Canada's 2026 Budget Plans for Nearly 660,000 New Permanent Residents in 2027
Prime Minister Mark Carney's 2026 federal budget outlines a plan to grant permanent residency to approximately 657,250 people in 2027, combining regular intakes with one-time streams for temporary residents already in Canada. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre criticized the targets as unsustainable, while Carney pointed to sharp declines in international students, temporary foreign workers, and asylum seekers since 2024.
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced in the 2026 federal budget that Canada plans to grant permanent residency to 380,000 people annually over the next three years. When combined with one-time streams for temporary residents already living and working in the country, the total number of new permanent residents expected in 2027 reaches almost 660,000.
The 380,000 annual intake represents about 0.9 per cent of Statistics Canada's most recent population estimate. Factoring in the temporary boost, the combined increase amounts to roughly 1.5 per cent of the population. For context, total births in Canada were about 372,000 in 2025 and 366,000 in 2024, while total deaths were about 326,000 in 2024 and 327,000 in 2023.
A significant portion of the 2027 figure comes from an additional 200,000 temporary residents already in Canada who will be granted permanent residency. Half of this transition group will come through Express Entry and Provincial Nominee Program streams, allowing provinces to select workers to meet regional economic needs. The other half will receive permanent residency on humanitarian and family reunification grounds, including nearly 32,000 applicants from Hong Kong and about 19,000 from Ukraine.
To support the transition of these residents, the federal government committed $302 million over four years starting in 2027-28. A separate two-year "one-time initiative" announced in the previous year's budget will add almost 80,000 more permanent residents in 2027. The budget also sets a target of 370,000 temporary residents annually for the next three years.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre criticized the plan, stating that Canada cannot absorb that many new people due to existing issues with jobs, health care, and housing.
Carney defended the immigration levels, describing them as "sustainable" and stating that his government has "taken back control of immigration." He cited significant reductions in temporary inflows since 2024: the number of international students has decreased by 71 per cent, temporary foreign workers by 57 per cent, and asylum seekers by 68 per cent.