ARTICLE · 17 FEBRUARY 2021

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Canada Immigration Down Nearly Half In 2020 As COVID-19 Limits Newcomers

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February 16, 2021 - Tough new restrictions on international travel during the second, harsher wave of the COVID-19 pandemic pushed immigration to Canada down to its lowest level since April last...

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Colin Singer

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Tough new restrictions on international travel during the second, harsher wave of the COVID-19 pandemic pushed immigration to Canada down to its lowest level since April last year in December.

The 10,795 newcomers welcomed in the last month of 2020 brought the total for the year to 184,370, down 46 percent on the 341,175 new arrivals in 2019.

December's total was also down 29 percent compared to the 15,205 new permanent residents the preceding month.

The sudden downturn in immigration puts an end to a four-month trend that started in July last year of increasing numbers of new permanent residents to Canada.

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