Thousands in Australia march against immigration, government condemns rally

2025/09/02 Leave a comment

Of note. Hopefully will not be replicated in Canada:

Thousands of Australians joined anti-immigration rallies across the country on Sunday that the centre-left government condemned, saying they sought to spread hate and were linked to neo-Nazis.

March for Australia rallies against immigration were held in Sydney and other state capitals and regional centres, according to the group’s website.

“Mass migration has torn at the bonds that held our communities together,” the website says. The group posted on X on Saturday that the rallies aimed to do “what the mainstream politicians never have the courage to do: demand an end to mass immigration”.

The group also says it is concerned about culture, wages, traffic, housing and water supply, environmental destruction, infrastructure, hospitals, crime and loss of community.

Australia – where one in two people is either born overseas or has a parent born overseas – has been grappling with a rise in right-wing extremism, including protests by neo-Nazis.

“We absolutely condemn the March for Australia rally that’s going on today. It is not about increasing social harmony,” Murray Watt, a senior minister in the Labor government, told Sky News television, when asked about the rally in Sydney, the country’s most-populous city.

“We don’t support rallies like this that are about spreading hate and that are about dividing our community,” Watt said, asserting they were “organised and promoted” by neo-Nazi groups.

March for Australia organisers did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the neo-Nazi claims.

Laws banning the Nazi salute and the display or sale of symbols associated with terror groups came into effect in Australia this year in response to a string of antisemitic attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars since the beginning of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023.

COUNTER-PROTESTERS EXPRESS ‘DISGUST, ANGER’

Some 5,000 to 8,000 people, many draped in Australian flags, had assembled for the Sydney rally, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported. It was held near the course of the Sydney Marathon, where 35,000 runners pounded the streets on Sunday, finishing at the city’s Opera House.

Also nearby, a counter-rally by the Refugee Action Coalition, a community activist organisation, took place.

“Our event shows the depth of disgust and anger about the far-right agenda of March For Australia,” a coalition spokesperson said in a statement. Organisers said hundreds attended that event.

Police said hundreds of officers were deployed across Sydney in an operation that ended “with no significant incidents”.

A large March for Australia rally was held in central Melbourne, the capital of Victoria state, according to aerial footage from the ABC, which reported that riot officers used pepper spray on demonstrators. Victoria Police did not confirm the report but said it would provide details on the protest later on Sunday.

Bob Katter, the leader of a small populist party, attended a March for Australia rally in Queensland, a party spokesperson said, three days after the veteran lawmaker threatened a reporter for mentioning Katter’s Lebanese heritage at a press conference when the topic of his attendance at a March for Australia event was being discussed.

Source: Thousands in Australia march against immigration, government condemns rally

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Canadian Immigration Tracker First Quarter 2025

2025/09/02 Leave a comment

My regular update on key immigration programs. Given the various articles on whether or not the government is meeting the reductions announced earlier, here is where we stand for January to June for the current and previous two years:

Permanent residents admissions: From 255,015 in 2024 to 207,510 in 2025, decline 18.6 percent, (from 2023, decline 21 percent), about 50 percent of 2025 target  

TR2PR (Those already in Canada): From 148,020 in 2024 to 126,365 in 2025, decline of 14.6 percent (from 2023, decline 13 percent). 

TRs-IMP: From 420,070 in 2024 to 295,505 in 2025, decline of 29.7 percent (from 2023, decline 23.4 percent), already exceeds 2025 target

TRs-TFWP: From 110,910 in 2024 to 106,105 in 2025, decline of 4.3 percent (from 2023, decline 7.2 percent), already exceeds 2025 target for both agriculture and non-agriculture workers

Students: From 248,820 in 2024 to 152,775 in 2025, decline of 38.6 percent (from 2023, increase 26.1 percent), about 50 percent of 2025 target (likely to overshoot given third quarter has highest number of admissions (between 40-45 percent for post-secondary albeit only 34 percent in 2024)

Asylum Claimants: From 93,315 in 2024 to 57,810 in 2025, decline of 38 percent (from 2023, decline 3.7 percent)

Citizenship: From 205,363 in 2024 to 151,804 in 2025, decline of 26.1 percent (from 2023, decline 14.2 percent)

Visitor Visas: From 868,234 in 2024 to 568,195, decline of 34.6 percent (from 2023, decline 40.5 percent)

Covid-19 Immigration Effects – Key Slides – June 2025Download

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Geoff Russ: Immigration is how Poilievre will get back on top

2025/08/30 Leave a comment

Reasonable foreshadowing of likely Conservative attack lines, some more valid than others:

Expect the Conservatives to come out swinging on immigration like never before when the House of Commons reconvenes next month.

