SETTING THE CONTEXTSEPTEMBER 2014

Residents of Canada

PermanentImmigrants / landed

1. Refugee Class2. Economic Class3. Family Class

• Intend to stay• Eligible for all settlement

services• Have almost all the rights of

citizens

Temporary

1. Temporary foreign workers

2. International students/graduates

• May apply to stay• Eligible for some settlement

services (funded by Provincial Government)

Permanent Residents to Canada 2013

Newfoundland & Labrador

Prince Edward Island

New Brunswick

Nova Scotia

Saskatchewan

Manitoba

British Columbia

Alberta

Quebec

Ontario

0 2000040000

6000080000

100000120000

Permanent Residents to Nova Scotia 2004-13

20042005

20062007

20082009

20102011

20122013

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

Permanent Residents to NS by Category 2003-12

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 20120

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

Family class Economic immigrants Refugees Other immigrants

Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada / ISIS

Permanent Residents to NS by Source Area 2012

Africa + the Middle East25%

Asia + Pacific37%

South + Central Amer-ica4%

United

States9%

Eu-rope + the United

Kingdom

24%

Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada / ISIS

Permanent & Temporary Resident Entries to Nova Scotia 2013

Permanent Residents International students Temporary workers0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

1,971 1,9441,210

581 902

1058

Halifax Other Nova Scotia

2552 2846

2268

94% of Nova Scotians were born in Canada

93.9

5.3

0.8

Nova Scotia

Non-immigrantsImmigrantsNon-permanent residents

78.3

20.6

1.1

Canada

Source: Statistics Canada / ISIS

Refugee Class

A Refugee is a person…

\“…who is outside his or her home country and who has a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.”

- Geneva Convention

GOVERNMENT –ASSISTED

(GAR)

PRIVATELY SPONSORED

REFUGEE CLAIMANT(Asylum seekers)

Recognized overseas by UNHCR as refugee

Recognized overseas by UNHCR as refugee

Gets here and requests refugee status - has to prove that s/he has a valid refugee claim

Permanent resident Permanent resident Temporary resident

Eligible for all settlement services

Eligible for all settlement services

Eligible for some settlement services if s/he has a work permit

Supported by CIC for one year after arrival

Supported by sponsors for one year after arrival

Context and Changes – Refugee Class• Significant decrease in #s for Government assisted

refugees (GARs)• Significant decrease in allocations for Privately

sponsored refugees (PSRs)• Processing wait times have increased

Implications

• Lack of response to critical situations eg. Syria

• Long waits for family reunification

Family Class• Spouse or partner• Parent or grandparent• Child

As a sponsor, you must make sure your spouse or relative does not need to seek financial assistance from the government

Context and Changes – Family Class• Currently closed to applications for parents, grandparents

• Beg. Aug. 1, 2014 ‘child’=18 years, no student exemption

• Provisional visa for spouses in relationship < 2yrs

• Overall decrease in parents ,grandparents ‘super visa’

• Sponsors need a higher income over longer period

Implications• Decrease in #s of international students’ families?• Frustrated local families

Economic ClassIncludes:

a) Skilled Workersb) Business Categoriesc) Canadian Experienced) Skilled Tradese) Provincial Nominee Programs

New route for all Economic Class, 2015 = Express Entry

Largest stream

a) Skilled Workersi) minimum one year experience in one of 50 designated occupations OR

ii) qualifying offer of arranged employment OR

iii) eligibility for the PhD streamPLUS• Language, credential assessment, age, Canadian work

experience

b) Business Start-up Visa

New federal program

Began April 1, 2013

For entrepreneurs with ideas for new business ventures and financial backing from Canadian investors

c) Canadian Experience Class

• have at least 12 months of full-time (or an equal amount in part-time) skilled work experience in Canada in the three years before you apply

• have gained your experience in Canada with the

proper authorization • meet the required language levels needed for

your job for each language skill (speaking, reading, writing and listening)).

d) Skilled Trades

• meet criteria for language levels in all four skills

• have at least two years FT work experience in a skilled trade within five years before you apply

• meet all job requirements for that skilled trade as set out in NOC and have either

- an offer of FT employment for at least one year or

- a certificate of qualification in trade issued by

provincial body

e) Provincial Nominees – Nova ScotiaNominated by province if they meet program criteria

i) Skilled Worker• FT job offer from NS employer

ii) Regional Labour Market Demand (closed til Jan 2015)• No job offer needed • Intention to join labour market with F/T perm. pos.• Wish to live in NS permanently. • Must declare intended occupation (on list, qualif., exp.)

iii) Family Business Worker• FT job offer from relative’s business in NS

Context and Changes – Economic Class • Beg. Aug., 2014 ‘child’ = 18 yrs-no student exemption• Last applications before Express Entry in Jan 2015• Caps - Skilled worker - Sub-caps of 1,000 for each 50 occupations. No caps for valid job offer

- Skilled Trades – 3,000 - Provincial Nominees – NS – 700

Implications

• More difficult to immigrate to NS

• NS employers unprepared for Express Entry

• #s = settlement funding levels

Potential Game Changers 1. Temporary Foreign Workers – new and impending policies

2. Federal response to critical refugee situation in Syria/Iraq

3. Settlement Program Evaluation – tied to $

4. Premier’s Advisory Cttee and One NS Cttee – Immigration

5. Municipality – increased interest and involvement

6. PRs transitioning from temporary – program change?

7. Continued uncertainty around Job Fund Agreement (LMA)

8. Federal focus on pre-arrival

9. Express Entry

Express Entry

• New process to give employers a direct role in recruiting economic immigrants, starting Jan.1, 2015

• Linked to federal streams for Economic class

• PNP will keep base # spaces to use as before, “top-up” # to allow province “to fish in pool”. No details.

• No route for lower skilled individuals except on case by case basis through PNP

Express EntryStep One – Application submissionMust meet basic criteria for language, education, work

experience and age into pool

While in pool Must create job seeker profile on Job Bank for employersMust promote self through other sites: Linkedin, etc.

Step Two – Invitation to Apply through either: Job offer PN certificate Selection by CIC for high human capital Step Three – Submit full application

Express Entry• Once application is complete and submitted, processing within

6 months

• If no Invitation to Apply is received submission will expire after 1 year in pool. Can apply again

• Employers will be offered matches through Job Bank – first local, then regional, then Canada-wide, THEN international

• Employers will still want faster process, so likely will continue to use TFWs, (if still available) who will then apply for PR

Discussion• Do the potential game-changers impact the ISIS mission?• Do the potential game-changers impact the ISIS strategic plan?• The Ivany Report and spotlight on immigration creates opportunities for

ISIS. How can we take advantage of these opportunities? Consider the following:a. Offer of assistance from Don Millsb. Role of the Board c. Potential engagement of community leaders outside the Board to work in partnership with ISIS

• To date, the organization’s efforts related to public policy have been primarily in the background, using the credibility and trust placed in ISIS by key policymakers and stakeholders to influence decision-making.

• The volatility of the current environment and the profile of immigration created by the Ivany Report have raised the question of whether ISIS should consider a more public advocacy role. What are the pros and cons of moving in this direction?