Canada’s immigration policy is among the best among the OECD members

According to the OECD’s Recruiting Immigrant Workers: Canada 2019, along with welcoming the most number of immigrants, Canada also has the “most elaborate and longest-standing skilled labour migration system in the OECD”.

An international organisation, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] works towards building “better policies for better lives”.  The OECD aims at shaping policies that foster prosperity, opportunity, equality and well-being for all.

The OECD provides a unique forum and knowledge hub for data and analysis, best-practice sharing, exchange of experiences, and advice on public policies and the setting of international standards.

Currently, the OECD has 37 member countries spanning the globe. While Costa Rica is an OECD candidate, another 5 countries – including India – are the key partners of the OECD.

As per the Recruiting Immigrant Workers: Canada 2019, primarily as an outcome of many decades of managed labour migration into the country, today, Canada has more than 1 in 5 people that are foreign-born. This is the highest proportion among the OECD countries.

Additionally, the Report has come to the finding that “60% of Canada’s foreign-born population are highly educated, the highest share OECD-wide.”

The Express Entry system of the Canadian government has further enhanced the competitive edge of the immigrant selection system of Canada over the other countries.

Launched in 2015, the Express Entry system is an online system used by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada [IRCC] for managing “applications for permanent residence from skilled workers”.

With a standard processing time of within 180 days, Canada’s Express Entry ensures that those with the right skills to succeed in Canada are admitted to the country in a quick and efficient manner.

The Express Entry system manages the pool of candidates for the 3 main economic programs of Canada –

Federal Skilled Worker Program [FSWP]

Federal Skilled Trades People [FSTP]

Canadian Experience Class [CEC]

As per the OECD Report, the core to the success of Canada is not “only the elaborate selection system itself, but also the innovation and infrastructure around” the selection of immigrants. Constant testing, monitoring as well as the adaptation of its parameters are an important part of Canada’s immigration programs.

A comprehensive and constantly improving data structure, in addition to the capacity for analysis and a quick policy reaction to new evidence and emerging challenges are among the key features of the immigration policy of Canada.

A broad range of settlement services for labour migrants as well as their families, provided both before arriving and after landing in Canada, complement the system and have a positive impact on the overall integration outcomes of migrants and their native-born children.

All such factors combine to provide a backdrop for migrants that is better than in a majority of other OECD countries, leading to Canada being widely regarded as a role model for successful migration management.

A focus on human capital factors such as education and language proficiency in English/French tend to lead to an improved labour market outcome for the migrants coming to Canada.

The Express Entry system selects immigration candidates that have the most potential of thriving in Canada.

Moreover, Canada is a top destination for study overseas for international students from all over the world. Among the major OECD countries, with the number of international students almost tripling between 2008 and 2018, Canada is the fastest growing destination for international students.

International students in Canada can work while they study. On the completion of their studies in Canada, international students can stay on in the country for up to 3 years on a Post-Study Graduation Permit [PGWP].

With nearly 80 immigration pathways, the Provincial Nominee Program [PNP] of Canada continues to be the route to Canada permanent residence. Many of the PNP streams are linked with the federal Express Entry system.  A provincial nominee gets an additional 600 points towards their Comprehensive Ranking System [CRS] scores while in the Express Entry pool.

With the 600 points’ boost, their Express Entry profile gets an improved ranking in the pool, thereby guaranteeing that they are issued an invitation to apply for Canada PR in the next Express Entry draw.

Permanent labour migration is a shared responsibility between the federal government of Canada on one hand and the provincial and territorial [PT] governments on the other.

With the increased role being played by the PT governments in the selection and integration of immigrants, there has come about a more balanced geographical distribution of permanent labour migrants throughout Canada in the previous 20 years.

In view of the high retention rate of labour migrants selected by the PT governments, the various PNP streams are indeed complementary to the federal immigration programs of Canada.

With a majority of immigrants settling in metropolitan areas, Canada has come up with various efforts aimed at directing the inflow of migrants to the smaller communities and regional areas of Canada.

According to the Recruiting Immigrant Workers: Canada 2019, “Canada has been at the forefront of testing new, holistic approaches to manage labour migration and to link it with settlement services”.

The Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program [AIPP] specifically targets immigrants looking at immigration pathways for settling in Atlantic Canada – that is, the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador, PEI, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia.

The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot [RNIP], on the other hand has 11 communities participating from 5 Canadian provinces.

Immigration is critical to Canada. With a low birth rate and an aging population, immigration is being looked upon by Canada as providing an integral part of the solution to sustaining the Canadian economy.

The federal government of Canada’s commitment to welcoming a large number of immigrants in the coming years can be gauged from the fact that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada had issued a record 82,850 ITAs so far in 2020.

Canadian immigration may recover from the COVID-19 among the first in the world.

If you are looking to Work, Study, Invest, Visit, or Migrate to Canada, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No. 1 Immigration & Visa Company.

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