Canada has announced its immigration level plan 2025-2027, allowing about 1.14 million candidates to acquire the PR. The immigration department is also scaling back the number of immigrants as per the announcement on 24 October. About 20% cut has been decided for the year 2025 alone.
Overview of the new Immigration Level Plan 2025-2027
Temporary and Permanent Resident Targets
The Levels Plan sets targets for permanent residents (PRs) and temporary residents for the first time, aiming to balance economic growth, community capacity, and labor market needs. Permanent resident targets are set to decrease gradually from 395,000 in 2025 to 365,000 in 2027, with the economic immigration category prioritized.
Focus on In-Canada Transitions and Economic Priorities
Emphasis is on transitioning existing students and workers in Canada to permanent residency, especially in critical sectors like healthcare and skilled trades. By 2027, nearly 62% of PR admissions will be for economic purposes, while family reunification and humanitarian categories remain stable at 22% and 15%, respectively.
Managed Migration and Francophone Representation
To control the temporary resident population, new measures will limit work and study permits to reduce temporary residents to 5% of the population by 2026. Francophone immigration targets outside Quebec will also increase, reaching 10% by 2027, enhancing linguistic diversity across Canada.
Permanent resident targets
As per the immigration plan, the allocation for the upcoming years has been set aside as follows:
- 2025: 395,000
- 2026: 380,000
- 2027: 365,000
Categories-wise distribution for the permanent residents for the next three years has been as follows:
| Immigration Category | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 |
| Total PR admissions and ranges | 395,000 (367,000 – 436,000) | 380,000 (352,000 – 416,000) | 365,000 (338,000 – 401,000) |
| French-speaking admissions outside of Quebec | 8.5% (29,325) | 9.5% (31,350) | 10% (31,500) |
| Economic Immigration | 232,150 (215,000 – 256,000) | 229,750 (214,000 – 249,000) | 225,350 (207,000 – 246,000) |
| Family Reunification | 94,500 (88,500 – 102,000) | 88,000 (82,000 – 96,000) | 81,000 (77,000 – 89,000) |
| Refugees, Protected Persons, Humanitarian and Other | 68,350 (63,500 – 78,000) | 62,250 (56,000 – 71,000) | 58,650 (54,000 – 66,000) |
Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) Cutbacks
The PNP target for each year 2025-2027 is set at 55,000, significantly reduced from last year’s targets.
- 2025 Target: 55,000 (down from 120,000 last year).
- 2026 Target: 55,000 (down from last year’s 120,000).
- 2027 Target: 55,000.
Increase in Federal High Skilled Immigration
The government is increasing admissions for high-skilled immigrants through federal programs like Express Entry:
- 2025 Target: 124,680 (up from 110,770 last year).
- 2026 Target: 123,230 (up from 117,500 last year).
- 2027 Target: 118,730.
French-speaking Immigration Outside Quebec
The Canadian government aims to increase French-speaking immigrants outside Quebec:
- 2025: 8.5% of total permanent residents.
- 2026: 9.5%.
- 2027: 10%.
Temporary Resident (TR) Levels
New targets have been introduced for temporary resident admissions, aiming to reduce their proportion in Canada’s population from 7% to 5% by 2026. For this category in the next three years, the allocations have been decided as follows:
- 2025: 673,650 (range: 604,900 – 742,400).
- 2026: 516,600 (range: 435,250 – 597,950).
- 2027: 543,600 (range: 472,900 – 614,250).
The category-wise distribution is:
- Workers: A reduction in work permits, especially under the International Mobility Program, going from 285,750 (2025) to 128,700 (2026):
- Temporary Foreign Worker Program: The work permits for this category will remain steady at 82,000 in three years of each.
- Students: Admission targets are set consistently at 305,900 for each year.
The government expects that some temporary residents will transition to permanent residents, contributing to a lower temporary resident percentage in the overall population.
Quebec has announced its seperate permanent immigration plan of 50,000 for 2025.