If you’re new to Canada or if you’re thinking of settling here, you’re not alone.

More than half a million newcomers — permanent residents, temporary workers, and foreign students — came to live in Canada in 2009.

That’s according to recently-released statistics from Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

These newcomers included 252,124 permanent residents — about 30,000 more permanent residents than the government typically admitted annually in the 1990s — as well as 178,640 temporary foreign workers and 85,131 foreign students, the largest number of foreign students ever admitted to Canada in a single year.

According to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada news release, the government expects that many foreign students and temporary workers (admitted to the country on a work permit) will eventually settle permanently in Canada, applying for permanent resident status either under the Canadian Experience Class or as a Skilled Worker or Professional.

The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is designed to streamline the immigration process for people who are already working in Canada. In general, you can apply under the CEC provisions if you are:

• a temporary foreign worker with at least two years of full-time (or equivalent) skilled work experience in Canada, or
• a foreign graduate from a Canadian post-secondary institution with at least one year of full-time (or equivalent) skilled work experience in Canada

To learn more about relocating to Canada, see our Getting Started guide, or get lots more details from Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

Photo by truekkris (flickr)