In a recent interview with news agency Reuters, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marc Miller made several comments about a forthcoming “suite of measures” to further limit non-permanent resident (those on a study or work permit) levels Canada.
According to Miller, forthcoming measures could “include changes to [Post-Graduation Work Permits (PGWPs)] and enforcement.”
“The era of uncapped programs to come into this country is quickly coming to an end. This is a big shift….” said Miller in the interview.
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What changes to the PGWP are being considered ?
In June, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) sent out surveys to key stakeholders in the post-secondary education space, seeking feedback regarding possible changes to the PGWP.
According to this survey and the Deputy Minister Transition Binder 2024, the department is considering aligning issuance of PGWPs with labour market needs. More specifically, the department would look to manage “access to work permits for students entering occupations in shortage, while reducing access for graduates from other programs.”
The survey also revealed that IRCC and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) have worked together to map educational programs (as detailed in the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP)) with job titles (as categorised by the National Occupation Classification (NOC) system). To elaborate, IRCC’s survey uses the example of relevant NOCs for “carpenters” being connected to “three programs of study: construction trades, carpentry, and woodworking/general”.
Part of a wider plan
Earlier this year IRCC announced the first-ever target for non-permanent resident temporary residents (NPR) levels, to be included in this year’s immigration levels plan. According to this announcement, IRCC would look to reduce levels of NPRs, with the goal of stabilising the proportion of these newcomers in the Canadian population to five percent over the next three years. As of last April, NPRs made up close to seven percent of the total population.
As part of this initiative IRCC has already implemented a two-year cap on international students, regulating the number of some new post-secondary students to 292,000 this year. This cap will be reconsidered in 2025 with a possible adjustment to the international student levels for that year.
In addition, Minister Miller has also indicated his intention to have more “domestic draws” for b0th federal and provincial permanent residence (PR) pathways—essentially reducing the number of TRs in Canada by prioritising them for PR draws; with the intention of not recruiting new PRs from abroad which may further exacerbate problems in housing and affordability that have been associated with immigration.
Collectively these measures come at a time when Canadians are scrutinising immigration more than ever: “[Immigration will be] a top issue, if not the top issue, in the next election” said Miller within the Reuters interview.
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