Canada New Immigration Policy 2022
Canada's new Immigration policy aims to fill labour shortages and boost the Canadian economy.
Canada’s Immigration system has contributed to the development of Canada as the prosperous, varied, and friendly country it is today. Newcomers enrich and improve our communities by working to create jobs, care for our loved ones, and support local businesses on a daily basis. They’ve been on the front lines of the pandemic, working in critical industries like health care, transportation, and manufacturing. Canada would not have been able to overcome obstacles in vital industries and sectors of the economy in the last two years if it hadn’t been for them. Immigrants are more important than ever before in ensuring Canada’s continued success.
The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship, today tabled the 2022-2024 Immigration Levels Plan, which lays out an ambitious but responsible immigration strategy that will help the Canada’s economy recover and fuel post-pandemic growth, all while strengthening communities and industries that rely on immigration across the country.
The pandemic has brought attention to the contributions of newcomers to the well-being of our communities and the economy as a whole. Last year, Canada welcomed almost 405,000 new permanent residents, the highest number ever in a single year. Despite the fact that many of the jobs lost during the epidemic have been recovered, there are still hundreds of thousands of open opportunities in all sectors. With 5 million Canadians expected to retire by the end of the decade, the worker-to-retiree ratio will plummet to just 3:1. This is a clear indication that additional immigration is required for economic reasons.
The 2022–2024 Immigration Levels Plan aims to continue welcoming immigrants at a rate of about 1% of Canada’s population, including 431,645 permanent residents in 2022, 447,055 in 2023, and 451,000 in 2024, to ensure Canada has the workers it needs to fill critical labour market gaps and support a strong economy in the future. This plan builds on the previous levels plan by putting a greater emphasis on assisting our economic recovery and post-pandemic growth.
To help support these higher levels, the Government of Canada recently announced a plan to modernise Canada’s immigration system in order to boost economic recovery and improve client experience, which will aid in addressing key challenges faced by our clients, such as reducing inventories and providing the predictable processing times that they expect and deserve.
This strategy will aid in attracting and retaining newcomers in areas facing severe economic, labour, and demographic issues. It will also boost Francophone immigration outside of Quebec, while also assisting newcomers in settling in and building Francophone communities across the country. We’re aiming for 4.4 percent of French-speaking immigrants outside of Quebec by 2023 as part of our Francophone Immigration Strategy.
The following are some of the plan's highlights:
- By 2024, admissions will account for 1.14 percent of the Canadian population.
With over 60% of admissions in the Economic Class, there is a long-term concentration on economic growth. - Special measures for giving permanent residency to refugee claimants working in health care during the pandemic, such as the special procedures for awarding permanent residence to refugee claimants working in health care during the epidemic.
- Support for global crises by offering a safe haven for people fleeing persecution through humanitarian immigration.
- Temporary residents accepted through the time-limited paths for vital employees, which began in April 2021, will be granted permanent status, allowing them to stay in Canada.
This approach also emphasises the importance of family reunification and aids in the preservation of the 12-month processing norm for spouses and children.
Canada is sticking to its worldwide humanitarian commitments, including a pledge to resettle at least 40,000 Afghans over the next two years. As a result of these efforts, more than 7,550 Afghan refugees today call Canada home. We are utilising all possible options to facilitate safe passage for people in Afghanistan by collaborating with regional partners.
The Immigration Levels Plan for 2022–2024 will help Canada maintain its position as one of the world’s top talent destinations, laying a solid basis for post-pandemic economic growth while reconnecting families with their loved ones and fulfilling Canada’s humanitarian obligations.
“Immigration has helped shape Canada into the country it is today. From farming and fishing to manufacturing, healthcare and the transportation sector, Canada relies on immigrants. We are focused on economic recovery, and immigration is the key to getting there. Setting bold new immigration targets, as outlined in the 2022-2024 Levels Plan, will further help bring the immeasurable contribution of immigrants to our communities and across all sectors of the economy.”
The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of IRCC