A recent Ryerson University paper outlines the prospects for immigration in small and mid-sized Canadian cities

Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver are popular destinations for immigrants coming to Canada. But, it is Canada’s little to midsize cities which are beginning to attract more immigrants from abroad. Smaller cities engaging more immigrants in Canada.

Over the exact same interval between 2013 and 2019, the number of immigrants settling in urban centres went up by 45 percent between 2013 and 2019, compared to nine per cent in Canada’s four major cities, according to a Ryerson University paper authored by David Campbell. At precisely the same period, the number of new immigrants increased by 40 percent in the rest of Canada’s Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs).

CMAs are major urban centers that consist of numerous municipalities around a population centre. By Way of Example, the Toronto CMA consists of the city of Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan and Pickering.

The immigration rate, which is the amount of immigrants per 10,000 inhabitants, of those smaller to midsize urban centers remains lower than the bigger towns. This could come as no surprise since the smaller urban centres began with a lower population.

Toronto has one of the maximum immigration rates in Canada in 163 per 10,000 residents. Vancouver is likewise impressive in 128 per 10,000 residents. But how can small and midsize urban centers fair?

The authorities rate was over 100 per 10,000 residents for a total of 14 smaller metropolitan centers. Regina and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan both had immigration rates of 193 and 178 per 10,000 residents respectively, both greater than Toronto.

The rest 12 smaller urban centres with high immigration rates were: Halifax, Charlottetown, Fredericton, Moncton, Swift Current, Winkler, Steinbach, Brandon, Thompson, Brooks, High River and Wood Buffalo. These smaller urban centers saw an influx of immigrants as an immediate response to the challenges faced because of an aging population and labour.

A number of these cities have a diminishing ordinary inhabitants. This usually means that there are more deaths than there are births. They rely on migration between states to remain competitive efficiently, so they have begun to bring in more immigrants to keep on growing. Smaller cities engaging more immigrants in Canada.

The COVID-19 pandemic, however, played a big role in reducing the number of immigrants coming into little to midsize urban centres. This is due to the current travel restrictions set up to curb the spread of this virus. Smaller cities of Canada attracting more immigrants.

Even though there exists some exemptions to the travel restrictions such as some international students and temporary workers, those that possess a Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) approved after March 18, 2020, are still not permitted to travel to Canada.

Many of Canada’s export businesses regularly hire short term global workers. Examples of these industries include agriculture and fish processing.

Canada will need to depend on immigration today more than ever to spearhead post-pandemic economic recovery. The nation’s workforce increased by 1.95 million between 2009 and 2019– almost all came from immigrants. The table below illustrates that well. It reveals the expansion rate of the workforce by consenting immigrants and by individuals who have been born in Canada.

The states with the greatest growth of immigrant workers also had the fastest growing markets.

A shrinking workforce is only one challenge which comes with an aging population. Canada is facing a growing demand for health care services in addition to income support programs.

Campbell concluded the paper noting the unemployment rates and increasing number of COVID-19 cases may lessen some people’s aid for immigration. However, for the long run, immigration will play a crucial role in the financial development of major urban centers as well as small to midsize urban centers around Canada.

Factors resulting in higher regional immigration

Regional immigration plans are mutually beneficial to the local economy. Authorities have identified gaps in the labor market that have to be filled by immigrants, in turn immigrants get to work in their area.

The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) enables countries to nominate immigration candidates who they think will be good fits for their labour market. These applications benefit less populous provinces, since they have more urgent needs for immigrants to support their savings. The prairie province of Manitoba was the first to sign up to the PNP in 1996, and was among the very first to begin their program in 1999, together with New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The initiation of the Express Entry system in 2015 caused it to the first enhanced PNPs. Provincial government could hunt the Express Entry pool of candidates for individuals whose professional skills would benefit the labor market. The amount of immigrants admitted through the PNPs rose from roughly 47,600 in 2014 to 68,600 in 2019.

Additionally, the Atlantic Immigration Pilot (AIP) was launched in March 2017. This pilot permits employers from Canada’s four Atlantic provinces to expedite the hiring process for global workers. Through this program, immigrants come to Canada having a job and a settlement strategy from a designated service provider. In 2019, 1,141 new immigrants came to the area. A current authorities review discovered that the AIP was helping improve retention in the area.

In the end, there’s also been higher regional immigration simply because Canada has been raising its own immigration levels each year. Even though the pandemic caused a significant fall in fresh immigrants in 2020, Canada still dedicated to welcoming over 1.2 million immigrants during the next 3 years. Of these, the PNP is expected to bring in about 80,000 annually, and also the AIP is anticipated to welcome about 6,000.

Also, Canada has yet to come out using the Municipal Nominee Program, which will allow communities, chambers of commerce and local labour councils to host new immigrants. This new program is expected to earn about 5,000 newcomers per year after it is launched.

ο Reference taken from CIC News