The Canadian government aims to address some of the key concerns in the 2024 Federal Budget that newcomers to Canada and residents face today. These concerns include affordable housing, solutions for the housing crisis, and addressing the increasing costs of living in Canada.
Canada is a diverse country with many immigrants, and this remains the area of focus in every annual federal budget. According to Statista, around 5 lakh new immigrants come to Canada annually, one of the world’s highest population-wise rates. It has over eight million immigrants with permanent residence cards in Canada which comprise 20 percent of the total Canadian population in 2023.
Canada continues to attract more immigrants and protect their rights with affordable housing and other means. If you want to immigrate to Canada Immigration Consultant Dubai can help you in the entire application process for permanent residence in Canada.
Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Finance, Canada, tabled the federal Budget 2024 to Parliament on April 16, 2024. The annual budget tells about the government plan on spending and priorities for the fiscal year. It also outlines where taxpayer money will be spent, including education, healthcare, infrastructure, and social and care economy programs.
The budget announcements include a Renters Bill of Rights and more funding for the Apartment Construction Loan Program, taking the total to $55 billion, according to CIC news report. It encourages developers to construct more apartments and rental housing, including residences for students and long-term care facilities.
Home buyers can use $60,000 from their RRSPs towards purchasing their first home, almost double the previous maximum of $35,000. They will also have five years to begin repaying them.
Costs of rental houses have increased dramatically across the country in recent years, and purchasing a home has become difficult for many Canadian residents.
Temporary residents and international students are one of the contributing factors to the housing shortage in Canada. To address housing shortages it set a target for the number of temporary residents and international students in Canada in the Immigration Levels Plan.
The government plans to reduce the number of temporary residents by up to 600,000 over the next three years. This is expected to reduce demand for Canada’s limited supply of housing.
Newcomers ordinarily arrive in Canada with no credit score and no credit history. Canada’s government plans to introduce measures allowing residents to use their rental payments to increase their credit scores. Newcomers can grow their credit score and history more quickly after landing in Canada with on-time rental payments. It will be vital in securing loans in Canada and finding a rental property. Renters also get protection from steep rent increases and renovictions.
Foreign Credential Recognition
The Canadian government plans to invest $50 million in 2024 and 2025 to upgrade the Foreign Credential Recognition Program. This program provides immigrants with training, wage subsidies, work placements, and mentoring.
The government has allotted a minimum of $25 million to streamline the recognition of foreign credentials for the construction industry. This will enable skilled foreign workers to build more homes, which is necessary considering the high demand for workers and the high number of job vacancies in this sector. The remaining funding will be directed towards the healthcare sector.
Newcomers working in these sectors can expect to see changes that will make it easier to come to Canada and start working in a professional setting with recognized foreign credentials.
