TORONTO – With multiple contributing factors, Canada welcomed a record number of immigrants last year, setting new targets for the ongoing year.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) disclosed on Tuesday that it hit target of 431,645 new permanent residents and surpassed 2021 numbers. Prior to setting a new record for entrants in 2021, the last time Canada allowed such a large number of newcomers was in 1913.
This is in line with the government’s plans to settle more immigrants to plug the gap regarding labour shortages in various sectors and to increase the targets every year for the next three years.
“Today marks an important milestone for Canada, setting a new record for newcomers welcomed in a single year. It is a testament to the strength and resilience of our country and its people. I am excited to see what the future holds and look forward to another historic year in 2023 as we continue to welcome newcomers,” Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship said.
Canada has set a new goal to bring in 465,000 new permanent residents this year, 485,000 in 2024 and 500,000 in 2025. At present, Immigrants account for 36% of physicians, 33% business owners with paid staff, and 41% of engineers.
Experts are of the view that the native population can’t even grow without immigrants.
Anila Lee Yuen, president and CEO of the Centre for Newcomers in Calgary said her facility has processed three times as many people as it would typically see since it expanded its services.
“At the start of the new year, the first day back (to) work, we’ve actually hired 16 new people that started today (Tuesday), alone,” she said.
According to the press release, IRCC processed about 5.2 million applications including the aspirants of permanent residence, temporary residence and citizenship in 2022, doubling the number from the previous year.
The population of Canada hovers around 38 million and each year, it receives citizenship requests from people from across the world due to social safety net, and better healthcare amongst other factors.
As more and more professionals are seeking oppurtunities in Canada, more problems are being faced by the authorities. For instance, delays in processing immigration applications increased last year, with about 1.3 million applications taking longer to process than the government’s service standards, as of the end of July.
