Immigrant

Status: This was the departmental standard from April 18, 2011 to February 14, 2016.

Definition

Immigrant refers to a person who is or has ever been a landed immigrant/permanent resident. A landed immigrant/permanent resident is a person who has been granted the right to live in Canada permanently by immigration authorities. Immigrants are either Canadian citizens by naturalization (the citizenship process) or permanent residents (landed immigrants) under Canadian legislation. Some immigrants have resided in Canada for a number of years, while others have arrived recently. Most immigrants are born outside Canada, but a small number are born in Canada.

Relation to previous version

• Immigrant July 31, 2026 to current

  The definition of "immigrant" has been modified, but the meaning is unchanged.

• Immigrant February 15, 2016 to July 30, 2026

  The previous standard included additional statements on immigrants in the definition of the statistical unit. This standard removes these statements, resulting in a more concise definition.

• Immigrant April 18, 2011 to February 14, 2016

  This was the departmental standard from April 18, 2011 to February 14, 2016.