Donald Trump gave the Liberals a lifeline to eke out another term in government in the spring, but the Liberals’ failure to get immigration under control is negatively impacting Canadians across the country.

In a statement released on August 25, the Conservatives pointed out that the government set an annual cap of 82,000 temporary foreign workers (TFW), but 105,000 had already been issued.

As for applicants to the International Mobility Program, they wrote 302,000 had been admitted by the first six months of the year in June, despite a promised cap of 285,000 permits.

“Moreover, their so-called caps on permanent residents were already among the highest in our history, yet they’re on track to exceed their own reckless targets, welcoming the equivalent of twice the population of Guelph and four times the population of Abbotsford,” read the statement, credited to Poilievre and Shadow Immigration Critic Michelle Rempel Garner.

This month, Poilievre released a series of graphics on social media highlighting the disparity between the Carney government’s promised targets, and how they are on-track to be exceeded.

This is a taste of what to expect for the fall session of Parliament, and Canadians will be receptive.

Sixty-two per cent of respondents in a Leger poll conducted in July believe there are too many newcomers arriving in Canada, and just 42 percent think they can be trusted. The poll also found that there was little disagreement between immigrant and native-born citizens in this regard.

Last year, Abacus Data found that 53 per cent of those surveyed had a negative view of immigration, and 72 per cent thought that the government’s immigration targets were “too ambitious”.

Abacus published the results of another survey earlier this month, finding that 25 per cent of Canadians now consider immigration to be the top issue facing Canada, and the Conservatives lead the Liberals 56 per cent to 15 per cent when respondents were asked which party was best equipped to handle the issue.

During the last federal election, young Canadians swung heavily towards the Conservatives, 44 percent to 31.2 per cent among 18 to 34 year olds, and with good reason.

Youth unemployment is the highest it has been since the late 1990s, with almost 15 per cent of Canadians aged 15 to 24 unable to find work before returning to school in the fall.

Employers have been greatly incentivized by the TFW program to hire foreigners instead of hiring and training their fellow Canadians.

The reliance on surplus foreign labour is dragging down productivity, while suppressing wages and per-capita GDP. There is no long-term upside to flooding the country with low-skill labour that pushes Canadians out of the job market, and the short-term effects have been socially and economically undesirable.

Investigations by the Toronto Star in 2024 found that government officials in Ottawa told their staff to skip fraud checks on TFW applications. Predictable wrongdoing ensued, such as no confirmation with employers to confirm that posted jobs actually existed, while migrant workers paid up to $70,000 for fake jobs.

As of now, it is estimated that there are somewhere between 600,000 and over 1 million undocumented people within Canada, and federal and provincial agencies seem incapable of remedying the issue.

Expelling people from the country is not a pleasant task when so many people have been duped by villainous immigration consultants who sold them fake dreams. The job must still be done.

You cannot have trust in a government that fails to meet its own immigration caps and enforce deportations.

It is unfair to Canadians, and unfair to newcomers who went through the proper channels.

One of the most infuriating aspects of it all is that Canada should not have an immigration crisis. Our geography gives us the privilege of being generous, and up until 2015 we were more selective about newcomers.

Stephen Harper’s government ran a very tight ship on immigration, and this should be the expectation of every Canadian government, not an exception.

This all started going downhill when Justin Trudeau became prime minister in 2015, and the numbers started climbing sharply. For example, his government lowered the benchmark for Express Entry from 866 out of 1200 points, to just 75.

Nearly five million people have entered the country since 2014, and few can say this country is fairer, more prosperous or more hopeful for it. Those who want Canada to continue as a welcoming country for new arrivals would do well to push for reform.

We are bordered by three oceans and an undefended border with the world’s most powerful economy. Our admission of newcomers is something we can control, and there is no reason why Canada should not have one of the most well-run, careful immigration systems in the world.

