Canada has pledged to welcome more than 1.3 million new immigrants under its Immigration Levels Plan 2022-24.
Under the new plan, Canada will aim to welcome 431,645 permanent residents in 2022, followed by 447,055 immigrants in 2023 and 451,000 permanent residents in 2024.
The 431,645 immigrants targeted for this year exceeds the initial plan to welcome 411,000 new permanent residents outlined in the Immigration Levels Plan 2021-23.
As part of the new Immigration Levels Plan, Canada will welcome 1,329,700 new permanent residents in total over the next three years.
Sean Fraser, Canada’s Immigration Minister, explained that the Immigration Levels Plan 2022-24 is a balance of Canada’s national and international obligations.
He said the new plan focuses on attracting skilled workers who will aid labour shortage and contribute to Canada’s economy, recognising the importance of family reunification in the country, and helping the most vulnerable populations through refugee resettlement.
He also insisted on supporting Canada’s economic resurgence through better retention of new immigrants in regions that face economic, labour and demographic challenges.
In 2022, around 56 per cent of all new immigrants will arrive through Canada’s economic class pathways such as Express Entry, Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) and the Temporary to Permanent Residence (TE2PR) stream.
Moreover, PNPs will be the primary economic class admissions program for new permanent residents in 2022, with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) looking to welcome 83,400 newcomers via this pathway.
IRCC has halved Express Entry admissions for this year, but will return to regular Express Entry admission levels by 2024, when around 111,500 permanent residents will be admitted to Canada through this pathway.
Until 2015, Canada welcomed around 250,000 new immigrants annually, before announcing a baseline target of 300,000 newcomers in 2016.
Before the pandemic broke out, IRCC was targeting 340,000 immigrants per year. However, immigration fell to below 200,000 in 2020 due to the pandemic.
To make up for lost immigration, the Canadian government transitioned temporary migrants within the country to permanent residence and broke the newcomer record by landing 405,000 new permanent residents in 2021.
62 per cent of all new permanent residents in Canada arrived via economic class pathways such as Express Entry, PNPs and Quebec’s streams.
20 per cent of all newcomers arrived under different family streams, while around 15 per cent were welcomed under refugee and humanitarian programs. The remaining immigrants were categorised under “All Other Immigration.”
