Canada’s four Atlantic Provinces have had to manage a number of challenges in recent decades, including lower natural population increases, lower immigration levels and higher interprovincial migration. According to the latest census data, about 20% of the population in Atlantic Canada is 65 and over, which has led to labour shortages both in the short-term and long-term. The population and labour needs vary from rural areas to the urban centres. In some cases, employers used the former Temporary Foreign Worker Program to fill labour demand.

Broadly, immigration levels in Atlantic Canada have remained relatively low compared to the national average, however, in recent years, the Provincial Nominee Program has increased the number of immigrants to the region. Two out of the four provinces have even doubled the number of immigrants welcomed between 2006 and 2015. This year, the four Atlantic Provinces in collaboration with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) launched the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project. Unique to this immigration program is the employer’s obligation to create a settlement plan for the immigrant that is hired. Both federal and provincial governments were of the opinion that this would assist newcomers to quickly integrate and view Atlantic Canada as their home.

In November 2016, the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (hereafter referred to as “the Committee” or “CIMM”) was mandated by the House of Commons to study immigration to Atlantic Canada, and in particular, the challenges associated with attracting, integrating and retaining newcomers in the region. This report provides an analysis and a number of recommendations based on the issues heard during the course of the study. Among these, the Committee would like to highlight the need to increase immigration to Atlantic Canada (recommendation 1) in order to facilitate population growth similar to the national average (recommendation 20). Specifically, the Committee heard that it would be important to broaden the skill levels in immigration programs to encompass the needs of all industries (recommendation 15). Lastly, IRCC must provide more services in the Atlantic Provinces and reopen its office in Prince Edward Island (recommendation 21).

The Atlantic region’s natural beauty, vibrant urban centres and friendly smaller communities offer a variety of social and economic advantages to newcomers. In particular, the wage gap between an immigrant and a Canadian-born individual is smaller than in the rest of Canada. There are numerous quality higher education institutions, with students who often wish to remain after graduation because of the quality of life.

The Committee wants to ensure that the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project is evaluated moving forward so that the difficulties encountered in the first year of this program are improved for the second year. In addition to assisting Atlantic Canada, it is thought that other regions in Canada facing similar demographic issues could eventually adopt a pilot program of this nature.

The life cycle of immigration to Atlantic Canada should be clear: promoting Atlantic Canada to potential immigrants; identifying gaps in regional and labour needs; having nimble immigration programs and processes so that immigrants with the right skills come, and, in the end, make their home permanently in Atlantic Canada.