The idea that Canadians have been almost unanimously in favour of immigration since the Second World War is a pervasive myth. It has always been controversial among the public, but rarely has it been debated with ferocity in the House of Commons.

Canadians want a debate on current immigration levels to happen, and they will get their wish this fall.

Mark Carney will need creative excuses for why his government blew past its own caps, did not release immigration data for months, and presented no plan to end the economy’s dependence on cheap foreign labour.

For the Conservatives, this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to finally turn immigration into an issue our politicians can openly and honestly debate.

The Liberals got us into this avoidable mess, and they must be held accountable for it.

Source: Geoff Russ: Immigration is how Poilievre will get back on top

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Canada’s border agency plans to use AI to screen everyone entering the country — and single out ‘higher risk’ people

2025/08/30 Leave a comment

Inevitable given the numbers involved and the need to triage applications:

Canada Border Services Agency is planning to use AI to check everyone visiting or returning to the country to predict whether they are at risk of breaking the law. 

Anyone identified as “higher risk” could be singled out for further inspection.

The traveller compliance indicator (TCI), which has been tested at six land ports of entry, was developed using five years of CBSA travellers’ data. It assigns a “compliance score” for every person entering Canada. It will be used to enforce the Customs Act and related regulations.

The AI-assisted tool is expected to launch as early as 2027 and is meant to help border services officers at all land, air and marine ports of entry decide whether to refer travellers and the goods they are carrying for secondary examination, according to an assessment report obtained under an access to information request. 

“We use the obtained data to build predictive models in order to predict the likelihood of a traveller to be compliant,” said the report which was submitted by the border agency to the Treasury Board.

“TCI will improve the client experience by reducing processing time at the borders. The system will allow officers to spend less time on compliant travellers and reduce the number of unnecessary selective referrals.”

However, experts are alarmed by the lack of public engagement and input into the tool’s development. They worry that the system may reinforce human biases against certain types of travellers such as immigrants and visitors from certain countries because the quality of the analytics is only as good as what is inputted.

“If you’ve historically been very critical over a certain group, then that will be in the data and we’ll transfer that into the tool,” said Vancouver-based immigration lawyer Will Tao, who obtained the report.

“You look for the problems and you find problems where you’re looking, right?”

The government report said the border agency serves more than 96 million travellers a year, and trying to keep up with expected growth would require the addition of hundreds of border officers. In addition, physical limitations make it impossible to add extra booths at some points of entry.

The AI tool, the report said, will help keep border processing times at current levels even with an expected increase in the number of travellers. 

“No decisions are automated,” the report said. “Rather the current primary processing is being supported with a flag indicating whether a traveller’s information matches a compliance pattern.”

However, if an officer follows a mistaken recommendation from the tool, it could have impacts that could “last longer,” the report added.

“Once a risk score or indicator is presented to an officer, it can heavily influence their judgment, which in practice means the system is shaping outcomes even if the final authority is technically still human,” said University of Toronto professor Ebrahim Bagheri, who focuses on AI and the study of data and society.

“A false positive is when the system flags someone as risky or non-compliant even though they are in fact compliant. In the border context, that could mean a traveller is singled out for extra questioning or secondary examination even though they’ve done nothing wrong.”

The system is designed to display information of interest to an officer, such as a traveller’s means of transport and who accompanied them. 

It also captures “live determinants” which can include information such as whether the person is travelling alone, the type of identification they presented and the license plate of the vehicle they used, as well as any data from the traveller’s previous trips in CBSA’s records….

Source: Canada’s border agency plans to use AI to screen everyone entering the country — and single out ‘higher risk’ people

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StatsCan: Temporary foreign workers in health care: Characteristics, transition to permanent residency and industry retention

2025/08/28 Leave a comment

Points of interest:

  • Numbers of healthcare workers increased dramatically during COVID
  • Similar numbers under the TFWP and IMP but IMP growth greater than TFWP
  • Provincial average of 2.7 percent of temporary workers in healthcare sector
  • Country shift from Philippines to India
  • Almost 60 percent have transitioned to permanent residency
  • Women form about three quarters of TFWs in healthcare that transitioned to permanent residency

…Using an integrated administrative database, this study examines the number of TFWs who worked in Canada’s health care sector from 2000 to 2022, their distribution by permit type, their transition to PR and their retention in the sector.

