July 8, 2025
RED FM News Desk
SURREY, B.C. – Canada has experienced a significant increase in immigration over the past decade, with average annual figures more than doubling since 2016, according to a new study from the Fraser Institute, an independent non-partisan Canadian think tank.
The report, “Canada’s Changing Immigration Patterns, 2000–2024,” reveals that from 2000 to 2015, Canada welcomed an average of 617,800 immigrants annually. This figure jumped to 1.4 million annually from 2016 to 2024 (excluding 2020 data).
“Over the past decade, Canada’s immigration numbers have skyrocketed, most starkly since 2021,” stated Jock Finlayson, a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and co-author of the study.
From 2000 to 2015, immigration (including temporary foreign workers and international students) grew by an average of 3.5 percent per year. However, from 2016 to 2024 (excluding 2020), immigration surged by 21.3 percent annually, more than six times the pace seen in the earlier period.
This sharp rise in recent years reflects both planned increases in permanent immigrant inflows and an unprecedented, largely unplanned growth in the numbers of temporary foreign workers, international students, and asylum seekers. For instance, in 2024 alone, Canada saw 485,600 permanent immigrants, alongside 518,200 international students and 912,900 temporary foreign workers.
However, concerns about the impact of this unprecedented in-migration on housing affordability, employment opportunities (or lack thereof), and access to healthcare have prompted a policy shift. Late last year, the federal government announced plans to substantially reduce immigration levels over the 2025-27 period, affecting permanent immigrants, international students, and other temporary visa holders.
The composition of immigration also underwent a dramatic change during this period. From 2000 to 2015, permanent immigrants constituted an average of 42.1 percent of total immigrants, while the non-permanent share (primarily international students and temporary workers) was 57.9 percent. In contrast, from 2016 to 2024 (excluding 2020), permanent immigrants averaged only 27.7 percent of total in-migration, with non-permanent immigrants making up 72.3 percent.
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