A national refugee advocacy coalition has asked Canada’s Immigration Minister to raise resettled refugees to 15 percent of total immigration levels for 2027, up from 8 percent in 2026, including a minimum of 20,000 government-assisted refugees. The request follows a 43 percent cut to refugee resettlement since 2023, compared to an 18 percent cut across immigration levels overall. 

What Is Being Requested for the 2027 Immigration Levels Plan? 

As Ottawa prepares its next Immigration Levels Plan, a coalition representing refugee-serving organizations across the country has put a specific, numeric ask on the table: raise resettled refugees, combining both government-assisted and privately sponsored streams, to 15 percent of total immigration admissions for 2027. That is nearly double the 8 percent share set for 2026. 

 The request goes further than a percentage. It calls for a floor of at least 20,000 government-assisted refugee spots, automatic permanent residence for people already recognized as protected persons in Canada, and faster temporary permits so separated family members overseas can reunite sooner rather than waiting through a full sponsorship cycle.  

How Have Refugee Resettlement Levels Changed Since 2023?  

The numbers behind this request tell their own story. Since 2023, Canada’s refugee resettlement admissions have fallen 43 percent, more than double the 18 percent decline seen across immigration levels as a whole. In other words, refugee resettlement has absorbed a disproportionate share of recent cuts, even as global displacement has climbed to roughly 1 in every 70 people worldwide. 

Advocates argue that this imbalance runs against Canada’s long-standing role as a resettlement leader, particularly as other traditional resettlement countries scale back their own commitments, placing more weight on Canada and a small group of partner nations to fill the gap left behind. 

What Would a 15 Percent Target Mean in Practice?

If adopted, a 15 percent share would roughly double the number of resettlement spaces compared with 2026 levels, assuming total admission targets stay in a similar range. For families overseas waiting on a private sponsorship or government-assisted case, that could translate into materially shorter queues and more predictable timelines, though final numbers would depend on how the overall 2027 levels plan is structured when it is released later this year. 

The proposal to automatically grant permanent residence to already-recognized protected persons would also remove a processing step that currently adds months, sometimes longer, between a positive protection decision and a finalized PR grant.  

What Is the Difference Between Government-Assisted and Privately Sponsored Refugees? 

The UN Refugee Agency refers government-assisted refugees based on acute vulnerability and receive settlement support funded by the federal government. Privately sponsored refugees are supported by Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or sponsorship organizations who commit to financial and settlement support, typically for one year. The advocacy request treats both streams as part of the same 15 percent target, while specifically ring-fencing a 20,000-person floor for the government-assisted stream, since that group tends to include the most vulnerable cases with the fewest alternative pathways to safety. 

What Should Families Waiting on Sponsorship or Protection Cases Expect? 

Nothing changes immediately. This is an advocacy request directed at the Immigration Minister ahead of the 2027 levels planning process, not a confirmed policy shift. Families with an active sponsorship or protection claim should continue preparing their files exactly as they would otherwise, since current processing rules remain in force until any new levels plan is formally published. 

That said, families considering a private sponsorship application in the near future may want to have their documentation ready well before the 2027 plan is announced. If targets do rise, capacity to process new applications typically follows with a lag, so early, complete applications tend to move through the system fastest regardless of how the overall target eventually lands. 

Picture a Canadian permanent resident hoping to privately sponsor a sibling’s family currently displaced overseas. Under current levels, processing for a new private sponsorship case can extend well beyond a year before a file is even assigned for review. If resettlement spaces expand under a revised 2027 plan, a fully documented, error-free application submitted now would be well positioned to move through the pipeline as soon as additional capacity opens up, rather than starting the paperwork process from scratch once new spaces are announced. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

Thinking about sponsoring a family member or supporting a refugee resettlement case? Book a consultation with ImmigCanada to get your file ready before the next Immigration Levels Plan is announced.