Income gap between new immigrants, broader public shrunk dramatically

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The income gap between new immigrants and the broader Canadian public narrowed dramatically in the years leading up to the pandemic, according to a report from the parliamentary budget officer that suggests family ties and “pre-admission” work or study experience play a big part in creating better economic outcomes.

Between 2014 and 2018, the total income of new immigrants rose from 55 per cent of the median Canadian income to 78 per cent. Professionals such as engineers, accountants, applied scientists, and physicians are driving the trend.

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“These relative increases in the incomes of immigrants are worth exploring further given the context of increasing future immigration,” said the parliamentary budget officer, Yves Giroux, in the report, released Jan. 12.

The gains outlined in the report are a stark improvement over previous decades; in 2009, new immigrants only earned around half of what the broader Canadian public did.

Recent immigrants have more Canadian experience on average and are drawing increasingly on existing family and community ties.

The number of immigrants to Canada is set to rise by 500,000 in both 2025 and 2026, and the federal government said it would maintain that threshold for the following year. The influx will add to labour supply, immigration minister Marc Miller told reporters in November.