CANADA: An Introduction to Immigration

Canada’s Immigration Landscape: 

Critical skills mobility and retention post-pandemic 

Summary  

This overview is designed to provide an analysis of key considerations for employers and businesses seeking to do business in Canada with a focus on foreign labour mobility and skills retention. Fortunately, with health concerns associated with the pandemic largely under control, the Canadian immigration system has opened its doors widely to facilitate the entry of in-demand skills and innovative businesses from a policy perspective.

Despite widespread support for progressive immigration policies at the federal, provincial, and municipal level, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is facing significant operational challenges in processing temporary and permanent residence applications. More specifically, although Canadian immigration laws and policies are largely employer-friendly, the inability to process applications efficiently presents a significant challenge for employers.

Factors for a successful immigration programme in Canada 

A successful and competitive immigration programme in Canada depends on three key factors which are the key themes emerging from the Annual Report, specifically:

1. Increased levels to attract sufficient immigration capacity;

2. Appropriate Funding to achieve priorities; and

3. Implementation of an innovative technology platform to modernise processing capacity and strategies.

Canadian businesses dependent on skilled foreign labour to grow operations, execute on client projects or modernise operations via top global talent, including internal assignees or new hires, must consider the current state and future direction of Canadian immigration policy or trends.

Recognition of the role of immigration to support Canada’s economic growth

Highlights from the Annual Plan for Canadian Employers

1. Increased Levels

The Canadian government has significantly increased the immigration target with the goal of landing 465,000 new permanent residents in 2023, 485,000 in 2024 and 500,000 in 2025. This intended increase is in recognition of the critical role of immigration in addressing Canada’s demographic challenges not limited to its aging population, declining birth rate and growing occupational labour market shortages.

2023-25 Immigration Levels Plan 

2023:

• Target: 465k

• Economic Immigration: 233k-277k

• Family Reunification: 100k-118k

• Refugees, projected persons, humanitarian and compassionate and other: 77k-109k

• TOTAL: 410k-505k

2024:

• Target: 485k

• Economic Immigration: 250k-305k

• Family Reunification: 105k-130k

• Refugees, projected persons, humanitarian and compassionate and other: 75k-107k

• TOTAL: 430k-542k

2025:

• Target: 500k

• Economic Immigration: 265k-326k

• Family Reunification: 107k-135k

• Refugees, projected persons, humanitarian and compassionate and other: 70.5k-89k

• TOTAL: 442.5k-550k

2. Funding

IRCC has committed CAD85 million for the department and partners to improve outcomes in this area, adding over 1,200 new employees to support the processing of applications.

3. Use of Technology and Digital Solutions

To manage application volume growth, the department is leveraging more efficient tools, leaner processes, and improvements to its digital platform. Investments in new technologies, including biometrics, e-applications, automated functionality, and advanced analytics, will create simplified and more efficient systems and protect Canadians while facilitating legitimate travel.

The department will also continue experimenting with machine learning and advanced analytics to implement automated tools to assess and process low-risk applications and significantly decrease processing times for temporary resident visas, while maintaining a manual review of complex, higher-risk cases to protect the safety and security of Canadians.

IRCC's digital transformation will be delivered through the Digital Platform Modernisation (DPM) programme (2020-26). This multi-year initiative will bring the department and its programmes and services into the digital age in a strategically planned and coordinated way. Many government departments and agencies involved in migration rely on information gathered, processed, managed, and made accessible by IRCC.

Why Canada? 

• The Annual Plan recognises that employers in Canada will need ongoing access and expedited processing for temporary foreign workers and the ability to transition workers to permanent residence status, to address growing skills shortages.

• Employers’ dependent on foreign talent can expect that there will be increased numbers year over year, recognising that foreign skills are welcomed and needed in Canada. In short, Canada's doors are open and will widen.

• In response to growing concerns related to processing backlogs, the Plan outlines an increase in hiring capacity of over 1200 additional resources and an investment of CAD85 million to enhance processing capacity.

• There is a clear recognition in the Plan that the current IRCC platform is inadequate to address the demands on the system, particularly as the national economic well-being of many Canadian industries, such as technology, healthcare, transportation, and infrastructure, will be dependent on Canada's temporary and permanent immigration systems working quickly and effectively.

• It should be noted that Canada’s temporary and permanent residence programmes will continue to be modified to address changing labour market needs. For example, the Global Talent Stream list of eligible occupations (recruitment-exempt) was expanded from 12 to 17 including civil engineers, electronic and electronics engineers, mining engineers, aerospace engineers, and computer engineers.

• Moreover, it is anticipated that Canada’s Express Entry application management system will be modified in the spring of 2023 to target key attributes of occupational background, sectors of the economy facing shortages, temporary status (student or worker) in Canada, and French proficiency.

• There will be a focused investment and priority by the department to modernise the IRCC platform with a focus on digital agility and data analytics to create faster processing capability and a better user experience.

Businesses should be prepared to review their immigration and employment from a compliance perspective. For example, during the pandemic, immigration officials accepted work-from-home arrangements for foreign workers given the national quarantine measures imposed to protect public health. That said, as health concerns have significantly stabilised, employers of foreign workers will need to assess their current employment policies such as work-from-home arrangements, and determine if they are in line with immigration conditions and representations. This will become more important as immigration inspections increase in their frequency and in their review of new employment practices.

Moreover, during the pandemic, the emergence of remote work arrangements has become popular raising policy discussions around the appropriateness of foreign workers in Canada providing services for clients outside of Canada. These types of business arrangements should be reviewed and considered from an immigration compliance perspective.

In conclusion, Canada wants immigrants, needs immigrants, and is, in many respects, immigrant-friendly. This provides an ideal opportunity for the recruitment or transfer of key skills to Canada., which is clear from the establishment of development centres in Canada by the leading tech firms.