The federal government’s new immigration levels plan will stabilize population growth and relieve pressure on the housing market, said Immigration Minister Marc Miller on Thursday.
As CBC News reported Wednesday, the government is cutting the projected number of new permanent residents from 485,000 this year to 395,000 in 2025, with further cuts to 380,000 in 2026 and 365,000 in 2027.
Under the previous plan released last November, Canada was expected to admit about 500,000 in both 2025 and 2026.
Statistics Canada reported in March that the population grew faster in 2023 than it has at any time since the 1950s.
Across Canada, the population rose by about 1.3 million between Jan. 1, 2023 and Jan. 1, 2024. Statistics Canada says 97.6 per cent of that population growth was the result of immigration, with just under 472,000 immigrants settling in the country last year and the number of temporary residents — most of whom are foreign workers — rising by around 805,000.
The new immigration levels plan will cause a 0.2 per cent population decline over the next two years, a government press release said. It said the plan will also “reduce the housing supply gap by approximately 670,000 units” over the next few years.
“That means we will not have to build an additional 670,000 housing units by [2027],” Miller said.
Thursday’s announcement comes after the government announced in August that it would also be reducing the number of temporary foreign workers in Canada.
The government had previously loosened temporary foreign worker (TFW) restrictions during a severe post-COVID-19 labour shortage — a decision that led, in particular, to a spike in the number of low-wage workers.
Ottawa had also previously tightened the cap on the number of student visas the government issues.
