Canadian Immigration News

As of July 1st, a Statistics Canada report pegs the Canadian population at 33,311,389. The second quarter of 2008 saw the largest population increase since the late 1980’s. This was mainly due to new immigrant arrivals.

As part of a year-end review with The Canadian Press, Prime Minister Stephen Harper praised the country's record for helping immigrants settle in Canada. He addressed the issues of how Canadians accommodate new cultures and to what extent immigrants assume Canadian values.

Currently in fundraising phase, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights will have the mission "to advance understanding and support for human rights in Canadaand throughout the world." The vision is to create a centre for learning and discussion.

Though immigration to Canada’s northern territories is small by comparison to the immigration flow to Canadian provinces, the number of newcomers decidingto live in the Northwest Territories (NWT), the Yukon, and Nunavut is on the increase. In response to this, there have been new immigrant settlement service agencies setting up in the northern territories to help newcomers with the transition into Canadian society and the Canadian workforce.

The Migrations Online Film Festival and Competition - a seven-week event that showcases short films focusing on immigration stories, issues, and insights - has recently begun. It is an initiative of Radio-Canada International and is in its second year of production, following much success last year.

Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney has announced that as of March 31, Lebanese citizens applying to immigrate to Canada may choose the visa office in Beirut, Lebanon as their main point of service.

The controversial amendments to Canada's Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) have received support from Senate and the House of Commons. The budget implementation act, which included the immigration reforms, was adopted by the Senate yesterday. The changes will put greater emphasis on admitting immigrants who have the skills that are in high demand in Canada. They will apply only to applications submitted on or after February 27, 2008. Applications submitted before then will be processed under the old rules.

A recent report, titled Renewing Immigration: Towards a Convergence and Consolidation of Canada's Immigration Policies, was recently released by the Conference Board of Canada. The report outlines what needs to be done to address Canada's economic needs through immigration; recommending that Canada increase the annual number of new Permanent Residents admitted from 250,000 to 360,000.

The Canadian Immigration Integration Project (CIIP) in Asia is a $4.5 million government-funded initiative, which aims to better prepare soon-to-be Canadian immigrants for settlement in Canada. The three-year pilot project began in January in Manila, Delhi, and Hong Kong. Starting this month, the pre-arrival service will also be provided in Beijing, Gujarat, and Punjab.