In April 2021, Canada welcomed 21,105 new immigrants, the lowest monthly count since the start of the year.
This new Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) data show that despite a strong start to the year, Canada has been losing momentum over the past two months.
In January 2021, Canada welcomed 24,680 new immigrants followed by 23,395 in February. Levels fell further to 21,105 in March and went even lower in April. It is unknown why Canada’s permanent residence intake has declined following a strong start to the year.
Canada is guided by its Immigration Levels Plan 2021-2023.
Under the plan, the country is seeking to welcome at least 401,000 new immigrants annually beginning this year. These are the highest immigration targets in Canadian history, and are due to the federal government’s goal of supporting Canada’s post-pandemic economic recovery.
Canada sought to welcome 341,000 new immigrants in 2020 but only managed to admit 184,000 due to coronavirus-related disruptions such as the travel restrictions it has had in place since March 2020.
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Indeed, the travel restrictions have resulted in Canada’s weakest immigration numbers since 1998. The country only managed to welcome just over 4,000 new immigrants in April 2020, potentially the weakest month for Canadian immigration since the Second World War.
Canada is no longer on pace to achieve its 401,000 target for this year. However, a number of factors still remain in play that could see the country gain momentum and come closer to achieving the target.
First, the summer months usually see higher immigration numbers due to the warmer weather and newcomers arriving before the resumption of the academic and business calendar in September.
Second, the Canadian government is beginning to openly discuss easing its travel restrictions. In recent weeks, Canada has enjoyed more success administering…