ARCHIVED – Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration, 2005

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Section 2
Federal-Provincial/Territorial Partnerships

Jurisdiction over immigration is shared between the federal government and the provinces and territories. Ongoing intergovernmental consultation and cooperation are critical aspects of managing the immigration program, related policies and legislative initiatives.

Under IRPA, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration has the authority to sign agreements with the provinces and territories to facilitate the coordination and implementation of immigration and refugee protection policies and programs. The provinces and territories also have legislation enabling them to enter into such agreements. CIC has signed comprehensive framework agreements with six provinces and one territory. These agreements outline responsibilities and include mechanisms for provincial and territorial involvement. In addition, they include a variety of annexes that provide for such measures as provincial delivery of settlement services (Quebec, Manitoba and British Columbia); full provincial powers of selection (Quebec); and provincial nomination of an agreed-upon number of individuals to fill regional or local economic and social needs (Manitoba, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island and Yukon). Bilateral agreements relating exclusively to provincial nominees are also in place with New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Alberta and Nova Scotia. Table 2 provides a list of these agreements, together with their signature dates and expiry dates.

The Canada-Quebec Accord relating to immigration and the admission of temporary residents, signed in 1991, is the most comprehensive bilateral agreement on immigration. Under the Accord, Quebec has the authority to set its own annual immigration targets, has sole responsibility for selecting immigrants who want to settle in the province (with the exception of members of the family class and refugees whose status is determined in Canada), and has full responsibility for providing orientation and integration services to new permanent residents.

There was considerable federal-provincial/territorial activity in 2004. The Agreement for Canada-British Columbia Co-operation on Immigration was signed on April 5, 2004, and amended on June 15, 2005. The Agreement, which replaces the original signed in 1998, recognizes the importance of immigration to British Columbia’s economic and social development, and commits the two levels of government to working together on the recruitment, selection, admission and control of immigrants, refugees, international students and temporary workers who settle in British Columbia. The Canada-Saskatchewan Immigration Agreement, originally signed in 1998, was renewed on May 7, 2005.

In May 2004, a Letter of Intent was signed between CIC and the Government of Ontario, highlighting immigration as a key area for bilateral collaboration. As a result of the Canada-Ontario Letter of Intent, negotiations toward a first-ever immigration agreement with Canada’s largest immigrant-receiving province were intensively pursued. The agreement with Ontario is expected to break new ground by confirming program objectives and investment priorities to address the full range of integration needs, including pre-arrival information and orientation, basic settlement services and language training.

In terms of international students, CIC has continued to expand the availability of a second year of post-graduation work, begun in 2003 through pilot projects with New Brunswick and Alberta. In the past year, CIC concluded agreements on pilot projects that make it easier for international students who graduate from a college or university in Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador, to work in those provinces for an extra year. The Department also signed new pilot projects to allow international students in New Brunswick and Quebec (except for those in Montreal and Québec City) to work off campus, building on the original pilot with Manitoba in 2003. In addition, CIC supported small regional projects in British Columbia and Manitoba, the results of which will be shared with other jurisdictions.

In an effort to enhance the integration of immigrants into the Canadian work force, CIC entered into bilateral arrangements with Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Nova Scotia and the Yukon to jointly fund new labour market language initiatives. Alberta and CIC agreed on establishing a joint process for reviewing and funding Enhanced Language Training (ELT) projects in the province in 2004–2005. The Department also joined with several provinces in leading workshops across the country to help further define a comprehensive and complementary strategy on the development of an immigration portal which can help to disseminate information about working in Canada to immigrants and potential immigrants abroad. (See Section 5 for further details on these special integration initiatives.)

Through regular bilateral and multilateral interaction at the ministerial and official levels, CIC continues to maintain solid partnerships with the provinces and territories. Federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for immigration met in November 2004 and July 2005 to discuss plans to develop the foundations for a more responsive immigration program that includes stronger partnerships between federal and provincial/territorial governments, and opportunities for increased participation from large and small cities and communities, employers and other interested parties. Program and policy questions were also broached at meetings of federal, provincial and territorial working groups considering a range of issues, including promotion and recruitment, provincial nominees, settlement and integration, business immigration and international students.

Table 2: Federal-Provincial/Territorial Agreements

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