Canada to Establish Targets for Temporary Residents for the First Time
In a groundbreaking move, Canada’s Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced plans for the Canadian government to establish targets for temporary residents entering the country. Miller emphasized the necessity of this measure to ensure the sustainable growth of temporary residency in Canada.
“Commencing this fall, our immigration levels plan will undergo expansion to encompass both temporary and permanent resident arrivals,” Miller disclosed during a press briefing in Ottawa on Thursday.
Highlighting statistics, Miller revealed that as of 2023, Canada accommodated 2.5 million temporary residents, constituting 6.2 percent of the nation’s total population. Over the forthcoming three years, the government aims to reduce this percentage to five percent.
“To set these targets, I’ll be convening a meeting with my provincial and territorial counterparts, as well as other relevant ministers, in early May. Provinces and territories know their unique labor needs and capacity, and need to assume responsibility for the people that they bring in as well,” he said.
Miller further stated the commitment to establishing “robust pathways to permanent residency for individuals aspiring to call Canada their long-term home, steering clear of an economy solely reliant on temporary labor.”
Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault highlighted governmental alterations in the recruitment practices of Canadian businesses concerning foreign workers.
“As of May 1, the first change we are implementing is reducing the number of temporary foreign workers entering Canada in certain targeted sectors,” he said. “Employers identified in the 2022 Workforce Solution Roadmap will have a reduction from 30 per cent to 20 per cent of their workforce come in through the temporary foreign worker program under the low wage stream.”
However, the decrease in the count of temporary foreign workers will not be implemented within the construction and healthcare sectors.
“Construction and health care, employers will continue to be allowed to hire up to 30 per cent of the workforce through the low wage stream of the temporary foreign worker program until at least Aug. 31 of this year,” he said.
Boissonnault also disclosed that the validity period of a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), permitting businesses to hire foreign workers when Canadian candidates are unavailable, will be reduced from 12 months to six.
“The purpose of the LMIA is for employers to demonstrate the necessity of a foreign worker and confirm the unavailability of Canadian workers, permanent residents, refugees, or asylum seekers for the job. By shortening the validity period, we aim to ensure the Temporary Foreign Worker Program’s alignment with the most current and precise labor market data,” he explained.
In November, Miller had previously announced the federal government’s intention to increase the target to 500,000 new permanent residents in 2025, maintaining it at that level through 2026. Subsequently, in January, Miller unveiled plans to cap the intake of international students, accounting for 42 percent of temporary residents in Canada.
