BRAMPTON, Ontario — An overnight Uber ride from Toronto Pearson Airport to the city usually guarantees a good fare for the driver. But not for Sachindeep Singh on September 19, when his Uber app stopped working just a few miles into the ride.
According to the criteria of
His work permit had expired and, like in Canada, Uber was laying him off.
Singh, 23, arrived in Canada as an international student in 2019. His immigration status allowed him to work and offered him a path to permanent residency.
But after inviting millions of newcomers to Canada in recent years to help stimulate the economy, the government changed course, fearing that Immigrants contribute to housing and health care challenges. A series of measures unveiled this year, centered on Canada's vast temporary residency program, have imposed barriers that have left hundreds of thousands of migrants in legal limbo.
International students, who after graduation are eligible for a work permit, represent an important category of temporary residents. Another group is made up of workers who come at the invitation of their employers.
He temporary residency program expanded after the coronavirus pandemic, as the Canadian economy struggled to fill labor shortages.
Therefore, Nearly 3 million people living in Canada have temporary immigration status, and 2.2 million arrived in the last two years alone, government statistics show. Temporary residents make up 6.8 percent of the country's total population of 41.3 million, up from 3.5 percent in 2022.
But the Canadian economy is now creating fewer jobs and unemployment, above 6 percent, remains stubbornly high. It is higher for temporary residents.
Many cities are facing a housing affordability crisis and several provinces have overburdened health systems. Critics say the large number of temporary residents is making these problems worse and that public opinion toward immigrants has changed.
In response, Marc Miller, the country's immigration minister, announced reductions in immigration quotas, including a reduction in student visas and a limit on the number of temporary foreign workers a company can employ. Expired or expiring work permits for many immigrants, like Singh, may not be renewed.
Polls show that most Canadians believe the country has welcomed too many newcomers recently.
The Bank of Canada has said that in areas of Canada popular with temporary residents, there is less rental housing than in areas with small numbers of such residents. But the bank blamed heavy government regulations and a lack of construction workers for the low availability of housing.
Singh and his family in India spent CA$40,000, or $30,000, to obtain degrees in office management and hotel management at a Canadian university, thinking it would guarantee a stable base in the country. Instead, he scrambles to find other options.
“Amateur introvert. Pop culture trailblazer. Incurable bacon aficionado.”
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