The Canadian government Tuesday confirmed it welcomed 431,645 permanent residents in 2022, representing the largest number of permanent residents welcomed to the country in a single year. Canada has now recorded a record intake of immigrants the past two years in a row after the country announced they welcomed 401,000 permanent residents in 2021. In 2022, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada processed 5.2 million applications for residency and citizenship, which significantly exceeded the half a million applications processed in 2021.

The Canadian government indicated the new record reflects a continued commitment on behalf of Canada to welcoming immigrants and refugees. In a report issued last year, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees found that in 2021 Canada was the largest receiver of resettled refugees. In 2021 Canada resettled 20,400 people primarily arriving from Afghanistan, Syria and Eritrea.

Immigration represents nearly 100 percent of labor force growth in Canada. Many industries rely substantially on immigrant workers. In fact, immigrants make up 36 percent of doctors and 33 percent of business owners employing paid staff. According to the 2021 Census, 8 million immigrants currently live in Canada, with 1.3 million of those immigrants settling in the country from 2016 to 2021.

As part of its post-COVID-19 recovery plan, Canada is now working towards a goal of welcoming 500,000 refugees per year by 2025, including resettling 72,750 refugees and protected persons each year.