The number of TFWs working in the health care sector has increased considerably since the new millennium, from 3,200 in 2000 to 57,500 in 2022. The composition of program types among TFWs in the health care sector has also changed over time. In the early 2000s, most TFWs held health-occupation-specific work permits, but other IMP work permit holders have become more prominent over time. In addition, TFWs’ distribution across health care subsectors also shifted over time. In the 2000s, nearly 40% of TFWs in the health care sector were in hospitals, but since 2019, more than 40% of TFWshave been employed in nursing and residential care facilities.

It is important to note that some TFWs without a health-occupation-specific work permit may work in health occupations. Furthermore, not all TFWs in the health care sector worked in health occupations. Therefore, restricting the analysis to work permit holders with specified health occupations would underestimate the overall impact of TFWs on the health care sector. 

TFWs from India have gradually replaced Filipino workers as the largest foreign workforce in Canada’s health care sector, and the role of some traditional source countries has diminished. Meanwhile, the geographic concentration of TFWs in health care became more pronounced over time, with the majority located in the largest provinces: Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec.

The long-term viability of TFWs as a stable labour source depends on two factors: the number of workers who transition to PR and the percentage of those who continue to work in the sector after obtaining PR. This study found that recent TFW cohorts had higher rates of transition to PR compared with earlier cohorts, whereas recent PR policy changes may have had a positive impact on the transition rate. After transitioning to PR, TFWs holding health-occupation-specific work permits had higher industry retention rates in the sector than those who did not have health-occupation-specific work permits.

Source: Temporary foreign workers in health care: Characteristics, transition to permanent residency and industry retention

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Here are the top reasons why Canada rejects study permit applications

2025/08/28 Leave a comment

Useful information:

Almost five per cent of study permit applications were rejected last year because applicants allegedly misrepresented or withheld information, according to a new study that tracks international student refusal trends.

It was a small but noteworthy increase, according to the analysis released Monday by ApplyBoard, one of the largest online platforms for foreign student recruitment. The report looked at study permit applications for 2024 and found that 4.6 per cent of refusal reasons were linked to “authenticity and applicant honesty.”

In all, some 13,000 applicants were rejected based on misrepresenting or withholding facts in their applications.

Under the Canadian law, an immigration applicant can be found inadmissible “for directly or indirectly misrepresenting or withholding material facts.” Last year’s increase was up from 1.8 per cent in 2021, 2.3 per cent in 2022 and 3.5 per cent in 2023. 

In 2024, the Immigration Department rejected about 290,000 study permit applications, bringing the overall refusal rate to 52 per cent from 40 per cent the year before. The data covered applicants for all levels of studies; an application can be refused on multiple grounds.

Of the 81 different reasons given for refusals, 76 per cent were rejected because the officer was not satisfied the applicant would leave Canada — based on the person’s previous travel history. In comparison, this reason accounted for 7.6 per cent of all refusals in 2021.

The second-most common reason for refusal had to do with officers not believing an applicant would leave Canada, based on their financial assets. These rejected applications accounted for 53 per cent last year, up from 25 per cent in 2021.

Rounding the top five reasons for study permit refusals in 2024 were: an officer’s doubt over the purpose of the visit (47 per cent), applicants not having enough financial resources for tuition (19 per cent) and for living expenses (18 per cent).

While officials recognize some future students may want to stay and gain work experience in Canada after graduation, the predominant use of lack of travel history as a refusal ground, said the ApplyBoard study, “suggests that many applicants are perceived as having permanent residency as their primary purpose, instead of study.”

The report made no mention or speculation on the rise of this particular refusal reason, and it’s not known if immigration officials have heightened scrutiny of study permit applications amid integrity concerns raised about the international education program in the last couple years. 

Those alleged of submitting inauthentic documents and those who “didn’t truthfully answer all questions” were cited in 1.7 per cent and one per cent of all refusals in 2024, respectively — up from the correspondingly 0.3 per cent and 0.4 per cent since 2021, the report found.

In 2024, missing documents were also involved in thousands of refusals, with the proofs of financial assets being cited as the most commonly missing papers, followed by biometrics (photo and fingerprints), letters of acceptance by an institution, Quebec acceptance certificate and medical exam results.

“Every refusal reason above is entirely preventable, given enough time to review the application for completeness,” said ApplyBoard. “Having others review study permit applications can also prevent regrettable permit refusals.”

