Many people think of Canada as one of the most welcoming countries in the world. Sadly, that is no longer true. Since 2008 it has become harder to get into Canada, to stay here permanently, and to become a citizen. This is due to a steady stream of changes by the federal government that affect virtually all aspects of our immigration and refugee policy.
Many of the changes came without public discussion or debate with the minister of citizenship and immigration having the power to make significant changes by issuing "ministerial instructions" to immigration officers, thereby bypassing the democratic parliamentary process.
Despite immigration remaining fairly constant at approximately 255,000 immigrants per year over the past 10 years, more people in the economic class have been selected, fewer in the family class and far fewer refugees. With a current population of just under 36M, Canada should be admitting 288,000 newcomers annually, just to maintain its historical rate of immigration. But in the year ending July 1, 2015, Canada admitted only 239,800 immigrants during the 12-month period, down from 267,900 the previous year. The shortfall, close to 30,000 immigrants, places Canada's per capita rate of immigration at .66%, the lowest under the Harper government and far lower than the .8% that was predominant prior to 2006. This represents a huge loss in human capital benefit to our country.
In 2014, refugees represented less than 9 per cent of the immigration flow to Canada, while the economic class rose to nearly 70 per cent.
A new system called Express Entry for the management of economic immigrants was introduced in January 2015. The mid-year report of the program, issued in July, indicates that 85 per cent of successful applicants were already living in Canada as temporary entrants. This confirms a move toward a "two-step" immigration system where individuals first come to Canada as temporary workers or international students and then try to make the transition to permanent residence.
To read this article in its entirety please click here
Interested employers: Kindly contact us
here to receive further information.
Interested candidates: Find out whether you
qualify to Canada by completing our
free on-line evaluation. We will provide you with our
evaluation within 1-2 business days.
The content of this article reflects the personal insight of Attorney Colin Singer and needs no disclaimer.
