On October 20, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) published a comprehensive update to its key immigration statistics on its official “Inside IRCC’s application processing system” page, covering application processing, temporary and permanent resident volumes, and asylum claim trends through August 31, 2026.
The headline finding: between January and August 2026, Canada recorded 63% fewer combined student and worker arrivals than during the same months in 2024 — a decline of 326,900 new student and worker arrivals. The release paints a picture of a system undergoing deliberate contraction in temporary migration alongside targeted acceleration in permanent settlement.
On the permanent side, 216,600 people received permanent resident status under the Immigration Levels Plan during the period, and two separate one-time initiatives (including the In-Canada Workers Initiative and protected-persons processing) have already transitioned tens of thousands of additional applicants. Asylum claims dropped 68% compared with the same period in 2024, and citizenship processing continued at pace, with nearly 218,000 new Canadians sworn in through August (217,960 through grants alone).
For prospective immigrants, the message is clear: temporary streams are tightening, but permanent residence pathways — Express Entry, PNPs, AIP, RCIP and FCIP — keep moving. A strong, well-prepared application matters more than ever.
If Canada PR is your goal, get in touch with ImmiQuest Immigration for an eligibility assessment: call +1 778-855-4155, email info@immiquest.ca, or visit https://immiquest.ca. Vikas Tulashyam, RCIC #R709710.