Immigrants in rural Canada: an update

This bulletin, which uses data from the 2001 Census of Population, updates the report "Immigrants in rural Canada" released in December 2002.

This update confirms trends reported earlier, and adds details regarding the popular rural municipalities or regions where many immigrants are deciding to live.

Across Canada, rural regions attracted about 12,000 immigrants in each of 2001 and 2002, down from a peak of 23,000 in 1993. Rural regions that attracted the most immigrants did so through cultural connections and employment availability.

New immigrants who arrived in rural regions between 1996 and 2001 were much more likely to have completed high school and have a university degree, but were less likely to be employed compared with other immigrant groups and the Canadian-born.

The employment difficulties of immigrants arriving in Canada were even more pronounced in the predominantly rural regions. New immigrants in rural regions were less likely to work in professional services and trades and industrial occupations. They were also more likely to work in sales and services and primary sector occupations.

New immigrant women have the greatest gap in female–male employment rates compared with all other immigrant groups and the Canadian-born.

The Rural and small town Canada analysis bulletin, Vol. 5, no. 4, entitled "Immigrants in rural Canada: 2001 update"  (21-006-XIE, free) is now available. From the Our products and services page, under Browse our Internet publications, choose Free, then Agriculture.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Roland Beshiri (613-951-6506, roland.beshiri@statcan.gc.ca), or Ray D. Bollman (306-379-4431, ray.bollman@statcan.gc.ca), Agriculture Division.