Canada's Immigration Minister Releases Levels Plan for 2027-2029

By Victor Ing,
Special to The Post

On November 5, 2026 the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship released the annual immigration levels plan for 2027, setting targets for temporary and permanent arrivals for the next three years. The announcement was hotly anticipated amid speculation that the Carney government would increase immigration levels due to the Prime Minister’s September 2026 statements that a “controlled" increase in immigration is needed. Despite initial speculation, it appears that 2027 will look very much the same as 2026, with a few notable exceptions.

Key Takeaways

Canada expects to admit 370,000 new temporary residents per year for each of the next three years. 60% of these arrivals will be workers, while the remaining 40% will be students.

Permanent residency levels will remain unchanged at 380,000 new admissions per year until 2029. As always, economic immigration will be at the forefront of Canada’s plans, totaling almost 2/3rds of all immigration to Canada. The remaining 1/3rd will mostly be filled by family-based immigration, refugees and protected persons, and humanitarian and compassionate applicants.

The most important aspect of this year’s levels plan is the government’s decision to allow a one-time increase to allow up to 200,000 additional admissions in 2027 to clear out its backlog of permanent residency applications and to facilitate the transition of families already living and working in Canada from holding temporary to permanent status.

According to the plan, up to 100,000 additional spaces will be created for those with pending Start-Up Visa, Self-Employed, Caregiver, and Agri-Food pilot immigrant applications. Notably, these programs have all been closed to new applications—in some categories for years—and applicants have faced growing wait times due to immigration level cuts that began near the end of the Trudeau government in late 2024.

Another 100,000 additional spaces will be created for those already in Canada under specific pathways including inland spousal applicants, H&C applicants who have received approvals in principle, and applicants under the Hong Kong and Ukraine special measures programs.

The 2027 admissions target represents one of the largest admission cohorts in recent memory. Despite the planned surge in admissions, the government argues that these measures will not unduly tax Canada’s social services and infrastructure because they target individuals already living and working in Canada, which will benefit these applicants by providing certainty about their immigration status.

Stepping back for a moment, the latest levels plan represents a ‘reset’ button for the government to clean its slate and start fresh with its current priorities, including:

1. Keep permanent residency levels flat to ensure sustainability going forward;

2. Limit temporary residence options to newcomers, which directly facilitates the absorption of those already in Canada;

3. Redesign its economic program to ensure that the strongest candidates are being selected: Please refer to my recent blog for recent changes to Canada’s Express Entry System; and

4. Work more closely with the provinces and territories regarding the intake of new foreign workers: Please refer to the Minister of Employment and Social Development Canada’s latest plans to collaborate with the provinces and territories to amend the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to better address regional labour market needs.

In summary, the Minister’s levels plan will be welcome news for those who are already living and working in Canada while awaiting the outcome of their permanent residency applications. New applicants, however, will continue to face a challenging environment with no anticipated increase in immigration levels and rapidly changing economic immigration criteria. Those interested in Canadian permanent residency should stay tuned for further changes to Canada’s Express Entry System and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Victor Ing is a lawyer of Sas & Ing Immigration Law Centre. He provides a full range of immigration services. For more information go to canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email [email protected].