Source: Here are the top reasons why Canada rejects study permit applications

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Ottawa’s strong borders bill could infringe on Charter and privacy rights, parliamentary study warns

2025/08/28 Leave a comment

Reinforces court challenges:

….The library received requests from MPs for an analysis of Bill C-2 and has made available a preliminary version of its research to help them and others understand the bill. 

Its findings follow similar warnings from lawyers and civil-liberties experts. They have predicted that, if passed, the bill could face legal challenges. Refugee advocates and migrant groups have criticized Bill C-2’s proposed changes to immigration and asylum law. 

The Library of Parliament’s in-depth look at the bill raises particular concerns about so-called lawful access provisions to give police, Canada’s spy agency and other public officers warrantless powers to demand information.

The bill would allow law-enforcement officers without warrants to demand information on whether people have used various services, such as internet providers, medical services, hotels, mailboxes or banks….

An assessment earlier this year by the federal Justice Department found that various provisions in Bill C-2 clash with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, including clauses protecting Canadians against unreasonable searches and seizures. 

The Library of Parliament found that, as well as potentially clashing with the Charter, the bill may be framed to “circumvent” decisions by the Supreme Court of Canada that confirm the right to privacy online. 

It warns that the bill’s “expanded surveillance and data-sharing powers from law enforcement and other government agencies could potentially lead to discriminatory profiling or targeting, particularly in the context of immigration enforcement.” 

“Enhanced authority for law enforcement to access internet subscriber data without a warrant, as well as data-sharing between Canadian and foreign authorities allowed under Bill C-2, could disproportionately affect racialized and immigrant communities,” it says. 

It also raises concerns about measures to help the police and intelligence services get access to data. The CCLA warns the measures could force online services to redesign how they operate. …

Source: Ottawa’s strong borders bill could infringe on Charter and privacy rights, parliamentary study warns

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Immigration applicants for this Canadian program need to wait 52 months for a decision — now they also face skyrocketing refusals

2025/08/26 Leave a comment

Of note, another illustration of the challenges with respect to business immigration. Substantively, business immigration programs generate little return, with business immigrants paying the lowest amounts of income tax:

…But according to the Immigration Department, 17,919 SUV permanent residence applications are currently in the system, with an average processing time of 52 months. (For comparison, it takes 50 months for someone who has been granted asylum to bring family to Canada.)

That’s just not fast enough, Manasvi said.

“Canada needs entrepreneurs more than entrepreneurs need Canada,” said Manasvi, who previously worked at Nvidia and saw StackRaft become a platform used by more than 100 organizations and 50,000 software engineers before her exit from the venture in 2022. 

“If it takes a few years to approve a legit start-up founder in the backlog, you’re not going to attract the next Shopify. They will go to London or Dubai.”

Last year, Ottawa tweaked the program to limit intake and prioritize applicants with investment commitments from venture capital funds, angel investor groups and business incubators belonging to Canada’s Tech Network.

The federal government has also slashed the number of annual permanent resident spots for business immigration programs from 5,000 in 2024 to 2,000 this year, and 1,000 for 2026 and 2027.

In the first quarter of 2025, immigration data showed the two main SUV streams had a surge in refusal rates for permanent residence: to 73 per cent for those in business incubators, from 10 per cent in 2023 and 18 per cent in 2024; and to 85 per cent for those in angel investor networks, from 18 per cent and nine per cent, respectively.

SUV applicants are eligible for work permits that allow them to work on their projects in Canada while they wait for permanent residence. But the number of work-permit refusals has risen to 77 per cent from 55 per cent in the last year. Of all pending SUV permanent resident applications, only 3,345 have been approved work permits. 

“The government is trying to clean house,” said Toronto immigration lawyer Elizabeth Long. “Even though the program has many integrity issues, it is the only way that an entrepreneur these days can actually apply for permanent residence … We’re closing our doors to business.” 

The Immigration Department, which is currently reviewing and exploring business immigration programs, admitted that a growing backlog and wait times for SUV applicants is a challenge, but maintained officials are not refusing applications to “reduce inventory.”

The rules have not changed and the higher refusal rates are “simply an indication that fewer applicants are being found to meet the program requirements,” it said.

