Canada continued to welcome high immigration levels before the onset of coronavirus lockdowns in mid-March in Canada and around the world. Canada has welcomed 74,000 immigrants to the end of April.
Indeed, just days before Canada's lockdowns, immigration ministers in the country announced a new ambitious plan to welcome more than 1 million new permanent residents between 2020-2022.
While the immigration system in Canada has faced interruptions since the country processes immigration applications to the best extent possible
New data released by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) provides an early look at the origin of new Canadian immigrants in the early months of 2020.
India remained the leading source country of PR visa holders.
India remained the leading source country of new permanent resident (PR) visa holders from Canada, as has been the case in recent years.
In the first four months of 2020 they represented 24 per cent of new PRs.
India is Canada's leading source of immigrants, as many of its citizens speak English fluently and have other key features that help them become eligible for Canadian immigration, such as university and/or college credentials and work experience.
Many Indian immigrants often arrive from the United States to Canada, as it can be difficult for H1-B visa holders to secure permanent residency in the United States.
Top 10 source countries
The following are the top 10 source countries of the 74,000 people who have received PR in the first four months of 2020 i.e from January to April.
ü India
ü China
ü Philippines
ü USA
ü Nigeria
ü Pakistan
ü Syria
ü France
ü Iran
ü Brazil
Until now, China's immigration has been marginally higher in 2020 than in recent years. Chinese immigrants made up almost 10 per cent of newcomers compared to 9 per cent in 2019.
Also, Philippine immigration to Canada stayed relatively stable (7% compared to 8% in 2019 in 2020).
As was the case in 2019, the top 5 are rounded out by US and Nigerian immigrants.
The Immigrants hailing from those countries have a significant advantage in Canada's immigration system because of their English-language skills, which make up a major component of the Federal Express Entry Scheme, the Provincial Candidate Program (PNP), and other programmes.
