Canada achieved a historic population growth milestone in 2022, driven primarily by immigration. The nation's overall population has surpassed 39.5 million, as reported by Statistics Canada. This unprecedented increase saw over one million people added to the population within a single year.
Between January 1, 2022, and January 1, 2023, Canada witnessed a population surge of 1,050,110 individuals. The growth rate of 2.7% in 2022 marks the highest in 65 years, with the previous peak being 3.3% in 1957. If this rate remains consistent, Canada's population could potentially double within 26 years, according to estimates by Statistics Canada.
In contrast to the 1957 growth rate, which was primarily due to the post-war baby boom and refugees from the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, almost all of the population increase in 2022 was a result of international migration (95.9%).
A closer examination of Canada's population growth in 2022 reveals that temporary immigration played a significant role. The country experienced a net increase of approximately 607,782 non-permanent residents. This growth in temporary residents, another single-year record for Canada, was observed across all provinces and territories. The increase encompassed work permits, study permits, and asylum claimants.
Canada also set a new record by welcoming over 437,000 immigrants in 2022. Both the total immigration and non-permanent resident records are a direct consequence of the Canadian government's strategy to address labour shortages across the country. With high job vacancies and near-record low unemployment rates, Canada is using immigration to tackle the challenges posed by an aging population and low birth rates.
This record-setting population growth can be largely attributed to increased immigration targets and a record-breaking year for processing immigration applications. It should be noted that the Canadian government's Immigration Levels Plan for 2023-2025 aims to further boost immigration, with yearly targets reaching 500,000 by 2025.
There are three main groups of immigrants contributing to Canada's population boom in 2022: permanent residents, international students, and foreign skilled workers.
- Permanent Residents – Data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) indicates that over 437,000 new permanent residents (PRs) arrived from more than 190 countries in 2022. This number surpassed the target set in the Immigration Levels Plan for 2022-2024 (431,000+), representing an increase of nearly eight percent from 2021. Economic immigration programs accounted for 58% of all PRs in 2022, with 22.2% being family-class immigrants and 17.2% admitted as refugees or protected persons.
- International Students – Canada welcomed 551,405 new international students from 184 countries in 2022. The top 10 countries of origin were:
- India (226,450)
- People's Republic of China (52,165)
- Philippines (23,380)
- France (16,725)
- Nigeria (16,195)
- Iran (13,525)
- Republic of Korea (11,535)
- Japan (10,955)
- Mexico (10,405)
- Brazil (10,405)
Ontario hosted the majority of these students (411,000), followed by British Columbia (164,000) and Quebec (93,000). The remaining provinces ranked as follows:- Alberta (43,000)
- Manitoba (22,000)
- Nova Scotia (20,850)
- Saskatchewan (13,135)
- New Brunswick (11,140)
- Newfoundland and Labrador (6,175)
- Prince Edward Island (4,485)
- Foreign Skilled Workers – In 2022, a record-breaking 608,420 work permits came into effect in Canada, an increase of nearly 200,000 compared to 2021 (414,000). The majority of work permit holders (77%, or 472,070 individuals) arrived through the International Mobility Program (IMP), while the remaining 136,350 permits were issued via the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP).
Of all IMP work permits granted in 2022, 36% were given to medical residents and fellows, as well as post-graduate employment applicants. In contrast, most TFWP work permits (51%) were held by agricultural workers in the same year.
Canada's population growth rate in the fourth quarter of 2022, which spans October 1 to December 31, reached 0.7%, the highest since 1956. During this period, the country added 83,152 immigrants to its population and welcomed the most estimated net new non-permanent residents (+196,262) for any fourth quarter with available comparable data. Consistent with overall trends throughout the year, 97.7% of the population growth in the fourth quarter of 2022 was due to international migration.