Backgrounder - Settlement funding allocations

Despite increases in immigration levels in the last decade, settlement funding has not risen substantially until recently. The 2006 budget provided additional funding of $307 million for settlement services over two years. This included $230 million for Ontario and $77 million for all other provinces and territories outside Quebec.

The allocation for Ontario is established in accordance with the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement signed in 2005, and includes the amounts announced in the 2006 budget ($86 million for 2006–07 and $144 million for 2007–08).

CIC consulted with the provinces and territories outside Ontario and Quebec to develop an approach to sharing the remaining $77 million fairly. The final formula includes a standard amount for each immigrant and an equal base amount per province or territory. This will help jurisdictions with relatively low levels of immigration to improve their infrastructure to provide better settlement services and eventually attract more immigrants.

The Department will negotiate contribution agreements with service provider organizations, except in Manitoba, British Columbia and Quebec, where funds are managed by the provincial governments. Several hundred organizations across the country could potentially benefit from funding through the contribution funding process managed in each region of the country.

The Canada-Quebec Accord, signed in 1991, provides the government of Quebec with an unconditional grant with an escalation factor. This gives Quebec responsibility for managing the integration services it provides to all new permanent residents. As such, Quebec is not part of the current allocation process.

Total settlement funding allocations for 2005–06, 2006–07 and 2007–08

The following chart indicates the total settlement funding for the provinces and territories outside Quebec. This includes a renewal of the basic settlement funding received in previous years, plus the additional $307 million announced in the 2006 budget.

* For Ontario, amounts are allocated as per the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement, which covers more programs than the breakdown above. The Agreement covers not only basic services but also funding for Enhanced Language Training, an Internet portal and administration costs for CIC. For 2006–07, this represents a total of $222,924,079, and for 2007–08, a total of $293 million.

Settlement funding history

The 2006 budget included an increase of $307 million in settlement funding for new immigrants over the next two years.