Quebec passes the 500,000 mark for temporary immigrants

The number of temporary immigrants has now passed the half-million mark in Quebec — reaching an all-time high, according to the latest data from Statistics Canada.

The number jumped by 46 per cent in one year, for all categories, from 361,000 to 528,000.

In Canada, the number of temporary immigrants – or non-permanent residents – reached 2.5 million. A year ago, there were 1.7 million out of an estimated population of 40.5 million.

Temporary immigrants hold work or study permits or have applied for asylum.

Governments set annual thresholds for permanent immigrants. But in the case of temporary immigrants, there is no limit.

Foreign workers make up the largest contingent of non-permanent residents in Quebec – more than 225,000, including family members. This represents 43 per cent of all temporary workers. Their numbers jumped by 85,000 in one year, an increase of 61 per cent.

The second largest group is asylum seekers. They numbered 106,000 in 2022 and now are more than 160,000 – around 100,000 of them have work permits.

The smallest group is foreign students at more than 72,000.

Asylum seekers are proportionally much less numerous in Canada than in Quebec. There are 289,000 in Canada, or 12 per cent of temporary residents. In Quebec, they account for 30 per cent of all non-permanent residents.