How can I immigrate to Canada in 2023

Why Canada in 2023?

• Canada plans to invite 1.5 million new immigrants in 2025
• 1 million job vacancies in Canada from past 3 months
• 100+ immigration pathways
• Increase in wages per hour
• FREE Education for your children

*Check your eligibility to Canada through Y-Axis Canada Immigration Points calculator.

Canada will allow 465,000 new immigrants to enter the country in 2023, as the country badly needs skilled professionals from overseas to tackle an increasing workforce shortage. After a record number of foreign nationals became permanent residents in both 2021 and 2022, Canada is on the path to shattering these records again during the period 2023-2025. So, this is the most appropriate time to give thought to initiating the process of Canadian immigration.

Permanent Residence programs

If you are thinking of permanent residence (PR), Express Entry is the most preferred way of relocating to Canada in 2023.  This selection system is used to manage applications for the main federal immigration programs, such as Federal Skilled Worker Program (FEWSP), Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP).

As per the latest Immigration Levels Plan, Canada will allow close to 83,000 highly skilled immigrants in 2023. The number of immigrants the country plans to welcome in 2024 and 2025 is 109,000 and 114,000, respectively.

After the new National Occupational Classification (NOC 2021) was initiated, 16 new occupations made their way via the FSWP into Express Entry. The added occupations include bus drivers, nurse aides, heavy equipment operators, and transport truck drivers, among others.

Canada was forced to modify laws in 2022 to include some more specific economic workforce scarcities. It is expected that 2023 will see through Express Entry occupation-specific draws being introduced. These draws will be held anytime soon.

All the Canadian Provincial Nominee Programs put together this year have been able to surpass the number of Express Entry in 2023. Through the nine PNPs, Canada intends to allow more than 105,000 new immigrants onto its shores.

Besides, certain PNP participants also make their way into Express Entry. Considering all these, the provinces are also preparing themselves to allow immigrants who exclusively fulfill their specific economic needs.

Aspiring immigration applicants should focus on occupation lists because preferences of provinces and federal programs vary. Since Quebec has its own category, the province has complete control over its intake for economic immigration.

Canada also operates various employer-driven pilot programs focusing on particular fields of the economy or areas facing critical workforce shortages. Taking center stage here is the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP), which was originally initiated as a pilot but was later made permanent.

It applies to the four Atlantic Provinces: New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. Also, the AIP has, in 2023, assigned 8,500 spots for skilled workers and overseas graduate newcomers.

In addition, there are plans to welcome 8,500 immigrants through streams, such as the Agri-Food Pilot, the Economic Mobility Pathways Project, and the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot.

Since all of these programs are focused on employers, suitable candidates cannot apply to them directly. This process entails employers identifying requirements, spotting immigrants who fulfill those requirements and utilizing the programs to get them to Canada.

Business Visa programs

On the other hand, the Start-Up Visa program is becoming a pivotal path to immigrate to Canada for individuals who are into business. Eligible for this will be individuals with qualified businesses or business concepts to get funding from a business incubator and a designated venture capital fund in addition to possessing the settlement funds required and proficiency in either English or French languages.

Applicants can relocate on work permits to Canada while simultaneously starting their businesses before they become eligible for permanent residence. Canada intends to embrace 3,500 immigrants in 2023 through business programs. It will increase to 6,000 by 2025. Most of these are issued through Start-Up Visas.

Many Canadian provinces have their own business programs, and they fall under their respective PNPs. All these programs have exclusive requirements depending on the province or territory they belong to. Both the federal governments of Quebec and Canada run self-employed programs.

The Canadian government’s Self-Employed Class is intended to target applicants who have related self-employment experience and also the intent and the capability to create employment for Canadian nationals and significantly contribute to the life of Canada in one aspect or the other.

Quebec’s self-employed individuals differ mainly from skilled workers as they create their own jobs by taking up a profession or participating in commercial activities.

Dependent Visa programs

In its Immigration Levels Plan, Canada includes spouses or partners and children, with an objective of allowing 78,000 immigrants to enter Canada in 2023, to constitute the bulk of the 106,000 immigrants who come under the Family Class.

The spouse and partner stream accepts applications from outside or within the country. The sex of the spouses and partners does not matter. They, too, can be eligible for work permits while they await their applications to be processed.

Most dependent children who can be sponsored are aged below 22 and must be unattached. Those over 22 who can qualify need to be financially dependent owing to a mental or physical problem and are therefore dependent on their parents for monetary support.

Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) of Canada is run on a lottery basis, and individuals chosen randomly are granted an invitation to apply (ITA). Canada operates a separate stream for adoption from overseas. Canada intends to embrace 28,500 immigrants in 2023 through this stream.

Students & Temporary Workers program

Canada has a recognized pathway for foreign students to get permanent residence as 750,000 prospective students are expected to pursue education in 2023 in Canada, making it the largest group of temporary residents.

They enter Canada on a Study Permit and then gain eligibility for a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP), giving them the experience required to be eligible for immigration through Express Entry.

Though that pathway exists, it can be highly competitive for candidates. Only a portion of all foreign students will become Canada’s permanent residents. Canada also allows significant numbers of temporary workers to come to the country on Work Permits. They can come through various channels, but most would need a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to enter the country.

This is because a positive LMIA confirms that a foreign worker is required to fill a job vacancy and that they could find no suitable Canada-based worker for it.

Are you looking to migrate to Canada? Get in touch with Y-Axis, the world’s no. 1 overseas immigration consultant.

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