Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) recently announced its ambitious 3-year plan to admit approximately one million immigrants to Canada by 2020. As stated by Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen, the aim of the plan is to offset the demographics of an aging population and declining birth rate.
Under the plan, 310,000 new permanent residents will be admitted in 2018, which will increase to 330,000 in 2019, and further increase to 340,000 in 2020. 58% of the immigrants will be admitted under economic class requirements, while 27% is reserved for those immigrants having family living in Canada, and another 14% will be reserved for refugees.
Of all the newly admitted immigrants, approximately a quarter million will arrive through federal economic programs managed under the Express Entry system. Nearly 184,000 economic migrants and their family members will be admitted through Provincial Nominee Programs that allow Provinces to nominate individuals based on their ability to settle into the labour market of the Province.
While most developed countries are framing stringent immigration policies, Canada has adopted a liberal approach, considering immigrants a strength to its economy and contributors to its talent-pool.
Isha Kalwant Singh, Legal Intern
(Keywords: Permanent Residents, Immigrants, Economic Immigrants, Family, Refugees)