Canada Holds Steady: 500,000 Newcomers Annually to Boost Economy and Build Communities
Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.
The Canadian government has announced its latest immigration targets for 2026, saying this week it will maintain its goal of welcoming 500,000 a year following several years of increases.
The new figure is part of the government’s Immigration Levels Plan for 2024-2026, as part of which Ottawa will still look to bring 485,000 permanent residents in 2024 and 500,000 in 2025.
The decision to not increase immigration numbers beyond half a million people a year is meant to support economic growth in the country “while balancing with the pressures in areas like housing, healthcare and infrastructure” and allowing time for the successful integration of newcomers, the government said.
“By stabilizing the number of newcomers, we recognize that housing, infrastructure planning, and sustainable population growth need to be properly taken into account,” Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, said in a statement.
“Through this plan, we are striking the appropriate balance to grow Canada’s economy, while maintaining our humanitarian tradition, supporting Francophone immigration, and developing a more collaborative approach to levels planning with our partners. Canada will continue to welcome newcomers and ensure that they are supported in their new lives.”
As part of the federal plan, the government is aiming that more than 60 per cent of all new permanent residents fall under the economic immigrant class by 2025. The government also said these newcomers would help boost Canada’s workforce and support the country’s aging population.
“We’ll work to align our immigration programs and services more closely to the current and future needs of our economy,” Miller said.
“Canada continues to suffer a significant shortage, for example, of construction workers in 2022. The industry reported needing 95,000 more workers across the country as people age out of the industry. We believe newcomers are part of the solution for increasing housing supply in particular.”
Ottawa is also setting a target that about 24 per cent of all newcomers come under the family reunification class and 16 per cent under the category of refugees, protected persons and humanitarian reasons.
Included in the report is also a commitment from the Canadian government to uphold its humanitarian tradition by responding to crises around the world and setting more ambitious Francophone immigration targets for communities outside of Quebec, representing six per cent of total immigration in 2024, seven per cent in 2025 and eight per cent in 2026.