Canada reveals immigration plan amid critical labour shortage

OTTAWA, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Canadian federal government revealed Tuesday its immigration plan to welcome half a million immigrants each year by 2025 to tackle the problem of labor shortage.

Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser released Canada's 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan which embraces immigration as a strategy to help businesses find workers and to attract the skills required in key sectors.

According to a news release from the immigration ministry, the Canadian economy is now facing critical labour market shortages causing uncertainty for Canadian businesses and workers. The ambitious immigration plan will manage the social and economic challenges Canada will face in the decades ahead.

Last year Canada welcomed over 405,000 newcomers, the most in a single year. According to the plan, the government is continuing that ambition by setting targets in the new levels plan of 465,000 permanent residents in 2023, 485,000 in 2024 and 500,000 in 2025.

"Our plan has a focus on economic growth," Fraser said. "By the third year of this plan, 60 percent of new immigrants will be admitted under economic immigration categories."

The plan also brought an increased focus on attracting newcomers to different regions of the country, including small towns and rural communities.

Immigration accounted for almost 100 percent of Canada's labour force growth and by 2032 it's projected to account for 100 percent of Canada's population growth, the release said.

According to the release, Canada's worker-to-retiree ratio is expected to shift from seven to one 50 years ago to two to one by 2035.