Canada welcomed 247,202 new permanent residents in 2008. 193,061 temporary foreign workers and 79,459 foreign students also arrived. The combined total was 519,722 newcomers for the year.

Of Canada’s 34 million people, over 6 million are immigrants. The largest numbers of immigrants arriving in Canada currently come from China, India and the Philippines. 18 percent of Canada’s population are immigrants. 3 million immigrants live in Ontario, 1 million in British Columbia and 700,000 in Quebec.