Canada announced plans to scale back on targets for admissions of permanent residents and temporary residents.
The new targets, revealed in the Immigration Levels Plan released on Thursday, October 24, will see a decrease from 485,000 new permanent residents in 2024 to 395,000 in 2025, amounting to about 20 per cent reduction.
This number will be further reduced to 380,000 in 2026, and 365,000 in 2027, as per the new plan, announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The Prime Minister making such an announcement is seen as an unusual move, as normally such issues are handled by the country’s Immigration Minister.
This decision also marked the first time in years that the Canadian government has lowered its immigration targets.
Trudeau lauded Canadian immigration, saying “It’s made our economy the envy of the world.”
This year’s plan also includes targets for temporary resident admissions, contrary to the earlier plans which did not set any targets for temporary residents.
As per the latest plan, the number of temporary residents will also decrease, with 2025 projections targeting 300,000, down by 30,000 from previous levels.
While the Canadian government is reducing the overall immigration levels, it is targeting to increase the proportion focused on economic immigration.
As per the new plan, economic immigration targets for 2025 will be dropped by 17 per cent only – from 281,000 to 232,000.
Over 40 per cent of economic immigrants are expected to come from temporary residents already within Canada.
The latest announcement on immigration targets came after a wave of changes this year around Canada’s immigration system, particularly around temporary resident – those on a work or study permit – levels in the country.
The government intends to reduce temporary resident levels as a proportion of Canada’s overall population from 7 per cent to 5 per cent by the end of 2026.
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