Welcome to Canada? A Critical Review and Assessment of Canada’s Fast-Changing Immigration Policies

Since July 1st, 2012, Canada’s immigration system has been undergoing a significant and rapid transformation. This transformation has created a cloud of uncertainty for many prospective immigrants and unpredictability for policy analysts, non-state actors, scholars, and other stakeholders. While family reunification, economic immigration, and asylum for refugees have, in the past, enabled Canada to step up as a global leader, today concerns are growing that recent policy shifts are making Canada less desirable, are unfair to migrants and their families, and are resulting in destruction of its international reputation and long-held leadership in immigrant integration and settlement. The purpose of this paper is to build upon Alboim and Cohl’s Maytree report and review of both proposed and effective immigration policies from between July 2012 and July 2014. It describes some of the major policy amendments and evaluate their potential impact on all involved parties. “Canada’s future relies on today’s entrepreneurs…Recruiting dynamic entrepreneurs from around the world will help Canada remain competitive in the global economy” (Jason Kenney, 2014) “It is not always the case that there is no qualified Canadian in the area, but rather there is no qualified Canadian willing to accept low-skilled work when they feel they can hold out for better, higher paying jobs” (Finkelstein, Financial Post, 2014) “Economic benefits and cost-cutting are being prioritized over the humanitarian concerns of the world’s most vulnerable” (Janet Dench, 2014)