Thousands of Nigerians and other foreigners residing in Canada are at risk of losing their jobs as the country’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his intention to implement stricter rules to stop recruitment of non-Canadian job seekers.
The Prime Minister made this known in a post he shared on X on Wednesday, saying: “We’re going to have fewer temporary foreign workers in Canada.”
“We’re bringing in stricter rules for companies to prove why they can’t hire Canadian workers first,” he added.
This announcement comes barely two months after the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) ended a visitor-to-work permit policy.
The policy was introduced in August 2020 to assist visitors who were stranded due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Initially scheduled to expire on February 28, 2025, the policy provided a crucial avenue for foreign nationals, like Nigerians to obtain legal work status without leaving Canada.
However, the IRCC decided to terminate the policy in August, citing concerns over the increasing number of temporary residents and the need to protect the integrity of the immigration system.
“While the temporary policy was set to expire on February 28, 2025, the IRCC is ending the policy as part of our overall efforts to recalibrate the number of temporary residents in Canada and preserve the integrity of the immigration system,” the Canadian government stated.
Meanwhile, the Canadian government had earlier confirmed that over 71,459 Nigerians became citizens between 2005 and 2024, with still many more migrating to the country on daily basis.
This number ranks Nigeria 10th among countries of birth for new Canadian citizens.
According to IRCC data, while new Canadians hail from at least 196 countries and territories, the top 10 countries contribute nearly half of the new citizens.
Saharareporters
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