (region 03) had 814,004 residents in 2025, about 422,100 jobs in October 2026 and an unemployment rate of 5.0 %. Revenue from manufactured goods was about $10.0 billion in 2024. The region is built around Quebec City and includes the MRCs of Portneuf, La Jacques-Cartier, La Côte-de-Beaupré, L’Île-d’Orléans, Charlevoix and Charlevoix-Est. Business files fall under the Capitale-Nationale regional budget.

With a tight labour market, local employers often find that training the people they already have is the most practical way to hold productivity and keep staff.

An MFOR grant is not an automatic right. Unlike a tax credit claimed after the fact, the MFOR is an agreement negotiated in advance. A Services Québec business advisor reviews your training plan, checks the providers and approves the assistance before the first course. Other territories are covered in our MFOR by region directory.

Funds follow the government fiscal year, April 1 to March 31. Employers who file in the spring usually find the most budget available.

Services Québec offices in the Quebec City region

Services Québec serves Capitale-Nationale employers through several offices across the territory, from Quebec City to Portneuf and Charlevoix. Your advisor is assigned by the postal code of your establishment, so confirm your office with the official Services Québec office locator.

At the first contact, provide your Quebec enterprise number (NEQ) and describe your training goals. The business advisor decides on your file: they assess how your plan fits the region’s economic priorities, check eligible expenses and set the rate.

Rates by type of training

In Capitale-Nationale, the MFOR applies three levels of assistance: generally up to 50 %, 75 % in enhanced streams and 100 % for literacy. Francization is not eligible.

How these rates apply to common activities in the region:

• Insurance and financial services: training on cloud tools, data analysis, cybersecurity and systems modernization can reach the 75 % enhanced rate when it is made necessary by a new technology to raise productivity. See our guide to the MFOR for technology companies.
• Public sector suppliers: consulting engineering and advisory firms train on government standards, information security and complex project management (generally up to 50 %, or 75 % in an enhanced stream).
• Information technology, optics and video games: training developers and engineers in artificial intelligence and cloud computing can aim for 75 %.
• Tourism and hospitality: in Quebec City and Charlevoix, guest service, second languages, wine service and hotel management fall under the general rate, generally up to 50 %.
• Manufacturing in Portneuf: wood processing, paper, metalworking and building materials plants are modernizing. Training operators on robots and automated cells can reach 75 %, under the rules of the MFOR for manufacturers.

Labour shortage, francization and literacy

A tight labour market pushes many employers in the region toward international recruitment, and French skills matter for health, safety and productivity on the job. Francization is not eligible for the MFOR, however: since November 1, 2023, it falls entirely under the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (MIFI). Since February 1, 2025, temporary foreign workers can no longer take part in funded activities, except those employed by an agricultural business.

The 100 % rate remains for literacy (reading, numeracy and digital literacy). These projects must include employee wages, up to $25 an hour, without payroll charges.

Eligible costs and the funding cap

The Ministère’s financial rules apply the same way in Capitale-Nationale. The grant is generally capped at $100,000 per agreement. Projects above that threshold fall under large training projects (MFOR-E). Details are in our guide to MFOR eligible costs.

Costs the advisor can accept include:

• fees or wages of qualified external trainers;
• pay for an internal trainer assigned to structured coaching;
• development, writing and adaptation of custom teaching materials;
• rental of classrooms or specialized equipment needed for the sessions;
• the trainer’s travel, meals and lodging at government rates.

Costs the Ministère refuses:

• the part of participant wages above $25 an hour (below that maximum, wages are eligible but not automatic);
• francization, which has fallen under the MIFI since November 1, 2023;
• in general, courses required by law, such as WHMIS or basic CNESST safety training, except in exceptional circumstances;
• conferences, seminars, symposiums and professional conventions;
• payroll charges and benefits for the business’s employees;
• invoices dated before the agreement with Services Québec is signed.

Worked example: a technology and manufacturing SME in Quebec City

Take an engineering and technology assembly SME in the Quebec City metropolitan technology park. It installs a new automated assembly line with machine vision and must train twelve technicians and two production engineers.

Because the learning follows directly from new automation technology, the advisor can apply the 75 % enhanced rate. The MFOR grant could reach $16,125, which is 75 % of the $21,500 in accepted training costs. The business pays the remaining $5,375 and the wages, which could be added up to $25 an hour, with no certainty. Funds are paid after paid invoices and attendance sheets are filed. Model your own project in the MFOR calculator.

Steps for an MFOR application in Capitale-Nationale

Getting an MFOR grant in the region takes five steps, summarized in our guide on how to apply for the MFOR:

1. First contact with your local office: reach the Services Québec office for your area to check your legal status is eligible and present your plans.
2. Skills needs review: the advisor examines the skills gaps, the technological or organizational change and the group of employees involved.
3. Training file: you send a structured plan describing modules, trainer profile, schedule and a detailed quote breaking down training costs.
4. Signing the agreement: the advisor sets the rate (generally up to 50 %, 75 % in an enhanced stream, 100 % for literacy), confirms the grant amount and has the agreement signed, which commits the funds.
5. Delivery and final claim: after the courses, you submit the final report, signed attendance records and paid supporting documents to receive payment.

Overall processing takes six to eleven weeks. Expenses incurred before the agreement is signed cannot be reimbursed retroactively.

Other funding to combine

The MFOR can be coordinated with other support available in the Quebec City region:

• 1 % Law: employers with a payroll above $2,000,000 are subject to the provincial training law. The net unreimbursed share of an MFOR agreement counts under the Act to promote workforce skills development and recognition.
• Quebec tax credits: for IT and industrial businesses, training can sit alongside the e-business credit (CDAE), R&D credits (SR&ED in Quebec) or the investment and innovation credit (C3i). Expenses claimed under each program must stay strictly separate.
• Large training projects (MFOR-E): if your reorganization needs a large training budget covering many employees and assistance of $100,000 or more, the request goes to the Direction des mesures et services aux entreprises.

Preparing your MFOR application in Capitale-Nationale

We support employers and managers in Quebec City, Portneuf and Charlevoix with Services Québec:

• qualifying needs against Services Québec’s regional criteria;
• building the training plan and a budget breakdown that follows the MFOR guide;
• writing the technical case for the 75 % enhanced rate;
• coordinating the MFOR, the 1 % Law and tax credits;
• preparing the reporting and supporting documents.

To compare with other regions, see the MFOR in Montreal and the MFOR in Laval.

What Canadian Funding Partners does

Canadian Funding Partners helps businesses identify relevant funding programs and coordinate their applications with specialized partner firms. Where a file needs accounting or engineering expertise, that work is done by qualified professionals at those firms. We do not represent the Government of Quebec and do not promise any result. Our role is to build a thorough, compliant file that makes the regional advisor’s review easier. To start, book a free eligibility assessment.