February 24, 2017 – Temporary foreign workers have become an increasingly important source of new permanent residents to Canada.

The proportion of temporary workers making the transition to permanent residence doubled between the 1990s and 2000, the latest figures from Statistics Canada show.

Now as many as a fifth of workers who land in Canada on work visas become permanent residents inside five years.

Add this to the considerable increase in real numbers of temporary workers, and a picture of a two-step process for immigration to Canada emerges.

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Source: Statistics Canada

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The Statistics Canada report reads: “New entries of temporary foreign workers doubled from the early 1990s to the late 2000s, and most of this increase occurred in the late 2000s.

The report added: “From the late 1990s to the late 2000s, proportionately more temporary foreign workers gained permanent residence.”

The changing demographic of those coming to Canada as temporary workers was also highlighted in the report.

Between 1995 and 1999, the International Mobility Program accounted for 71 per cent of the total, compared with 29 per cent coming in through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. Fast forward 10 years and the proportions have changed to 59 per cent and 41 per cent respectively.

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Temporary Foreign Worker Program: Proportion of Total Temporary Workers by Category (%)

	1990 to 1994	1995 to 1999	2000 to 2004	2005 to 2009	2010 to 2014
Live-in Caregiver	9.8	3.7	6.3	9.1	4.5
Seasonal Agricultural Workers	3.8	4.2	6.2	3.4	2.2
Low-skill Pilot	N/A	N/A	1.4	10.4	8.6
Others	22.4	20.8	21.2	18.5	11.8

Source: Statistics Canada

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The data also shows a shift in skill levels, with 67 per cent of temporary workers classed as high-skilled in the late 1990s, compared with 40 per cent in the late 2000s. This proportion is likely to have shrunk further more recently after changes made by the previous Conservative government.

When it comes to becoming a permanent resident, just 9 per cent made the transition in the 1995 to 1999 cohort, whereas 21 per cent did so between 2005 and 2009. The figures focused on those achieving the status within five years of their first work permit.

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International Mobility Program: Proportion of Total Temporary Workers by Category (%)

	1990 to 1994	1995 to 1999	2000 to 2004	2005 to 2009	2010 to 2014
International Agreement	12.1	19.7	17.8	9.7	11.1
Significant Benefit	8.2	9.1	7.5	6.4	8.3
Reciprocal Employment	23	22.5	24.3	31.5	37.4
Spouse/Common-law Partner	1	0.9	3.2	6.1	7.5
Research and Studies Related	5	3.8	3.7	4	7.4
Others	14.7	15.2	8.4	1	1.2

Source: Statistics Canada

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The highest transition rates were under the Live-in Caregiver Program and the Spouse of Common-law Partner in Canada Class, while Seasonal Agricultural Workers found bridging the gap more difficult, as did those coming here under the Reciprocal Employment category.

Source country and desire also played a key part in the transition statistics.

Despite it being easier for them to make the transition, high-skilled temporary workers were only slightly more likely than low-skilled workers to become permanent residents.

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Transition Rate Within 5 Years of Arrival By Category

	1990 to 1994	1995 to 1999	2000 to 2004	2005 to 2009
Temporary Foreign Worker Program
Live-in Caregiver	77.2	83.1	83.2	55.9
Seasonal Agricultural Workers	1.6	1.8	1.4	2.1
Low-skill Pilot	N/A	N/A	11	30.8
Others	10.1	8.2	12.5	22.8
International Mobility Program
International Agreement	4.9	3.4	5.7	10.8
Significant Benefit	8.9	7.4	8.3	13.5
Reciprocal Employment	7.1	5	5.4	9
Spouse/Common-law Partner	43	51.8	44.4	50.3
Research and Studies Related	24.3	18.3	19.9	16.2
Others	1.4	1.3	1.7	6.2
Skill level of first work permit
Higher skilled	8.2	6	8.9	17
Lower skilled	39.9	24	31.4	34.3
Not specified	8.4	6.7	10.4	16.5

Source: Statistics Canada

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Those from less-developed countries, meanwhile, had higher transition rates than those who came from developed countries.

The way the transition was made was also revealed in the report, with most happening while the temporary worker was in Canada with a valid Canada visa.

Economic class immigration programs were the preferred route to permanent residence, although the pattern varied depending on the temporary program through which they were in Canada.

For example, Seasonal Agricultural Workers were more likely to make the transition through Family Class sponsoring after they had left Canada.

Those using the Low-Skill Pilot, meanwhile, preferred Provincial Nomination Programs to make the transition, with high-skilled workers most likely to use economic classes.

The Statistics Canada study finished by say the data only allowed a broad picture to be formed of the transition to permanent residence.

The report said: “Further studies should examine transition patterns across different categories of temporary foreign workers and between temporary foreign workers and other types of temporary residents such as international students.”

New federal government policies are geared towards attracting international students who want to make the transition to permanent residence after they have graduated.

By awarding points for a Canadian education under the Express Entry System, the hope is to attract young, high-skilled individuals with knowledge of Canadian culture to help ease the process of becoming a part of society.

The move is motivated by a need to tackle an aging population in Canada, with natural increases account for a declining proportion of the population increase.

Interested employers: Kindly contact us here to receive further information.

Interested candidates: Find out whether you qualify to Canada by completing our free on-line evaluation. We will provide you with our evaluation within 1-2 business days.

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