A record again: Canada is approaching its immigration target
For the second month in a row, the country has broken records for the number of permanent residence permits issued.
In June, Canada set an all-time pandemic record by inviting 35,700 people to immigrate. And it seems to have no plans to stop, because in July the country already counted 39,500 new residents in one month. These are the highest numbers in history: before the pandemic, Canada issued an average of 25,000 to 35,000 permanent residents a month.
Such lofty numbers are part of Canada's ambitious plan to welcome 401,000 immigrants in 2021.
"We are ahead of our plans and will continue to increase the pace of attracting new residents," commented Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino. — We are going to reach our goal."
In 2021, Canada issued a total of 184,000 permanent residence permits — almost half of the target. In 2020, for a full year, the number of accepted immigrants was only 185,000, blamed on the pandemic. In 2019, 341,000 people were invited.
The last time Canada admitted more than 401,000 immigrants in a year was in 1913, so the goal seems really ambitious. In part, Canada achieves it by conducting large-scale screenings for candidates with experience in the country, as well as launching new immigration streams for temporary foreign workers.
However, in order to meet the plan, Canada will have to continue to hold the bar. Over the remaining months of 2021, another 217,000 people need to be invited — that's an average of 43,400 per month.
Canada's current government has relied on immigration to boost the economy since coming to power in 2015, setting an annual goal of admitting immigrants in numbers equal to about 1% of the country's population. However, on September 20, Canada will hold a term election that could change the composition of Parliament.
