COW – Temporary Resident Reductions – June 9, 2025

Key Facts and Figures

• Early positive signals show a future downward trend of temporary resident arrivals in Canada:
  • As of April 30, 2025, there has been a 30% reduction in new study permit applications submitted compared to the same period (January to April) in 2024.
  • As of April 30, 2025, there has been a 16% reduction in new work permit applications submitted compared to the same period (January to April) in 2024.
• As most work permit changes came into effect in the second half of 2024 and early 2025, we expect that downward trend to accelerate in late 2025.

Key Messages

• While temporary residents enrich Canada’s economy and cultural fabric, this government has committed to reducing temporary immigration growth to better align the needs of our labour market, housing supply, and community capacity.
• In order to accomplish this, a study permit cap has been introduced and eligibility requirements for work permits have been tightened. The visitors program remains uncapped.
• The measures emphasize quality over quantity, helping ensure that Canada continues to be able to attract the talent it needs to grow and prosper.

Supplementary Information

• The government committed to returning immigration to sustainable levels by continuing to reduce Canada’s non-permanent resident population to less than 5% of the total population by the end of 2027.
• The 2025–2027 Immigration Levels Plan, released on October 24, 2024, set targets for certain new temporary resident arrivals at 673,650 in 2025, 516,600 in 2026, and 543,600 in 2027.
• Even as we recalibrate our programs to better manage volumes, we continue to support talent attraction trough targeted facilitative measures and prioritize the processing of applications in essential sectors such as healthcare and construction.

Key Measures Implemented

• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) reduced the intake of international students and spouses accompanying workers and students.
• January 21, 2025:
  • For family members of international students, access to open work permits is limited to spouses of those enrolled in master’s programs of 16 months or more, doctoral programs, certain professional programs, and select pilot programs.
  • For family members of temporary workers, access to open work permits is limited to the spouse of a temporary worker employed in management or professional occupation (e.g., C-suite executives, scientists), or in sectors or jobs linked to government priorities.
• Employment and Social Development Canada also adopted tighter measures for the Temporary Foreign Worker Program by:
  • expanding employer recruitment obligations to include asylum seekers;
  • reducing Labour Market Impact Assessment validity periods and limiting employment durations;
  • reducing the cap on the percentage of low-wage temporary workers that can be employed at a worksite from 20% to 10%;
  • refusing to process applications in census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher; and
  • raising the minimum wage threshold to access the High-Wage Stream, which has stricter requirements.
• To stabilize volumes and ensure students are well supported while in Canada, the government established an intake cap on most study permit applications in January 2024.
• On September 18, 2024, IRCC announced that the target number of study permits issued for 2025 is 437,000, a 10% reduction from the 2024 target of 485,000 permits. For 2026, the target will stabilize at the same level as 2025.
• IRCC published how many study permit application spaces have been allocated to each province and territory for 2025.
• In 2025, master’s and doctoral degree students are no longer exempt from the cap, however, IRCC has reserved a specific portion of spaces (approximately 22%) for these students in recognition of the benefits they bring to the Canadian labour market.
• On November 1, 2024, IRCC updated the Post-Graduation Work Permit program to better align the program to economic objectives. Changes included introducing minimum language requirements for all applicants and a field of study requirement for all graduates except those completing bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree programs.