Two neglected categories of immigrants to Canada: Temporary immigrants and returning Canadians

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Michalowski, Margaret^{; 1} | Fortier, Céline^{; 1}

Affiliations: Demography Division, Statistics Canada, Ottawa, Ont. K1A 0T6, Canada

Note: [1] The authors are grateful to Ronald Raby, Ravi Verma, Rosemary Bender and Ludvik Meduna for all their helpful comments.

Abstract: According to Canada's definition of international migratory movement, there are three categories of persons entering Canada: landed immigrants; visitors; and returning Canadian citizens and permanent residents. Only those in the first category, however, are considered in official immigration statistics. As a result, Canada's data collection systems do not encompass all categories of immigrants as recommended by the United Nations. This paper presents the results of the first comprehensive attempt to enhance Canada's immigration statistics so as to comply with United Nations recommendations. It examines estimates for two categories of long-term immigrants, namely: long-term residents with temporary status; and Canadian citizens and permanent residents returning from abroad. The estimation procedures involve extensive operations on three Canadian administrative data systems: the Visitors Immigration Data System of Employment and Immigration Canada; the Family Allowances Files of Health and Welfare Canada; and the Customs and Excise Files of Revenue Canada. These data are used to produce the number of immigrants in both of the neglected categories, as well as to calculate the geographic (origin and destination) and demographic (sex, age, marital status) structures of these groups. Results of the analysis of estimates for the period 1982–1988 show that, due to their size and characteristics, both of these neglected categories of immigrants constitute a significant part of immigration to Canada, and their importance has and will continue to increase over time.

DOI: 10.3233/SJU-1990-7303

Journal: Statistical Journal of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, vol. 7, no. 3, pp. 175-204, 1990