Canada is adding 21,000 Permanent Residence to its previously set immigration targets. The Canadian Government released this news in a recent announcement about its Immigration Levels Plan 2022-2024.
Once again, the Government is increasing the country’s immigration targets. In 2022, Canada plans to welcome almost 432,000 immigrants instead of the initially set target of 411,000 newcomers.
In the Immigration Levels Plan 2022-2024, the number of new immigrant landings targeted by Canada are:
- In 2022 – 431,645 permanent residents
- In 2023 – 447,055 permanent residents
- In 2024 – 451,000 permanent residents
This year, Canada aims to invite around 56% of new immigrants through the Economic Class Pathways, including Express Entry, the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), and the Temporary to Permanent Residence (TR2PR) stream that was available in 2021.
Among these three, PNP will be the main admission pathway for Economic Class Immigrants, followed by TR2PR and Express Entry.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) plans to land 83,500 newcomers through PNP this year. Most of the Canadian provinces and territories are linked with this program. There has been a continuous flow of PNP draws and invitations ever since the start of the pandemic. Thus, this program becomes the main pathway for all applicants.
Under the TR2PR stream, IRCC plans to land 72,000 newcomers. Among them, 40,000 immigrants are targeted for 2022, and the remaining 32,000 in 2023. IRCC increased the focus on the TR2PR program to accommodate more applicants from this program in permanent residence targets which led to a reduction in the Express Entry stream admissions.
Although IRCC brought down the number of immigrants getting Permanent Residence through the Express Entry system this year, it is expected to get normal by 2024 with a target of 111,500 Express Entry arrivals. In the meantime, IRCC is processing Express Entry applications, and the draws are continuing on a biweekly basis.
Apart from that, admission targets for the Family Class Immigrants account for around 24% in 2022, with 105,000 newcomers. Out of these, 80,000 will be under the Spouses, Partners, and Children Program, and 25,000 will arrive under the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP). Compared to the previous plan, 1,500 spots have been added to the PGP program targets this year.
The remaining 20% of immigrants will be under the Refugee and Humanitarian programs, where Canada plans to resettle 40,000 Afghan Refugees in the coming years. There is an approximate 5% increase in this category compared to the previous plan.
Because of a higher intake through these two categories, the Economic and Family Class immigrants have a reduced share of newcomers this year. However, once the Afghan resettlement is over, they will have a higher share of Canada’s newcomers in 2023 and 2024.
| Immigration Class | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| Economic | 241,850 | 253,000 | 267,750 |
| Family | 105,000 | 109,500 | 113,000 |
| Refugee | 76,545 | 74,055 | 62,500 |
| Humanitarian | 8,250 | 10,500 | 7,750 |
| Total | 431,645 | 447,055 | 451,000 |
According to Canada’s main immigration law, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), the Canadian government must announce its immigration levels plan by November 1 each year when Parliament is sitting.
The recent announcement about the Immigration Levels Plan was the first after October 2020. The Canadian Government did not release any plans in 2021 due to the September elections.
The Immigration Levels Plan is a guide to Canada’s immigration system. It states the number of permanent residents that Canada plans to welcome in the coming years under its various federal, provincial, and territorial programs. IRCC and the Canadian provinces then adjust their operations and actions based on this plan to ensure they are able to attract, settle, integrate, and retain the targeted levels of newcomers in the country.
