On August 11, 2023, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Marc Miller, announced the tax-free First Home Savings Account for Canadians, aimed at helping first-time home buyers.
The account allows Canadians to contribute up to $8,000 per year (up to a lifetime limit of $40,000) for their first down payment within 15 years.
Contributions are tax-deductible, and withdrawals, including investment income, are non-taxable if used to purchase a first home.
Since April 1, 2023, seven financial institutions have already started offering the account, with more to follow.
#IRCC, #Miller, #housing, #First_Home_Savings_Account
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/minister-miller-highlights-tax-free-151700838.html
August 17, 2023
According to Themrise Khan, a professional researcher, Canada must confront racism in its society to keep attracting and retaining migrants, especially now that the government is looking to increase immigration targets.
Although there is public support for immigration, Khan argues that newcomers frequently encounter discrimination and surveillance, which may discourage them from staying in Canada.
To support her statement, she provides examples such as increased surveillance of certain immigrant groups, scrutiny of financial resources, and bias against migrant workers.
Ultimately, Canada needs to address racism to reap the economic benefits of immigration.
#Immigration_to_Canada, #racism
August 17, 2023
Newly arrived immigrants are having more difficulty finding jobs in Canada this year compared to 2022.
However, their employment prospects are still better than before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Statistics Canada's Labour Force Survey for July 2023.
The employment rate of recent core-aged immigrants (those who became landed immigrants in the previous five years) was 77.7%, down from 80% in July 2022.
Meanwhile, employment rates for older immigrants have remained steady. Although there was a year-over-year decline, the employment rate of recent core-aged immigrants in July 2023 remained higher than before the pandemic.
Across Canada, the employment rate remained unchanged, and the unemployment rate only increased slightly to 5.5%.
This is due to population growth outpacing employment growth from January to July 2023.
#Statistics_Canada, #statistics, #labour_force_survey, #employment
August 8, 2023
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) released a report on racism in the department.
According to the IRCC 2022-23 Anti-Racism Employee Qualitative Research, 63% of employees rated racism as a problem.
Racism is more prevalent in foreign postings than in local offices. Participants reported incidents of managers mocking accents, not understanding, ignoring Locally Engaged Staff, and avoiding removing problematic employees.
The study was conducted by Pollara Strategic Insights and surveyed 62 employees through online focus groups and interviews.
The participants included indigenous, black, non-black, racialized, and white employees. The report shows the need for strong intervention in the future.
#IRCC, #racism
August 8, 2023
