https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/budget-highlights-9.6966595
Substantial cuts to immigration
Selling it as Ottawa "taking back control” over an immigration system that has put pressure on Canada’s housing supply and health-care system, budget 2025 promises to lower admission targets.
The new plan proposes to drastically reduce the target for new temporary resident admissions
from 673,650 in 2025 to 385,000 in 2026.
The 2026-28 immigration levels plan would keep permanent resident admission targets at
380,000 per year, down from 395,000 in 2025.
The government is also proposing to undertake a one-time measure to accelerate the transition of up to 33,000 work permit holders to permanent residency in 2026 and 2027.
“These workers have established strong roots in their communities, are paying taxes and are helping to build the strong economy Canada needs,” the budget notes.
To fill labour gaps, the Liberals’ plan includes a foreign credential recognition action fund to work with the provinces and territories to improve transparency, timeliness and consistency of foreign credential recognition.
It would also launch what’s a strategy to attract international talent, including a one-time initiative to recruit over a thousand highly qualified international researchers to Canada.