Date: October 8, 2026
Reporter: Emilly Jordan
Canada granted permanent residence to fewer people during the first seven months of 2026 than it did during the same period last year, but new Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada data shows that the decline was not evenly distributed among countries of citizenship.
According to data published by IRCC, Canada granted permanent resident status to 222,625 people between January and July 2026, compared with 246,580 during the same period in 2025. That represents a decline of 23,955 permanent residents, or about 9.7 per cent year over year.
The decline comes as Canada works within its 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan, which sets a target of 380,000 permanent residents for 2026. IRCC's reporting also shows that some permanent residence admissions in 2026 are being delivered through one-time initiatives outside the regular Immigration Levels Plan.
Despite the overall reduction, several countries recorded substantial increases in the number of their citizens granted Canadian permanent residence during the first seven months of 2026.
Turkey recorded the largest increase. The number of Turkish citizens granted permanent residence rose from 1,050 between January and July 2025 to 2,995 during the same period in 2026. That was an increase of 1,945 people, or 185.2 per cent.
Iran recorded the second-largest increase, with permanent residents rising from 4,175 to 5,495, an increase of 1,320 people or 31.6 per cent.
Nigeria also recorded a significant increase. Nigerian citizens granted permanent residence rose from 10,450 during the first seven months of 2025 to 11,565 in 2026. The increase of 1,115 people represented growth of 10.7 per cent.
The increase is notable because Nigeria was already one of Canada's largest sources of new permanent residents by country of citizenship. The latest figures moved Nigeria into fourth place among countries of citizenship for permanent residence admissions during the January-to-July period.
Sudan and Syria also recorded increases of more than 1,000 permanent residents each. Sudanese citizens receiving permanent residence rose from 2,565 to 3,640, an increase of 41.9 per cent, while Syrian citizens increased from 2,195 to 3,260, representing growth of 48.5 per cent.
Mexico recorded an increase of 875 permanent residents, rising from 3,265 to 4,140. Uganda recorded one of the largest percentage increases, with permanent residence admissions rising from 395 to 1,100, an increase of 178.5 per cent.
Other countries that recorded increases included Sri Lanka, Iraq, Ghana, Nepal, Bangladesh, Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Yemen, Peru, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Jordan and people whose country of citizenship was recorded as the Palestinian Authority.
Kenya's numbers increased from 670 permanent residents in the first seven months of 2025 to 1,010 in the same period of 2026, while Burundi rose from 600 to 900 and Rwanda from 595 to 795.
The figures also show that Canada's permanent residence intake is changing in composition even as the overall number declines. However, the country-of-citizenship data does not establish why the number of permanent residents from any particular country increased or decreased.
IRCC's dataset records people who were granted permanent resident status according to their country of citizenship. It does not mean that every person counted arrived in Canada directly from that country. Some people may already have been living in Canada temporarily before becoming permanent residents.
At the same time, several major countries experienced substantial declines.
India remained Canada's largest country of citizenship for new permanent residents, but the number of Indian citizens granted permanent residence fell sharply, from 68,690 between January and July 2025 to 53,285 during the same period in 2026. The reduction of 15,405 people represented a 22.4 per cent decline.
That single-country decrease accounted for approximately 64 per cent of Canada's entire year-over-year decline of 23,955 permanent residents.
India's share of Canada's total permanent residence admissions also fell. Indian citizens accounted for approximately 27.9 per cent of all permanent residents granted status during the first seven months of 2025, compared with approximately 23.9 per cent during the same period in 2026.
France experienced another significant decline. French citizens granted permanent residence fell from 7,385 to 4,295, a decrease of 3,090 people or 41.8 per cent.
Eritrea recorded a decline of 2,285, falling from 6,195 to 3,910 permanent residents. Cameroon declined by 1,690, while China fell by 1,620, from 13,490 to 11,870.
Other notable decreases were recorded among citizens of Morocco, Afghanistan, Tunisia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Haiti, Algeria, South Korea, Brazil, Ethiopia, the United States, Mauritius, the Philippines, Ivory Coast and Lebanon.
The Philippines was among the countries where the decline was comparatively small. Permanent residence admissions to Filipino citizens fell from 16,325 to 16,005, a decrease of only about 2 per cent.
Because the overall Canadian total declined more sharply, the Philippines' proportion of Canada's permanent residence admissions increased slightly despite the small decline in its actual numbers.
The latest figures also highlight the difference between Canada's immigration targets and the nationality composition of people actually receiving permanent residence.
Canada's immigration levels are set nationally and are divided among broad immigration categories rather than being established as simple country-specific quotas. Country-of-citizenship figures can therefore rise or fall depending on the mix of applications processed through economic, family, humanitarian and other immigration pathways.
IRCC's country-level data alone cannot determine which immigration program caused a particular country's increase or decline. A separate breakdown by country of citizenship and immigration category is required to establish whether changes were concentrated in economic immigration, family sponsorship, refugee and protected-person admissions, or other categories.
The figures also do not mean that citizens of countries recording increases have been given a special entitlement to permanent residence. Applicants must still meet the requirements of the immigration program under which they apply.
For prospective immigrants, the data instead provides a snapshot of how Canada's permanent resident intake has changed during the first seven months of 2026. While the national number is lower than in 2025, the movement differs substantially from one country of citizenship to another.
The strongest increase came from Turkey, while Nigeria, Iran, Sudan, Syria, Mexico and several African and Middle Eastern countries also recorded notable growth. India remained the largest source of new permanent residents but experienced the largest numerical decline by far.
The figures are based on permanent resident admissions recorded by IRCC and should not be interpreted as a measure of how many people physically entered Canada from each country during the period.