CIMM – Narrative – December 05, 2023

2023-2024 Supplementary Estimates B

Supplementary Estimates B seeks funding to support the Minister’s mandate to bring newcomers to Canada to drive economic growth and recovery, expand our humanitarian efforts in the resettlement of vulnerable people, and reduce application backlogs.

Through Supplementary Estimates, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is seeking $671.3M mainly for the 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan, the Interim Housing Assistance program (IHAP), the extension of the Canada–Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel, and temporary resident processing.

2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan

Our 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan reflects Canada’s commitment to welcoming 465,000 new permanent residents in 2023, 485,000 in 2024 and 500,000 in 2025. Through this plan, we are stabilizing immigration targets as part of our responsible path for immigration, which is designed to help businesses find the workers they need, keep Canada on a path of long-term economic success, and stay true to our humanitarian commitments while balancing pressures in areas like housing, healthcare and infrastructure.

In 2022, for the fourth year in a row, Canada was the top resettlement country in the world, welcoming over 47,500 refugees from over 80 countries. In October 2023, Minister Miller announced that Canada had met its commitment to welcome at least 40,000 vulnerable Afghans since August 2021. Ours is one of the largest Afghan resettlement programs in the world, and our work continues.

Interim Housing Assistance Program (IHAP)

Like many countries that have been impacted by unprecedented global displacement levels, Canada is experiencing a rise in the number of asylum claims. The Government of Canada has been working collaboratively with its provincial and municipal partners to help alleviate the pressures they are facing in providing supports to asylum claimants.

A key mechanism for federal support has been the Interim Housing Assistance Program (IHAP), which provides compensation to provinces and municipalities for the costs of interim housing for asylum seekers.

Through the IHAP, the federal government has provided almost $700M to provinces and municipalities to address extraordinary interim housing pressures related to increased volumes of asylum claimants since 2017.

In July 2023, the Government announced a one-year renewal of the IHAP with an additional investment of $212M. The renewed funding will increase interim housing capacity and reduce the risk of homelessness for this vulnerable population.

The government continues to explore options for support to provinces and municipalities that provide housing and services to asylum claimants.

Extension of the Canada–Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel

Canada is dedicated to supporting those affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Since March 2022, Canada has provided a temporary safe haven to more than 198,000 Ukrainians and their family members who have arrived in Canada under the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET).

The CUAET was introduced as a swift and safe solution for Ukrainians and their family members seeking temporary safe haven from Russia’s illegal invasion. The CUAET offers Ukrainians and their family members free, temporary resident visas to facilitate travel to Canada, and extended temporary resident status that allows them to work, study and stay in Canada for a period of up to three years.

The response to the CUAET measures was higher than anticipated and in March 2023, the CUAET was extended until July 15, 2023. This funding gives Ukrainians who applied for and travelled to Canada under the CUAET measures the support they need after they arrive in Canada.

Funding will help us to support settlement organizations aiding refugees and temporary residents from Ukraine, and to process additional applications and help those now in Canada to get settled, and access federal and provincial programs.

Funding for temporary resident processing

Canada continues to receive unprecedented interest from people around the world who want to come here to work, study and build a life with their families. IRCC is committed to reducing processing times and tackling the accumulated inventory in our system while ensuring the safety and security of Canadians.

Despite unprecedented application intake from January to October 2023, we are continuing our efforts to process temporary resident visas (TRVs) more quickly to respond to the growing number of people who want to visit Canada.

For temporary residence, 53% of all applications in our inventory were within service standards at the end of October 2023. Additional funding will be used to help reduce IRCC’s inventory of applications as we continue working toward our goal of processing 80% of new applications within service standards.

With this funding, the department will also continue to explore a variety of solutions to reduce inventories and improve client service, including new digital solutions, adding processing resources and further streamlining the application process. All of these efforts will ensure that Canada remains a destination of choice for tourists, business visitors and those wishing to visit family.