Maple News reports that Canada remains committed to pursuing high immigration targets, even as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt global travel and reduce the arrival of new permanent residents.
In early 2020, just days before nationwide lockdowns began, Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino announced Canada’s plan to welcome over one million newcomers between 2020 and 2022. Despite closed borders and travel restrictions, Mendicino has stuck firmly to those commitments, signaling that immigration will continue to be a driving force in Canada’s post-pandemic economic recovery.
Though official border restrictions began on March 18, data shows that by August 2020, the number of new permanent residents dropped by approximately 64% compared to the same period in 2019. Canada had aimed to welcome 341,000 new immigrants in 2020, but by the end of August, only around 128,000 had arrived.
Mendicino’s office has been actively consulting with business leaders, labour groups, and settlement organizations to assess long-term immigration needs. These conversations reinforce the government’s stance that immigration is essential to addressing Canada’s aging population and filling labour market gaps, particularly in key industries like healthcare, technology, and agriculture.
“Immigration will remain an enduring value for Canada, even in the face of the pandemic,” Mendicino has previously emphasized. This sentiment was further echoed during recent intergovernmental meetings on the future of Canadian immigration policy, highlighting broad support across jurisdictions for robust future targets.
However, the path forward is not without complications. Canada continues to grapple with high unemployment, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s minority government must work with opposition parties to pass critical immigration-related legislation, potentially influencing how aggressive the targets can be.
Economists predict that even if immigration rebounds to pre-pandemic processing levels, Canada may still fall short of its 2020 target. Projections suggest about 240,000 new permanent residents could be landed—around 70% of the original goal.
The decline in immigration has also affected the housing market. In Toronto, the rental vacancy rate surpassed 2% in the third quarter of 2020—the highest in over a decade—due in part to diminished demand from international newcomers.
Despite the challenges, Canada is signaling to the world that it remains open to immigrants, and their role in the country’s future remains as vital as ever.