The Government of Canada recently announced plans to lower immigration targets for the next three years. The new targets are 395,000 new permanent residents for 2025, 380,000 for 2026, and 365,000 for 2027.
This is a reduction of around 20 per cent and more compared to the previous targets of 500,000 immigrants per year and the roughly 472,000 permanent immigrants who arrived in 2023. The plan will also reduce the number of temporary residents including international students and foreign workers who come to Canada.
The government stated these reductions aim to pause short-term population growth. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada argues that this will help to alleviate pressures on housing, infrastructure and social services as part of a broader plan for well-managed, sustainable growth in the long term.
