PNP has revealed a new side of Canadian immigration per the latest reports of Statistics Canada.
Between 1998 and 2009, the PNP operated in all provinces except for Quebec and the Yukon. Its objectives were to fulfill the labor demands of each province and territory and to disperse the population of economic immigrants outside of the country’s major cities.
The planning and administration of each province’s and territory’s PNP is their responsibility. The applicant might apply to any of the various streams. Despite the fact that the streams differ significantly throughout the provinces and territories, there are a few key categories, including foreign student streams, entrepreneur streams, employees with employment offers, and workers without job offers.
With the PNP’s ongoing growth, Canada will have 68,000 provincial nominees in 2019. The PNP, which selected 35% of all new immigrants to Canada in that year—up from 1% in 2000—was the most extensive selection program for economic immigrants then.
In order to direct its operations, IRCC publishes a new immigration-level plan each year. Canada plans to accept 465,000 new permanent residents in 2023 and 500,000 new residents in 2025. The Immigration Levels Plan target for permanent residents via the PNP is higher than Express Entry. Express Entry is the primary economic class pathway that the federal government uses. 117,500 new permanent residents will gain acceptance by IRCC through the PNP in 2025.
Canada’s economic immigrant population dispersion
The key finding of the Statistics Canada study was that economic immigration in Canada became less centralized as the PNP increased. Moreover, this decentralization happened along with the expansion of the PNP. From 2000, when there were essentially no provincial nominations, to 2019, the province allocation of new economic immigrants changed dramatically.
Notably, over that time, the percentage of immigrants planning to settle in Ontario (mainly Toronto) fell from 61% to 42%. British Columbia received a smaller portion, down from 17% to 15%.
The Prairie provinces saw significant gains; from almost nil to about 7% of immigrants went to both Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Together, Alberta and the Atlantic provinces saw an increase in their respective shares, which went from 1% to 7%.
PNP has revealed a new side of Canadian immigration – the evolving traits of provincial candidates
The traits that individuals nominated under the program have significantly changed as the PNP has grown.
The most significant shift was the increased propensity to select economic immigrants who had earned income in Canada previous to arrival—basically, temporary foreign employees. From 6% in 2002 to 61% in 2019 and 72% in 2021, the proportion of provincial nominees aged 20 to 54 who had previously been temporary foreign workers increased.
According to research, immigrants with prior temporary foreign job experience had better job market results than immigrants without such experience, both in the short and long term.
The proportion of PNP immigrants with prior Canadian study experience also significantly increased. 38% of new PNP immigrants in 2019 and 7% in 2010 had studied in Canada prior to their immigration.
Age was still another crucial factor. The average age of provincial nominees upon immigration has decreased over time. The proportion of immigrants who were 20 to 29 years old rose from 24% in 2005 to 38% in 2019. The study found that younger immigrants typically outperform older immigrants economically, especially over the long term.
The proportion of primary applicants who were single, without a spouse or children likewise climbed as the percentage of nominees in their 20s grew.
Language proficiency
Provincial nominees’ proficiency in the official language has changed significantly. One-fifth of the nominees in 2005 did not speak either English or French. Due to the fact that the majority of PNP programs presently demand that candidates understand English or French at a certain level, the number of nominees who arrive in Canada without knowing the languages has almost completely disappeared in 2019.
Between 2005 and 2019, the percentage of people whose native tongue is not English or French but who also speak those two languages rose from 64% to 91%.
Finally, there has been a change in the economic status of immigrants’ home countries. However, this is changing. Historically, economic immigrants to Canada came from a diverse variety of source nations, with no one nation or region predominating. 2019 saw a 70% increase in the number of new provincial nominees from three Asian areas: Southeast Asia, Eastern Asia, and Southern Asia.
Future of PNP
Since the PNP’s foundation, there has been a significant decentralization of new economic immigrants. The traits of the new provincial nominees have also altered dramatically, mostly in ways that are likely to enhance economic outcomes.
Increased regional dispersion of immigration, which aims to more effectively tackle the changing demographics and labor market difficulties experienced in various regions of Canada, has the potential to stimulate PNP expansion in the future.
The study illustrates how shifts in provincial nominee populations, settlement patterns, and individual traits through time impact their labor market and demographic roles.
