Immigration to Canada boosts the country’s economy and any plans to curtail it could have dire economic repercussions, warns a leading business advocate.
“In the context of the current and future labour shortages that Canada will experience, it is crucial not to reduce the labour pool,” wrote business advocate Nancy Healey in a letter signed by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Canadian Federation of Independent Business.
“Such a reduction would have catastrophic economic consequences for companies and limit their growth potential.”
In Canada, almost all population growth is due to immigration as the natural birth rates have steadily fallen with the aging of the population and widespread use of birth control.
“Almost all the population growth in Canada, 99.3 per cent, or 240,955 people, in the first quarter of 2024 was attributable to international migration, including both permanent and temporary immigration,” notes Statistics Canada.
The country has welcomed more than 100,000 new permanent residents during almost every quarter since the end of 2021.
And then, there’s temporary immigration, including international students and temporary workers.
“Canada added 131,810 (temporary residents) to the population in the first quarter of 2024,” notes the statistical and demographic services agency.
“The total number of (temporary residents) living in Canada increased for the ninth quarter in a row to reach a record high of 2,793,594 on April 1, 2024. Of these (temporary residents), 2,430,282 were permit holders (work or study) and their family members and 363,312 were asylum claimants, protected persons and related groups (with or without work or study permits).”
Under pressure to deal with a housing crisis in Canada with rents and housing prices rising dramatically, Immigration Minister Marc Miller pledged earlier this year to unveil an immigration levels plan this autumn. He has also placed a cap on study permit applications for this year.
Canada’s latest immigration plan also effectively calls for a reduction in the rate of immigration to the country as it contains an immigration target that is the same in each of 2025 and 2026 despite the rise in the population.
Immigration Levels In Canada Are Already Above Those Targeted For This Year
Under its 2024-2026 Immigration Levels Plan, Ottawa is calling for 485,000 new permanent residents to the country this year and 500,000 in each of 2025 and 2026.
But economists and business groups are warning the federal government to not cut immigration, citing labour shortages and a drop in consumer demand in the wake of such a decision.
In her Aug. 1 letter, Healey is instead urging the Canadian government to put in place better immigration programs with a greater likelihood of producing desired outcomes.
“We need better paths for newcomers to come and stay in Canada,” she wrote. “It is clear that immigration streams that attach a job offer to the application result in improved outcomes.”
Canada operates a two-tier immigration system which allows foreign nationals to gain their permanent residency through the federal Express Entry system’s FSW, FST, and CEC programs and as well as the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP) of the 10 Canadian provinces.
Based on the volume of new permanent residents to the country in the first six months of this year, the total number of new permanent residents to Canada this year could hit 511,410, or 8.4 per cent more than the 471,815 in 2023 which was a record-breaking year for immigration, the latest IRCC data reveals.
