IRCC Minister Transition Binder 2023: Settlement and Resettlement

Program Purpose

The Government of Canada Funds the Settlement and Resettlement Assistance Program in Accordance with the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act Objective to “Promote the Successful Integration of Permanent Residents Into Canada, While Recognizing that Integration Involves Mutual Obligations for New Immigrants and Canadian Society”

Program Context

Settlement and Integration is an Essential Part of Canada’s Immigration Continuum, Broad in Scope and Footprint

• The Settlement Program provides settlement supports to permanent residents, and other eligible clients to facilitate participation in the Canadian economy and society.
• The Resettlement Assistance Program provides support for immediate and essential needs for Government-Assisted Refugees.
• The Francophone Integration Pathway supports the integration of French-speaking newcomers and helps to ensures the vitality of francophone official language minority communities outside of Quebec.
• In recent years, additional policy and operational supports have been developed to welcome mass arrivals e.g., Ukraine, Afghanistan.

The Settlement Program

Represents most of IRCC’s Grants and Contributions budget:

• 2022-2023: $1.095B in Settlement Authorities (outside of Quebec); annual grant to Quebec was $726.7M in 2022-2023.
• Funding envelopes allow significant flexibility to respond to newcomer needs and government priorities.

Allows IRCC to support newcomers as they settle and integrate:

• Over 550 IRCC-funded service providers across Canada (outside Quebec) offer settlement services and supports.
• In 2022-2023, just over 607,000 clients accessed at least one settlement service.

Eligible clients may access a full suite of high quality services including:

• Pre-arrival services: Helps newcomers plan and prepare to live and work in Canada in advance of their arrival.
• Needs & assets assessment & referral services: Thorough assessment to refer newcomers to the right community/settlement services.
• Information and orientation: Timely information to help newcomers make informed choices about life in Canada.
• Language training: Tailored and structured training to integrate newcomers into communities and the labour market.
• Employment-related services: Supports to prepare newcomers for the workforce and create links with employers.
• Community connections: Building bridges between newcomers and their communities to create welcoming communities and a sense of belonging, promoting retention.
• Support services: Child care, transport, translation/interpretation, short-term counselling and provisions for disabilities, to increase equitable access.
• Indirect services: a number of partners work within their communities to mobilize various actors (e.g. employers, municipalities, health services, etc.) that strengthen the settlement sector and support newcomers’ overall transition into their new communities.

Settlement in Canada is a whole-of- society endeavour:

• Engagement with provincial/territorial and municipal governments and civil society actors who provide services to newcomers.
• IRCC also collaborates with other federal partners and employers to support successful settlement.

The Resettlement Assistance Program

Given their unique circumstances, government-assisted refugees are supported by the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) upon their arrival in Canada and are also eligible to receive the full suite of settlement programs.

Immediate and essential services:

• Port of entry services (reception at airport)
• Temporary accommodations upon arrival
• Assistance finding permanent accommodations
• Support to register for federal and provincial programs (Canada Child Benefit etc)
• Needs and assets assessments and referrals to settlement and other community services
• Financial and non-financial orientation sessions

Financial support:

• Initial start-up costs of setting up a home
• Income support for up to 12 months (or 24 months for high-needs cases)

Support to Francophone Immigration and Mass Arrivals

Francophone immigration:

• The Francophone Integration Pathway will advance IRCC’s new Francophone Immigration Policy, including: setting new targets for the arrival of French-speaking immigrants outside Quebec; supporting the successful integration and retention of French-speaking newcomers; and building the capacity of communities of francophone minority communities outside of Quebec.

Mass arrivals:

• The Settlement Program has responded rapidly and flexibly to support mass arrivals from Ukraine and Afghanistan and is applying lessons to better respond to future crises, [Redacted]

Current status

Successful Integration in Canada is Demonstrated in Economic Outcomes as Well as in Social Integration and Public Support

The Settlement Program is supported by a robust system to measure and report on results, including data from service providers (iCare), Newcomer Outcome Surveys, and the Settlement Outcomes Report.

Contributing to economic growth: High education rates and strong labour market presence (e.g. 75% of settlement program clients are working).

Strong social/civic integration: Voting, volunteering and charitable giving comparable to Canadians (e.g. 24% of clients have recently volunteered).

Sense of belonging: High reported levels among newcomers who feel a sense of belonging (e.g. 90% of newcomers reported they had a strong sense of belonging to Canada).

Continued public support: Canadians continue to show support for immigration (as per recent Public Opinion Research).

The Settlement Program has been Evolving with the Changing Immigration Landscape

The foundation of the program is solid, but a shifting immigration and settlement delivery context requires us to adapt our current approach.

Key drivers:

• Sustained growth in new arrivals, including from areas of global crisis (e.g. Ukraine, Afghanistan, the Americas).
• Greater prevalence of multi-step immigration and TR-to-PR transitions.
• Novel responses to facilitate emergency humanitarian arrivals, including on a temporary basis (e.g. CUAET).
• Lingering effects of pandemic on service provider organizations and newcomers (e.g. staff recruitment and retention, transition to digital and remote service delivery).

Major impacts:

• Changing client needs, including more complex needs from refugees (e.g. mental health).
• Downstream pressures on social services and infrastructure (e.g. housing).
• Strain on sector capacity to keep pace with volume, timing and complexity of arrivals.
• Challenges for settlement provider organizations to attract and retain staff.

Looking Ahead

The 2024 Call for Proposals will be an Opportunity to Support New Cohorts of Newcomers in the Years Ahead

The 2024 Call for Proposals for the Settlement Program and Resettlement Assistance Program provides an opportunity to set direction for five years of funding. It will position the programs to adapt to these new challenges in the following ways:

• Increasing availability of digital services, where appropriate, and expanded reach outside large urban centres.
• Improving services for newcomers facing barriers to integration (including racialized newcomers, 2SLGBTQI+ newcomers, and newcomers with disabilities) and Francophone newcomers.
• Improving coordination and consistency of service across the country.

[Redacted]

• [Redacted]
• [Redacted]
• [Redacted]
• [Redacted]

Key Takeaways

• The successful settlement and integration of newcomers is critical to maintaining public support for immigration.
• The Settlement Program is inherently nimble and responsive, with the ability to direct funding and programming to government priorities as they evolve.
• The program is already adapting to new realities. There are opportunities to capitalize on the 2024 call for proposals to further improve service delivery and respond to the evolving needs of newcomers.