Canada to welcome 401,000 New Immigrants in 2021?

In March 2021, Canada welcomed 22,425 new permanent residents. And still on course to landing 401,000 new immigrants in 2021.

Data released by IRCC earlier this week indicates the country welcomed over 70,000 new immigrants between January and March 2021.

This Q1 2021 stats show that Canada has been landing between 30,000-40,000 newcomers per quarter since the beginning of the pandemic.

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) are guided by the most progressive immigration plan in the country’s history.

In late October 2020, the immigration minister, Marco Mendicino, announced the 2021-2023 Immigration Levels Plan.

IRCC on pace to land 401,000 new immigrants in 2021

Canada aims to land 401,000 new immigrants in 2021 which would tie the record set in 1913.

And even looking forward to welcoming over 1.2 million immigrants in the next two years.

By way of comparison, Canada landed just 184,000 newcomers last year, due to the coronavirus crisis, which was well short of the 341,000 new immigrants it welcomed in 2019.

The rationale behind the current immigration levels plan is to welcome high levels of immigration to support Canada’s post-pandemic recovery plan.

Sequel to the travel restrictions imposed by Canada, it is prioritizing transitioning temporary residents to permanent residence during the COVID-19 pandemic.

What is Express Entry?

The major way Canada is doing this is by conducting Express Entry draws that target people currently in Canada.

Express Entry is the main way Canada welcomes economic class immigrants.

The economic class accounts for over sixty percent of the new immigrants Canada welcomed each year.

Express Entry draws have targeted Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) candidates.

The Canadian Experience Class has comprised the overwhelming majority of successful Express Entry candidates in 2021.

On February 13, Canada invited 27,332 CEC candidates to apply for Canadian permanent residence, which was almost six times higher than the previous Express Entry draw record.

In addition, Canada launched six new immigration streams last week that aims to transition about 90,000 international graduates and essential workers to permanent residence.

The English-speaking international graduate program reached its allotment of 40,000 applicants in just twenty-four hours.

The Express Entry draws and these newly introduced streams will provide IRCC with a significant boost by the third and fourth quarters of this year that will support its 401,000 targets.

Many of those invited temporary residents under Express Entry last year and the first half of this year will obtain their permanent resident status by the end of 2021.

In addition, IRCC has equally stated it aims to welcome at least 40,000 essential workers and international graduates by year’s end.

Besides, there is a significant seasonal component to Canadian immigration. PR landings tend to increase over the warmer spring and summer months.

Despite travel restrictions, there is the possibility that those allowed to come to Canada will do so over the coming months when the weather is more favorable.

IRCC’s quick start to this year in combination with the aforementioned boost put Canada in a position to achieve its 401,000 targets this year.

Six Newly Introduced Immigrations Streams

Last week, Canada released six new immigration streams for international graduates and essential workers.

The following is a list of the six newly introduced immigration streams with their intake caps.

• Workers in Canada – Stream A for health care workers (20,000 applications)
• Workers in Canada – Stream B for essential non-healthcare workers (30,000 applications)
• International graduates (40,000 applications)
• Workers in Canada – Stream A for French-speaking health care workers (no cap)
• Workers in Canada – Stream B for French-speaking essential non-healthcare workers (no cap)
  French-speaking international graduates (no cap)