Starting April 1, 2026, the federal government restricted eligibility for IRCC-funded settlement services for economic immigrants and their dependents to six years after obtaining permanent residence. This restriction will be tightened further to five years as of April 1, 2027, aimed at encouraging earlier service use, particularly for language training and employment. Reductions in the budget of the Settlement Program will also affect the availability of services, with IRCC needing to identify approximately $100M in savings for 2026-27 and further savings in the following two years. These changes are expected to present unique challenges for newcomers to small, medium, and remote communities, particularly secondary migrants. The workshop speakers will discuss the impact of these changes in the context of broader shifts across the sector, as well as the strategies that service providers in small, medium, and remote communities are using to adapt and respond.
Moderators: Natalya Brown, Nipissing University, and Carolyn Amantea, Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy
Our panel of speakers includes:
- Adam Amza, Settlement Services Manager, Lanark & Renfrew Counties Immigrant Settlement Services
- Saša Loggin, Executive Director, Skeena Diversity Society
- Miriam Ghitale, Settlement Manager and Coordinator, Portage Learning and Literacy Centre
- Leslie Seidle, Policy Analyst and Research Fellow, Institute for Research on Public Policy
The workshop is free, but registration is required.
This workshop is being conducted in English. Closed captioning in French will be provided.
To register for the workshop on July 28, please go to: https://bit.ly/ImpactofChangestoSettlementService