Canada is expected to announce new immigration targets for permanent residents and temporary residents when it unveils its Immigration Levels Plan for 2027–2029 in early November.

The plan will cover permanent resident admissions as well as temporary resident arrivals, including international students and temporary foreign workers, with the figures expected to shape Canada’s immigration pathway over the coming years.

According to a Thursday post by Immigration News Canada on X, the forthcoming plan will set Canada’s first official target for permanent resident admissions in 2029. It will also confirm or revise the indicative targets for 2027 and 2028 contained in the existing 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan.

The timing of the announcement is linked to Canada’s parliamentary requirements for the annual immigration levels plan.

“Under Section 94(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship is required to table the annual immigration report containing the levels plan in each House of Parliament on or before November 1.

“Where Parliament is not sitting on November 1, the legislation provides for the report to be tabled within the next 30 days on which the House is sitting.

“November 1, 2026 falls on a Sunday, meaning Parliament will not be sitting that day. The plan is therefore expected to be tabled when Parliament next sits, likely in the first few days of November,” the post read.

The current 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan was released on November 5, 2025.

The new plan is coming as the federal government continues to adjust its immigration policy after introducing measures aimed at reducing the number of temporary residents and moderating population growth.

The direction of future immigration levels has also attracted attention following comments by Prime Minister Mark Carney.

In an interview with The New York Times reported on September 29, Carney said that with Canada’s immigration system back under control, the question was when the country would resume a “controlled increase” in population.

However, the government has not announced specific targets for 2027–2029, leaving the figures in the forthcoming plan to determine the next phase of its immigration approach.

Beyond the headline permanent resident figure, the distribution of admissions across individual immigration categories is expected to be closely watched.

The plan is expected to provide details on economic immigration, Express Entry, provincial nominee programmes, family reunification and Francophone immigration.

Temporary resident targets will also be significant, particularly for international students and temporary foreign workers.

For people planning to move to Canada, study there or work temporarily, the number of spaces assigned to each programme could have a direct bearing on the immigration pathways available to them. (Nigerian Tribune)