The population of Canada has exceeded 40 million, thanks to immigration.

On June 16, the ‘population clock’ of Statistics Canada hit 40 million.

The population clock is a real-time model of Statistics Canada that estimates the population of Canada in real-time on the basis of several factors, such as births, deaths, and migration data.

In a media statement, the chief statistician, Anil Arora, said that this is an exciting and historic moment for Canada. Surpassing 40 million illustrates that Canada continues to be a vibrant, hospitable, and promising country.

Currently, the population growth rate in Canada is 2.7%. This is the highest yearly growth rate since 1957, when Canada underwent a postwar baby boom. In 1997, the population of Canada reached 30 million.

Statistics Canada expects that if the current trends continue, Canada’s population could reach 50 million as soon as 2043.

In 2022, the population of Canada hiked by 1.05 million people. As per the Statistics Canada report, international migration (including both permanent and temporary) accounted for 96% of that increase.

In 2022, Canada admitted 437,180 immigrants to the country, which highlights the high immigration targets of Canada.

Immigration Level Plans of Canada.

One of the primary means by which Canada addresses its demographic challenges is through immigration.

The two major reasons that make immigration valuable to Canada are its aging population and low birth rate, which is not enough to grow the population. Thus, to increase the country’s workforce, Canada greatly depends on immigrants.

Notably, immigration contributes to nearly all (100%) of the expansion of the labor force of Canada. As per the IRCC, immigrants are expected to make up nearly 30% of Canada’s population by this year.

Canada aims to admit more than 460,000 new immigrants every year, as per Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan.

The immigration objectives of Canada are to intensify the country’s economy, help refugees and reunite families.

Canada aims to target 465,000 new permanent residents this year, which will expand to 485,000 in 2024 and 5,00,000 in 2025. In Canada’s immigration-level plans, economic immigration is the largest category, which is followed by family-class immigration. The last category under this plan is the humanitarian and refugee category, which aims to target over 70,000 immigrants yearly over the following three years.