Quality Over Quantity: Enhancing Canada's Immigration System to Match Global Competitors

Demographics and Immigration February 22, 2024

Executive Summary:

The Canadian immigration system select skilled immigrants capable of contributing to the nation’s economic growth and aligning with its evolving skill requirements. However, challenges persist in maximizing this potential due to limitations in capital investment and a trade-off between quantity and quality in selecting economic migrants. Recent reforms could inadvertently hinder these objectives by favoring low-salary occupations over investment opportunities and increasing the influx of temporary residents into lower-wage sectors.

This paper benchmarks Canada's immigration selection policy agnst Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom to identify areas for improvement. Both Canada and Australia share a two-stage migration process focused on English proficiency and age at entry with pre-migration credential and language assessment requirements. Yet, they diverge in criteria strictness and occupational versus linguistic skill emphasis. Australia's innovative reforms stand out as adaptable and creative.

International Comparison of Points-Based Systems

Canada:

• Known for its Express Entry system based on points.

• select immigrants expected to integrate well into the economy.

Australia:

• Also employs a two-step process emphasizing English proficiency, age, and credential assessments with strict standards and innovative reforms.

United Kingdom:

• Prioritizes skilled immigrants through various routes, including the Skilled Worker route, showcasing agility in policy adaptation.

New Zealand:

• Focuses on attracting skilled workers based on job market needs and employer demand.

Immigrants’ Economic Outcomes and Contributing Factors

Self-Employment Success of Economic Immigrants:

Canadian data indicates mixed outcomes for self-employed immigrants, highlighting potential areas for policy refinement to better support this segment of the immigrant population.

Policy Recommations for Improvement:

1. Establishing a Minimum CRS Points Threshold: Currently, Canada's Express Entry system has no minimum points requirement. Implementing such a threshold ensures that only applicants meeting certn standards are considered, enhancing selection quality.

2. Incorporating Pre-admission Earnings Factor: Studies demonstrate the predictive power of earnings before immigration on post-arrival outcomes. Australia, New Zealand, and the UK already factor this into their systems.

3. Rsing Standards in Language Requirements: English proficiency significantly influences immigrants’ initial earnings post-arrival; thus, tightening language criteria could better align with economic needs.

4. Boosting Business Immigration Numbers with Entrepreneurial Focus: Canada faces a gap compared to competitors like Australia and the UK where business immigrants with entrepreneurial skills are prioritized for selection.

Canada has a robust immigration system that maximize the potential of skilled migrants but faces challenges in fully leveraging this capability due to structural weaknesses. By adopting elements from successful policies worldwide, such as setting clear entry standards through points thresholds, incorporating pre-admission earnings assessment, enhancing language requirements, and prioritizing business immigrants with entrepreneurial flr, Canada can strengthen its system to better compete globally.

Appix

References

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