Canada will change its system for counting international students and workers
This is to better understand how much of an impact temporary residents are having on the housing crisis.
Statistics Canada (StatCan) said Thursday it will change the way it counts the country's temporary residents. Some economists said earlier that the current counting methodology may not account for the approximately one million foreign students, workers and other foreigners temporarily residing in Canada.
This decision was made amid active discussions of the housing crisis in the country. Many cite the increase in the number of migrants and foreign students as the cause of the housing affordability problems, due to which the demand for housing is growing, while rising prices and other reasons are slowing down the pace of construction.
The government, which is receiving increasing criticism over the housing crisis, has said it will consider imposing restrictions on visas for foreign students. CIBC Capital Markets economist Benjamin Tal said in response that the case for such restrictions would be stronger if the government had real numbers.
StatCan said they believe their data is fairly reliable, but added that they will release new, more detailed statistics next month regarding temporary residents using a revised methodology.
"We constantly evaluate and review our methodology to consider emerging demographic trends and new data needs," Statistics Canada said.
StatCan's temporary resident statistics include people with work and study permits living in Canada, as well as those seeking asylum in the country.
The already mentioned economist Benjamin Tal is optimistic about the news, saying that the new system of counting temporary residents will help to better understand the real size of Canada's population.
"A precondition for any policy in general, and housing policy in particular, is to know the size, the magnitude of the shortage," Tal added in an interview with Reuters.