Launched in 2013, the SUV program replaced the Entrepreneur Program, which offered a three-year conditional residency for people with a minimum net worth of $300,000 and required that they open mall kiosks, corner stores, restaurants and other small businesses before they obtained permanent status.

The new program was designed to give Canada an edge on the global stage. However, wealthy foreigners looking to “buy” residency or experienced CEOs and small business owners have also used it for a shot at permanent residence. 

“Some of the people in the SUV program shouldn’t be there, but they’ve had no choice,” said Stephen Green of the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association.

He said Ottawa needs to bring back investor and entrepreneur programs so the SUV program can attract real innovators as intended. The program is working, he added, but requires more robust compliance requirements on the gate keepers — the designated organizations responsible for issuing support letters. 

The SUV program has been increasingly sold by rogue agents as a pathway for permanent residence rather than a business opportunity for potential startups.

“You’re not supposed to be having a business so that you can immigrate,” said lawyer Zaynah Marani, whose practice focuses on business immigration. “It’s more like as a result of this business, I would be moving to Canada.”

To be eligible, an SUV applicant must receive a letter of support from organizations designated by Ottawa to vet business proposals based on their worthiness and readiness. These organizations are approved to invest in or support possible startups; some also charge applicants hefty fees for services such as mentorship, access to resources and networking opportunities.

“You’re sort of stuck having to take that route even if you don’t want to pay that,” Marani said.

The number of designated organizations has grown from 28 to 77 since 2013, which contributed to the program’s backlog. To cap intake, Ottawa last year decided each organization could only submit up to 10 SUV permanent residence applications annually.

Fast-tracking processing of applicants with committed capital will admit startups that have a stronger chance of success by bringing their applications to the “front of the line,” said the Immigration Department.

But critics say these changes risk putting real innovators at further disadvantage. 

Lawyer Zeynab Ziaie recently came across a startup visa broker, who helps applicants put together business ideas and get letters of support from SUV designated organizations. 

“I was like all your business is shuttered now,” Ziaie recalled. “He said, ‘No, the price has gone up.’ So what ended up happening is it prices out real applicants who have fantastic potential and it’s more in favour of people who have a higher net worth and can cover the costs that are associated with this.”

As part of a submission to the federal government in May, the Canadian Bar Association’s immigration law section recommended replacing the designated organization model with a ranking system that awards points to SUV applicants based on a startup’s alignment with high-demand sectors, existence of investment funds by credible Canadian sources, years of previous business experience, and demonstrated success in prior ventures.

It also calls for the reintroduction of investor programs that tie thresholds for investment and job creation with residency in order to channel capital into underdeveloped regions and infrastructure.

Former SUV applicant Manasvi, now a Canadian citizen, welcomes any initiative that could help nurture young entrepreneurs and support Canada’s startup ecosystem.

“Canada is a great country to build a business and be in,” said Manasvi, 40, who now advises and helps Canadian companies scale and expand in international markets. “We just have to be very clear on how we create and structure programs and not just why we do it.”

Source: Immigration applicants for this Canadian program need to wait 52 months for a decision — now they also face skyrocketing refusals

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Canada’s latest immigration data revealed: Here’s what happened after a year of seismic changes

2025/08/25 Leave a comment

Good summary, will be issuing my quarterly update shortly:

…These immigration statistics have been closely watched, with critics arguing the Liberal government’s high immigration intake has contributed to Canada’s runaway population growth and is straining the housing market and health-care system.

In response, the government slashed the 2025 intakes of new permanent residents by 21 per cent to 395,000; new study permit holders by 10 per cent to 305,900; and new work permit holders by 16 per cent to 367,750.

The public data had not been updated this summer, drawing criticism from the Conservative party over the lack of transparency.

“How many illegal border crossings have we had? How many more asylum claims have piled on to an already backlogged wait-list? How many more permits have the Liberals handed out that continue to overwhelm our housing, health-care system and job market?” MP Michelle Rempel Garner, the Conservative party’s immigration critic, said in a statement earlier this month. 

“Whatever the numbers are, Canadians have a right to know.”

According to the Immigration Department, 36,417 new international students arrived in Canada from January to June, down from 125,034 in the first six months of 2024. The number of new work permit holders also dropped respectively to 119,234 from 245,137.

