In 2021, immigrants represented almost one in four Canadians (23.0%), the highest proportion in over a century. Further, as in previous decades, the vast majority of immigrants could conduct a conversation in one or both of the country's official languages (English and French). For example, this was observed both in 1951 (96.1%) and in 2021 (93.6%).
Today, Statistics Canada is releasing two new tables of historical data on immigrant status and official languages, one on knowledge of official languages by immigrant status for the period from 1951 to 2021, and the other on first official language spoken by immigrant status for the period from 1971 to 2021.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).