Canada's Overstretched Migrant Population Numbers

"Between January 1, 2019 and February 28, 2023 ... the Immigration Review Board accepted 24, 599 asylum claimants into Canada without questioning them."

"That means that a person from a country on the IRB's Country List can enter Canada, make a claim for asylum, and receive a positive determination in the mail, without being asked a single question."

"Some asylum seekers who present a security risk to Canada may be identified only through in-person questioning at a hearing. Careful questioning can reveal inconsistencies in complex or fabricated accounts."

"The provenance of documents can also be tested at a hearing by asking questions about them. There is no substitute for this process."

C.D. Howe Report. Author James Yousif, former director of policy, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada 

 

 

In coming months, two million temporary migrants in Canada will be losing status with the expiration of their visas. In response a campaign headed by a union has emerged, demanding that all of those involved be permitted to remain in Canada permanently. A new group labelling itself the United Immigrant Workers Front has announced plans for its inaugural rally to be held in Brampton, Ontario. Group organizers cited pending expiration of two million visas, expressing their belief that every one of them should have their permits extended, to open a "path to permanent residency". 

 

"Let's build a political workers movement that fights for the interest of all workers regardless of citizenship status", a caption in a video posted to Instagram states, following a wave of demonstrations similarly calling for migrants on expiring visas to be kept in the country, that took place in Quebec. The provincial government is set to phase out its Programme de l'experience Quebecoise that previously fast-tracked international students and foreign workers toward permanent residency. A much more selective skills-based nominee program is set to replace it. 

 

As a result of this change in Quebec the Union of Quebec Municipalities, together with several business and labour unions are now leading a pressure campaign urging that the migrants be allowed to "continue their lives here". They, in turn are supported by many of Canada's largest unions and labour organizations publishing literature that demands millions of temporary migrants be given permission to remain in Canada. Shortly after the Liberal government spoke of its intention to minimize temporary migration rates, a communique titled "migrant workers in Canada deserve access to permanent residency and citizenship" was issued by the Canadian Labour Congress.

 

The difficulty of finding workers to fill jobs is leading some companies to hire refugees living internationally through the federal government's Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot, but the program's processing times are now increasing. (Sue Goodspeed/CBC)

 

Statistics Canada in 2022 tracked 1.4 million foreign nationals living in Canada as 'non-permanent residents'. By 2024 that number surged to 3.2 million, with temporary residents representing 7.5 percent of the entire population of Canada. This occurred when the federal government dropped quotas and restrictions on categories from foreign student visas to Temporary Foreign Worker admissions. At last count by Statistics Canada, temporary migrants number 2.8 million. 

 

In other words, about one in every 15 people in Canada is a non-permanent resident, whereas a decade earlier that figure was close to one in every 50. In admitting that skyrocketing temporary immigration's negative effects on civic society, with a scarcity of  housing, a burden on the social welfare network, and a strain on Canada's universal health care system, by November of 2025 the government stated that temporary migration "far exceeded our ability to welcome people and make sure that they had good housing and services".

 

In fact, the soaring price of housing has placed home ownership out of the bounds of all young Canadians. In addition to which employment prospects for Canadian youth have plummeted. Greater numbers than ever cannot access a family doctor. And hospital emergency rooms are overwhelmed, with fewer health care workers able to look after the medical needs of a soaring population. Even the 2025 federal budget stated that "unsustainable" immigration had "put pressure on housing demand" and crowded younger Canadians out of the job market.

 

Photo credit: 123RF

 

"Managed immigration growth is now helping to stabilize labour-market conditions and is  expected to support better outcomes for youth", the statement went on. The government now has altered its official goal to curb temporary migration so that non-permanent residents represent five percent of the total population in Canada; roughly two million in total. On the other hand, the reality is that Canada is limited in its capacity to remove temporary migrants who may refuse to voluntarily leave the country.

 

Canada Border Services Agency has a limited capacity to remove people who overstay their visas. Total removals last year came to about 22,000. Another 4,000 "inadmissible" people were refused entry. As for Immigration Citizenship and Refugees Canada, it has no official documentation on when temporary migrants leave the country. 

 

Canada begins to shrink an overburdened population numbers