Nearly a third of new immigrants plan to leave Canada

April 21, 2022


Institute for Canadian Citizenship

A new national survey conducted by Leger on behalf of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC) challenges some cherished Canadian assumptions about immigration and citizenship.
"Canada is a nation of immigrants—and one of the stories we tell ourselves is that we are welcoming to new immigrants, wherever they may be from," said ICC CEO Daniel Bernhard. "But new survey data points to the fact that many new Canadians are having a crisis of confidence in Canada—and that should be ringing alarm bells all over Ottawa."
The Leger study included an online survey of 1,519 general-population Canadians adults and an online survey of 2,103 new Canadians, both of which were completed between February 24 and 28, 2022.
The survey found that new Canadians were generally better educated, with 81 per cent holding
Other findings include:
• 30 per cent of 18- to 34-year-old new Canadians and nearly 25 per cent of university-educated new Canadians say they are likely to move to another country in the next two years.
• New Canadian immigrants are more likely to believe that Canadians don't understand the challenges that immigrants face and feel the rising cost of living will make immigrants less likely to stay in Canada.
• Immigrants with university degrees tend to have less favourable opinions on matters related to fair job opportunity and pay than other immigrants.
• Among those who would not recommend Canada as a place to live, Canada’s current leadership and the high cost of living are the top two reasons. Eleven per cent also cited high housing costs.
Of the 57 per cent of new Canadians who said they have no plans to move to another country, most were older than age 55 and less educated.
"The data suggest that younger, highly skilled immigrants in particular are starting to fall between the cracks," said Dave Scholz, executive vice-president at Leger. "We need to continue working hard to ensure that we are welcoming newcomers with the resources they need to succeed, and that we continue to be a country that provides opportunity."