The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Sean Fraser, has announced a new immigration pathway that aims to connect employers in Canada with skilled refugees and displaced people. The pathway will be available under the federal Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP), which was designed to help employers hire skilled refugees and other displaced persons.

About The New EMPP Pathway

The new pathway, set to launch this summer, will give Canadian employers more opportunities to address labour shortages in key occupations. It will pair skilled refugees and displaced persons with employers who need to overcome labour shortages in occupations such as nurse aids, personal support workers, long-term care aids, software engineers, web designers, mechanical and electrical engineers and technicians, teachers, tourism and hospitality workers, and truck and delivery service drivers.

Over the next few years, Canada is planning to expand the EMPP and welcome 2,000 qualified refugees and displaced persons to fill labour shortages via the program. The program is part of Canada’s effort to achieve its ambitious immigration targets. According to the Immigration Levels Plan 2023-2025, IRCC is looking to welcome 465,000 new permanent residents this year, with the target set to rise to 485,000 immigrants in 2024 and 500,000 immigrants in 2025. Last year, Canada welcomed just over 437,000 immigrants.

Canada’s record levels of immigration, combined with record foreign student and worker admissions, resulted in the country’s population growing by over one million people for the first time in history last year. These ambitious immigration targets are largely aimed at addressing the country’s high number of labour shortages.

Canada offers more than 100 different economic class immigration pathways. The leading economic class pathway is the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), which enables provinces and territories to identify candidates who meet their local economic needs. The leading federal pathway is the Express Entry system, which has seen a lot of activity recently. Four provinces announced their latest PNP results over the past week, while IRCC held two major Express Entry draws over the past two weeks, inviting 14,000 candidates in total to apply for permanent residence.

In his announcement, Minister Fraser emphasized how Canada’s immigration measures will help employers across a wide range of sectors and industries to address labour shortages. The EMPP is a step in the right direction toward meeting Canada’s immigration targets and providing employers with the skilled workforce they need to thrive. With the launch of this new immigration pathway, Canadian employers can look forward to a brighter future with a more diverse and skilled workforce.

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