Canada raises immigration targets to 500,000 people annually by 2025

Nov 2 2022, 7:45 pm

The federal government has further elevated its annual immigration targets over the coming years as a measure to help address major labour shortages across Canada, which is affecting the ability of businesses to operate, and contributing significantly to inflation.

By 2025, Canada will welcome 500,000 new permanent residents per year — a staggering increase from the numbers achieved over the last few years.

To reach the new elevated goal by 2025, the federal government will incrementally increase annual immigration targets over the next few years — 465,000 in 2023, and 485,000 in 2024.

As of last month, Canada has already welcomed over 300,000 new immigrants into the country this year. It also saw 406,000 new immigrants in 2021 — a new all-time record — but only 185,000 in 2020 due to the pandemic’s impact on global migration patterns, which was the lowest number of new immigrants since 1998. The federal government previously elevated its immigration targets for 2021 and 2022 in response to the pandemic.

Prior to the pandemic, the figures were 341,180 in 2019; 321,000 in 2018; and 286,000 in 2017.

Over 1.3 million new immigrants permanently settled in the country between 2016 and 2021, the highest number of recent immigrants recorded in the latest census.

By 2025, under the new targets, over 60% of the admissions of new permanent residents will be within the economic class. To help achieve the elevated targets, new features in the federal government’s Express Entry system will welcome newcomers with the required skills and qualifications in sectors facing major labour shortages, including in healthcare, manufacturing, construction building trades, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).

The 500,000 new permanent residents target for 2025 includes 59% under economic immigration, 25% under family reunification, and 16% under refugees and other humanitarian and compassionate streams.

Compared to the annual targets for 2023 and 2024, there will be proportionally more new immigrants under the economic and family reunification streams, and fewer immigrants through the refugee streams.

“Last year, we welcomed the most newcomers in a single year in our history. This year’s immigration levels plan will help businesses find the workers they need, set Canada on a path that will contribute to our long-term success, and allow us to make good on key commitments to vulnerable people fleeing violence, war and persecution,” said Sean Fraser, the federal minister of immigration, in a statement.

According to the federal government, immigration currently accounts for nearly 100% of Canada’s labour force growth, and it is projected that immigration will account for 100% of Canada’s population growth by 2032.

New immigrants are also needed to fill the positions left by the growing number of aging retirees, with the worker-to-retiree ratio expected to increase from seven-to-one 50 years ago to two-to-one by 2035. Statistics indicate Canada’s immigrants over the last few years are younger on average than the general population, which makes them a key source to address the country’s immense labour shortage exacerbated by the pandemic.

“Canada’s Building Trades Unions are pleased with today’s announcement to increase immigration levels in Canada,” said Sean Strickland, the executive director of Canada’s Building Trades Union in response to the federal government’s new immigration targets.

“Historically it has been through immigration that we have been able to grow our workforce, fill our union halls and build Canada’s infrastructure. Increased economic immigration is an important step to addressing labour availability across the country.”

The labour shortage has prompted sustained upward pressure on increasing salaries and wages, which in turn contributes to consumer price inflation.

While new immigrants are needed to fill the labour shortage, the surge in new permanent residents could have a major impact on already challenging housing affordability conditions, especially in the problematic housing markets of Metro Vancouver and the Greater Toronto Area, which also happen to be the two urban centres where new immigrants are most likely to choose to reside.

canada immigration targets 2023 2024 2025

Canada’s new annual immigration targets for 2023, 2024, and 2025, established in November 2022. Click on the image for a larger version. (Government of Canada)

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