Canada has one of the highest per capita immigration in the world. Its unique economic structure is majorly depended on its immigrants. The welcoming attitude of Canadians and the standard of lifestyle the country offers have attracted people en masse. In these days of anti-immigrant polarization, the country’s staunch support for refugees and its liberal attitude towards diverse communities has been held an example for other developed nations, where the sense of alienation for immigrants is growing rapidly. Canada does not only enjoy the diverse and congruous culture because of its immigrants, but the Canadian values has also been widespread among other nations, giving the country its own name and fame. According to Immigration Act, 1976, which dealt with the legal proceedings of immigration, the immigrants who could become a burden on Social Welfare or Health Services would be refused entry, except people who identified themselves homosexual and differently-abled and so on. The Act structurally divided immigrants into four categories:

1. Family Class
2. Economic Immigrants (skilled workers)
3. Refugees
4. Independent Immigrants

The Act was later replaced by  Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) in 2002 which focused on the economic development through immigration.

Country-wise Immigration

The immigration to Canada has increased drastically because of Job Opportunities and Humanitarian purposes. According to StatsCan, year 2016 saw the heaviest immigration till now. The countries with the highest number of immigrants are Asian and Middle Eastern countries. Here is the list of top five countries according to IRCC:

1. Philippines
2. India
3. China
4. Iran
5. Pakistan

The Humanitarian goals by Canadian Government also welcomed around 11.6% refugees from war-trodden Arabian countries like Syria and Palestine (year 2011 to 2016). Syria ranks 7th in the number of immigrants in Canada.

Immigration and Education

Canada’s status as one of the best-educated countries in the world has a lot to do with its immigrants. The creamy-layer of other nations, with high university’s degrees, arrive Canada in the pursuit of quality education for their children. The Immigration Department report saw that 36 per cent of the children of immigrants aged 25 to 35 held university degrees, compared to 24 per cent of their peers with Canadian-born parents. The educational qualifications of Asian Immigrants found to be higher than their counterparts, the European and Latin American countries. The prime working generation of the immigrants and their pursuit for the quality education, and building a family of educated folks, has helped Canada for its economic growth and scholarly development.

Refugees and Challenges

The refugee intake by Canadian government has been applauded by many political pundits, but the real problem arises in the business sphere and job formation. When refugees arrive in Canada, they are supported by either the federal government or private groups, but that support ends for most Syrian refugees, and many of those unable to find jobs turn to provincial social assistance. The real problem refugees faced was language barrier and foreign credentials that were not fulfilled. The repaying of loans and the sense of alienation for the newly-arrived has put them in an economic stress and the unavailability of relevant jobs has been protested by the concerned party. This has led to new entrepreneurial strategies in the people, but the ghost of unemployment is seizing the hopes and aspirations of the promised ones.  There are steps taken for the welfare of the people like teaching English language and upliftment of women, but the process is slow and gradual and full of challenges.

Unemployment Rates Of The Immigrants

In 2017, about 6.3 percent of the Canadian labor force was unemployed. Where the immigrants who were residing in Canada for less than 5 years saw the highest rate of unemployment of around 10.4%, while the immigrants who were residing for more than ten years saw around 5.9%, much less than the landed immigrants (6.7%).

In January, 2018,, employment declined by 88,000 in Canada, there were 1,153,400 unemployed in Canada; 5.9% unemployment rate. Full-time positions increased by 49,000 and part-time positions decreased by 137,000. The goods-producing sector lost 16,200 jobs and the services-producing sector 71,900 positions.In the goods-producing sector, construction lost 14,900 jobs.

In the services-producing sector, educational services lost the most jobs (19,600).