Canada Keeps Immigration Targets at 370,000 Temporary and 380,000 Permanent Residents for 2027-2029
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
The 2026 federal budget preserves steady immigration levels for the next three years, with public funding directed toward managing intake, moving some temporary residents into permanent status, and adjusting labor migration rules.
Ottawa announced that immigration levels will remain largely unchanged for the 2027-2029 period, despite ongoing pressure on housing, health care, and social services. The budget sets the annual target for temporary resident arrivals at 370,000 and for permanent resident admissions at 380,000 for each of the three years.
Funding of $56.9 million over four years will be provided to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to support the plan, while an additional $302.3 million will help transition up to 200,000 temporary residents to permanent status by the end of 2027, with half eligible for Express Entry or Provincial Nominee programs.
“The 2027-2029 Immigration Levels Plan will continue to seek a balance between the needs of Canada’s employers, industries, and communities and our ability to meet the needs of newcomers, while avoiding undue pressures on housing, health care, and social services,” the budget said.
The budget also earmarks $151.5 million over five years for reforms to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, aiming to align it more closely with regional labour market needs, improve processing times and strengthen employer compliance.