Inflation & Immigration
Labour shortages, inflation and high interest rates have had a serious impact on the Canadian economy in 2022. These economic factors have had a significant impact on our clients as well as our staff. To a certain extent, the business of immigration law is not greatly affected by these changes. This is based on the strong demand for applicants around the world who are focused on moving to Canada. Recent reports have highlighted the fact that Canada is a top destination country around the world.
Canadian geography has been a huge benefit for immigrants who are anxious during this time of conflict. We have spoken with clients who planned to immigrate to Germany or other European countries. With the war in Ukraine and the looming energy crisis, they have decided to focus on coming to Canada, rather than Europe.
The strong Canadian energy sector as well as the recent boom in crops has also been a huge benefit to immigration. Statistics Canada suggested crop yields for 2022 will be higher than in previous years. This will be a benefit to the Canadian economy as well as shielding the food market from potential shortages of wheat and grains from Ukraine.
As reported by Global News:
According to Statistics Canada, wheat will be among the most dramatic yield increases across the country this year. Nationally, wheat production is projected to increase by 55.6 per cent year-over-year to 34.7 million tonnes in 2022, according to Statistics Canada.
Given Canada’s natural resources and multicultural population, we applaud the government for its decision to increase immigration. Immigration Minister Sean Fraser announced plans to increase the number of immigrants entering Canada to 500,000 in 2025. As noted by CBC:
The announcement signals a significant increase from the 405,000 immigrants that came to Canada last year and the 465,000 expected to arrive next year.
Canadian industries are facing a significant labour shortage. About one million jobs are vacant across the country.
The new plan puts an emphasis on increasing the number of immigrants who will be admitted based on their work skills or experience over the next three years.
Clarke Immigration Law strongly supports this plan. We are looking forward to helping applicants navigate IRCC programs and applications so they may find a better home in Canada.
Please note: Clarke Immigration Law has not raised our fees since 2015. We have been focused on keeping our fees reasonable with the goal of helping as many clients as possible. We believe that publishing our fees online and offering generous payment plan options contributes to access to justice and benefits our clients. Given these facts, we will be reviewing our fees and we expect we will be raising our fees in 2023 to match inflation.
