Quebec immigrants have more positive outlook on affordability crisis than those in rest of Canada: poll

Immigrants who chose to settle in Quebec are more satisfied than those who opted to put down roots in other Canadian provinces, according to a new Leger poll done exclusively for OMNI News. 

Eighty-seven per cent of Quebec immigrants polled say moving to Canada was the right decision – compared to 80 per cent for the rest of Canada. And 86 per cent say living in Canada makes them proud – compared to 80 per cent.

Immigrants who chose Quebec are also more likely (65 per cent) than the rest of Canada (46 per cent) to agree the country has enough jobs to support its immigrants.

And fewer Quebec immigrants feel their household is struggling to make ends meet compared to the rest of Canada.

The Leger-OMNI poll, one of the largest polling samples of immigrants in recent years, surveyed 1,522 immigrants across Canada between Oct. 18 and 25. It is one of the few polls specifically surveying immigrants.

Most Quebecers polled live in Montreal (70 per cent) and have been in Canada more than 20 years (53 per cent).

Canadian dream at risk for immigrants

While the increased level of satisfaction in Quebec is a regional takeaway from the poll, the overall finding is clear: an affordability crisis is putting the Canadian dream at risk for immigrants across the country.

“The Canadian dream is no longer what it used to be,” said Frantz André, who helps asylum seekers settle in Quebec. “People were coming here looking for the Canadian dream because the American dream has not been there for years.”

The survey finds two-in-five (42 per cent) immigrant households are struggling to make ends meet, with the number increasing to 54 per cent when surveying those who moved to Canada within the last five years. 

“I think the opportunities given to people that have been there for 20-plus years, they still have the same idea of how they were welcome, and this is a good place to be,” André said. “But in the past five years, that has changed, and people are struggling and some of them are working without a permit in order to make meets end.”

André, himself an immigrant from Haiti, has helped thousands of people by giving advice on the immigration process. He remembers when he first arrived in Canada.

“We were six people in a studio in the early stage to eventually get an apartment,” he recounted. “After that, moved with two other families in a bigger apartment. However now it’s very difficult to find an apartment and sometimes yes, you have to move in with someone that you just met.”

The research finds the cost-of-living crisis is hitting immigrants hard. Eighty-three per cent polled feel affordability has made settling more difficult, and a quarter (24 per cent) feel their experience in Canada has fallen short of expectations.

“When you have the financial help of $800 and you have to pay $600 just for a studio, or a family four that gets $1,400 and have to pay $1,200 for an apartment, that is not what they would’ve expected,” said André.

Limited job prospects play a role in what appears to be an eroding Canadian dream, which respondents overwhelmingly define as having a stable and good quality of life, personal freedom, and the need for career opportunities.

Fifty-eight per cent of the respondents in the Leger-OMNI poll feel this Canadian dream is eluding their grasp.

André points to the “dramatic example” of Fritznel Richard, the 44-year-old Haitian migrant who died while attempting to cross the U.S. border in hopes of reuniting with his family last December.

“He was trying to go back to the States because the Canadian dream was not what he expected, because the cost of living is very high, it’s very difficult to find an affordable apartment,” André said.

WATCH: Canada to maintain immigration levels

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Last month, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced measures to transform the country’s immigration system, including integrating housing, health care and infrastructure planning in collaboration with provinces, territories and municipalities in its immigration planning.

–With files from Rhea Santos, CityNews