Immigration in Canada has goals to gradually increase immigration, in order to strengthen its economy, provide humanitarian assistance to refugees and re unite families. Canada has three classes of immigration:
• Family class
• Economic class
• Refugee class
Family class
Immigrants sponsored by a permanent resident or a Canadian citizen is under the Family class. The goal is to reunite family members and couples to live together in Canada. These immigrants are usually granted permanent residence based on their relationship with;
• A partner
• Spouse
• Parent
• Child
• Grandparent
Economic class
Immigrants who have been selected for their ability in contributing to Canada’s economy are the Economic class, whether it will be through;
• Owning or managing a business
• Making a substantial investment
• Creating their own employment opportunities
• Meeting the labor market needs
Refugee class
Immigrants that were granted permanent residence due to the fear of persecution that comes with living in their native land based on;
• Religion
• Nationality
• Race
• Political opinion
• Membership in a particular social group
This class also includes people who have been seriously affected by;
• Conflict
• War
• Has suffered a substantial violation of the human rights
Cause of Canada’s low birth rate and older population, there are minimal rates of economic and labor force growth. This low economic growth makes it difficult for Canada to increase the taxes the country needs to spend on social services like healthcare and education. This led to the increase in Canada’s immigration levels to strengthen the country’s fiscal situation.
Every year, the federal government releases a new immigration Levels plan that outlines the immigration objectives for the next three years ahead. This includes the class and number of immigrants that Canada hopes to welcome. This 2022, Canada hopes to surpass 430,000 new permanent residents, with nearly a percentage of 60% of new permanent residents under the economic class.
Economic class
Economic class admissions into Canada commonly comes through the federal Express Entry system. Entitled candidates, usually skilled worker, submit their resume and are given a score ranked by the CRS (Comprehensive Ranking System). After every two weeks, IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) invites entitled candidates with the highest scores to apply for permanent residence.
The federal express entry system manages three programs;
• The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP)
• Canadian Experience Class (CEC)
• Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC)
Canada gets to welcome skilled workers from around the world through the FSWP. It uses the CRS, a point-based system that is calculated based on;
• Age
• Work experience
• Education
• Language skills
