Canada slashes immigration target by 21% after record growth

PTC News Desk: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is reducing newcomer inflow for the first time in more than a decade, bringing in a new era for a country that historically welcomed large numbers of immigrants.

Canada is poised to reduce its annual permanent-resident target to around 395,000 for next year, down 21% from the previous aim of half a million announced last year, according to a government official who asked not to be identified in order to discuss matters that are not yet public.

The annual target will be reduced further to around 380,000 in 2026 and 365,000 in 2027. The National Post initially reported the news on Wednesday, and Immigration Minister Marc Miller will present the final numbers to Parliament on Thursday morning.

Permanent residents are a key part of Canada's immigration system, which focuses on bringing in young, highly educated workers to add to its fast ageing workforce. A significant fall to pre-pandemic levels shows the government is reducing its immigration target.

A major influx of immigrants began coming once travel restrictions were lifted in 2022, resulting in historic population growth. The spike, which is equivalent to moving all of San Diego's people to a country slightly larger than California in a single year, exacerbated housing shortages, escalated rent costs, stretched public services, and raised the unemployment rate. 

All of these factors called into question a long-held idea that large immigration gives Canada an advantage in a global race to attract young workers and fend off economic collapse. Last week, the country's longest-running immigration survey revealed that Canadians haven't been this anti-immigrant in a quarter-century.