Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver have been the most popular cities for immigrants to settle in Canada throughout history. This broader settlement distribution could be beneficial for Canada’s economic growth.
Toronto is the most popular destination for recent immigrants to Canada or those who arrived between 2016 and 2021. Montreal (12.2%) and Vancouver (11.7%) follow, with 29.5% settling permanently in Toronto.
This trend has repeatedly been observed over the past 50 years. According to census data going back to 1999, in each of the three cities in question, for example, more than 68% of immigrants settled there every year over the course of the last 25 years: 1999, 2001, and 2006.
This fact, however, is now beginning to change, according to the 2021 Canadian census.
Broader immigrant settlement distribution – Current statistics
Recent census data from Statistics Canada reveal that the number of immigrants settling in Canada’s three largest cities is decreasing. During the period 2016-2021, the percentage of landed immigrants living in one of the three cities decreased by 2.6%, from 56.0% to 53.4%. In the Montreal Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) in Montreal, where the share of immigration fell from 14.8% in 2016 to 12.2% in 2021, saw the biggest decline in an overall immigrant settlement.
Meanwhile, recent immigrants are choosing to settle elsewhere rather than in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Ottawa-Gatineau immigration increased by 1.3% between 2016 and 2021 (3.1% versus 4.4%). Additionally, there has been an almost two-fold increase in immigrants in Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo CMA (1.2% to 2.1%), and in 2021, more than 3% of recent immigrants settled in both “small urban” (4.4%) and “rural” (3.2%) regions.
Recent immigrants in Canada are also expanding across provinces. Five provinces reported a higher percentage of recent immigrants in 2021 than in previous censuses. Recent immigrants made up 44% of the population of Ontario between 2016 and 2021, according to the latest Canadian census. Immigrant settlement in British Columbia increased from 14.5% to 14.9% during the same period, as did in Nova Scotia (1% to 1.6%), New Brunswick (0.8% to 1.2%), and Prince Edward Island (0.3% to 0.4%).
Canada’s new immigrant distribution – what does it mean?
Creating its Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) in 1998 was in response to the need for widespread immigration in Canada that promotes economic growth in the country’s smaller regions.
More immigrants will move to different regions of Canada by using the 11 PNPs or an alternative immigration method, thus meeting local labor market needs. New immigrants will inevitably contribute to economic growth in those areas as they find employment, earn money, and then spend money. 79.9% of Canada’s labor force growth has been attributed to immigration between 2016 and 2021, indicating the importance of immigration in Canada.
The economies of the regions that are currently experiencing a boom in immigration will continue to grow as newcomers keep paying taxes and spending money on essentials such as housing, transportation, and other necessities.
Since more regions will be able to achieve economic and developmental success as a result of this new immigrant settlement, Canada as a whole will benefit in the long run.