“The number of new students and workers arriving to Canada is declining — a clear sign that the measures we’ve put in place are working,” it said. “This downward trend reflects our commitment to a well-managed and sustainable immigration system.”

The number of asylum claimants, which has drawn attention since U.S. President Donald Trump was elected and made anti-immigration policies a key part of his agenda, also showed a downward trend. From January to June, 57,440 new claims were referred to the refugee board, down from 91,540 over the same period last year.

However, the number of immigration applications in the system has kept growing since March from 1,976,700 permanent and temporary residence files in the queue — including 779,900 that surpassed service standards and are deemed backlogged — to 2,222,600 on July 31, with backlogged cases rising to 901,700. 

As of July, there were 291,975 asylum claims pending a decision by the refugee board, up 25 per cent from 232,751 a year ago July.

Source: Canada’s latest immigration data revealed: Here’s what happened after a year of seismic changes

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Falice Chin: Is Canada quietly becoming like the Arab Gulf States when it comes to relying on foreign labour? 

2025/08/25 Leave a comment

Just asking the question highlights some of the issues:

…Canada’s version is more humane. Our laws offer more protections, and the “low” wages are higher. Foreign workers also don’t make up the bulk of our labour force, but the direction of travel is uncomfortably familiar. The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) has grown from a seasonal stopgap into a structural pillar for industries from agriculture to warehousing.

And, like in Qatar or the UAE, it’s creating a permanent underclass of workers who are essential to our economy but never fully part of our society.

By design or not, the program gradually reinforces Canadians to devalue the work itself—treating certain jobs, and the people who do them, as disposable.

As Canada tweaks its immigration system, pressure is coming from multiple sides: labour advocates pushing for stronger protections, and a growing anti-immigrant sentiment accusing these workers of “stealing” domestic jobs.

The temptation is to abolish the system entirely, a move that would affect some 140,000 foreign workers across Canada.

But that would be disastrous for the economy….

The harder part to fix

Policy tweaks can improve conditions for both employers and employees, but they won’t touch the deeper problem.

As long as we see certain work as “someone else’s job”—fit only for people from “somewhere else”—we will keep importing workers to do it.

That mindset breeds disposability, the quiet assumption that people doing this work are interchangeable and less deserving of full belonging.

“If you have served tables, you’ll be nice to your server later when you have a different job, right?” Connelly explained. “Or if you’ve had a job cleaning up a campground, you’re going to be very tidy next time you camp there as a customer, right? So, yeah, I think there’s value in all this work. I think there’s something to be said for all of us having this type of job.”

On this point, the two experts agree.

“Fundamentally as a society, when we’re doing our workforce development strategies—whether it be the provincial or federal—consider the fact that we do need individuals in the restaurants…We do need builders as well as engineers as well as IT,” Santini said.

“I don’t know where this current government is going with AI and clean technology,” she continued. “But that element still requires the plumbers, still requires the electricians, still requires the machinists and the cleaners.”

A little self-awareness is needed

In 2022, I returned to Qatar a decade after my stint ended—not as a foreign worker, but as a soccer fan cheering for Canada’s men’s World Cup run.

Scanning headlines and social media posts from afar, I couldn’t help but notice the self-righteous tone in how Canadians condemned the Qatari government for its treatment of foreign workers, particularly the predominantly South Asians who built the country’s shiny stadiums.i

Officially, about 40 workers died, but other estimates range from the hundreds to as high as 6,500.

It’s true that Canada’s workplace fatality rates are much lower, regardless of which stat you believe.

But they’re not zero.

There’s no public tally isolating work-related deaths among TFWs in Canada. Given that these workers are heavily concentrated in agriculture, it’s reasonable to assume that some are among the roughly 62 farm-related fatalities per year recorded nationally.

And when I hear the callous way some Canadians talk about TFWs, it’s hard not to think of the attitudes I saw among some Qatari nationals.

Connelly pinpointed the sentiment perfectly.

“They would have this expectation that these workers should be grateful,” she said. “It wasn’t enough that they just work and be good workers and finish their work and then get a different job. They wanted them to be grateful for this opportunity.”

There is a way forward that keeps the TFWP, treats workers with dignity, and meets employers’ needs. But the most urgent reform is in how we value the work itself, and the people who do it.

Source: Falice Chin: Is Canada quietly becoming like the Arab Gulf States when it comes to relying on foreign labour?

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