The levels of immigration to Canada have changed dramatically over the past decade, with permanent resident admissions rising to record highs before declining last year. The country’s non-permanent resident population, which includes foreign workers, international students, and asylum claimants, also grew sharply before starting to fall.
The following five charts examine these trends, including changes in the number and composition of non-permanent residents, permanent resident admissions by immigration category, and the leading countries of citizenship among those granted permanent residency in 2025. They also show projected admissions for 2026 and planned figures for 2027.
Permanent resident admissions rose sharply from 2015 to 2024, with the exception of a sharp drop in the COVID-19 pandemic year of 2020. After the 2024 peak, admissions fell about 19 percent in 2025.
The 2026 figure is a forecast based on the plan outlined in Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) 2025 Annual Report, while the 2027 figure reflects planned admissions outlined in the 2026 Annual Report. Both figures include baseline admissions and additional one-time initiatives.
The second chart breaks down admissions by category. Economic immigration accounted for the largest share of permanent resident admissions throughout the period, followed by family reunification and refugee and humanitarian categories.
The 2026 and 2027 projections include admissions under one-time initiatives beyond the regular target of 380,000.
IRCC says these initiatives include workers and protected persons already in Canada.
For 2027, IRCC has also opened up to 200,000 additional spaces outside the regular targets, including up to 100,000 for workers already in Canada and 100,000 for certain humanitarian populations.
India accounted for about one-quarter of new permanent residents in 2025, followed by the Philippines, Cameroon, China, and Nigeria.
Canada’s non-permanent resident population more than doubled between July 2021 and October 2024, reaching nearly 3 million. It remained near that level through much of 2025 before declining further in 2026.
Work permit holders made up a growing share of non-permanent residents, reaching 54 percent by July 2026.
The share of study permit holders declined after peaking in early 2022, while asylum claimants, protected persons and related groups accounted for a larger share by 2026.
About 30 percent of study permit holders also hold a work permit.
