Why Immigration Law?
“The greatest thing in this world is not so much where we stand as in what direction we are moving.”
― Johann wolfgang von Goethe
As you know, we at Salloum Watts Lawyers have recently expanded our expertise into immigration law. Immigration Law has been of interest to us for some time and we are now letting the world know of our keen desire to be a part of a system that affects not only us and our clients, but our community and country as a whole.
We believe that our representation of our clients must align with our core values. It is of utmost important to us that our clients and our community have confidence that we are acting in their best interests.
The Canadian Economy
Canada is a growing country with one of the highest migration rates in the world. We have one of the world’s largest supplies of natural resources such as oil, metals and lumber. We also have a sparse population spread across a vast landscape.
In addition, Canada’s population is aging. 25% of Canada’s population will be over 65 by 2035. 5,000,000 Canadians are set to retire by 2035. An estimated 350,000 immigrants are needed annually by 2035 to meet Canada’s workforce needs.
Canada has faced labour shortages for some time, dating back to the late 19th century when we built the Canadian Pacific Railway. In the heyday of the western settlement in the last 1800’s we marketed the Canadian prairies to Europe under the campaign slogan “The Last Best West”. The point: Immigration is important to Canada. Our success as a nation is dependent on ensuring Canada’s population and labour force continues to grow.
According to The Honourable Ahmed D. Hussen, Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, as stated in Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada’s 2018-2019 Departmental Plan, “Immigration is a driving force in meeting Canada’s demographic and labour market needs. With Canada’s ageing population, having a robust and efficient immigration system is critical to our economic growth. Our country’s future success will depend largely on attracting more talented people from around the world.”
The Canadian immigration system is set up to draw in the best and brightest from around the World. Immigrants to Canada are more skilled than immigrants to most countries. They are better educated and receive higher wages once settled. This is due to the Canadian Immigration points system called the “Comprehensive Ranking System” (CRS). The CRS scores factors such as age, education level, work experience, among others to determine whether or not a person qualifies to apply for immigration to Canada.
According to Immigration, Refugee, Citizenship Canada, in 2017, 56% of permanent resident admissions were in the Economic Class and 65,417 new permanent residents were admitted through the Express Entry management system. This means, applicants with post-secondary education, investors, entrepreneurs and their families
93% of immigrants have knowledge of English and French.
In fact, international immigration accounted for 80% of our population growth in 2017-2018.
And yet, Canada’s job vacancy rates just hit a new high.
Canadian businesses are having a hard time finding employees in key sectors such as transportation, warehousing, accommodation and food services. We will also face shortages in nursing and healthcare in the coming years.
In British Columbia, the job vacancy rate has increased to 4.2%, up from 3.5% the same time last year, which is the highest rate in the country.
The Canadian government has set out a multi-year immigration levels plan that commits to welcoming more permanent residents to Canada over the next 3 years. The plan includes raising the immigration levels to between 300,000 and 350,000 in 2019 and between 310,000 and 360,000 in 2020.
Positive Impact on our Government Finances
In the age of social media, it is clear that misinformation about the impacts of immigration on our country and our tax dollars are being spread. Here are some facts to support the positive impact that immigration has had on Canada:
- Immigrants create employment for Canadians and expand both the domestic and international economy. Most immigrants bring diverse education and knowledge that is an invaluable resource for Canadians. In addition, international business entrepreneurs establish successful businesses that create employment for Canadians.
- Temporary foreign workers and newcomers pay Canadian taxes and are less likely to make use of employment insurance, social assistance and subsidized housing. In fact, TFW’s do not have access to many public services.
International Trade
The presence of many different cultures within Canada also contributes to Canada’s international trade. Canada’s economy is heavily reliant on international trade even more so now that there are pending changes to our trade agreements with the USA which accounted for 76.4% of our exports in 2017 (North America: Canada, The CIA World Factbook, URL accessed Dec 17, 2018).
As a country Canada has always been and continues to be welcoming of other cultures. We believe in reuniting families. We believe in educating our future leaders and providing them the resources to be able to contribute to our society.
We at Salloum Watts believe in making sure that each person that wants to come to Canada has the knowledge and resources available to make their dreams a reality. We understand the particular difficulties faced in navigating the Canadian immigration system. We understand the challenges immigrants will face when they arrive in Canada and are committed to helping make the transition as easy as possible while helping them to achieve their goals in Canada.
We also are aware of the unique roadblocks faced by Canadian employers in finding skilled long term employees and we have the tools to overcome them.
If you a Canadian employer who wishes to fill a labour shortage or a skilled international who would like to explore the possibility of coming to Canada contact us for a consultation.