Question Period Note: SETTLEMENT SERVICES

Update on how IRCC supports settlement services for immigrants.

• Canada is recognized as a world leader in the settlement and integration of newcomers.

• The federal government is investing approximately $1.2B in 2024-25 to support the settlement needs of newcomers (outside of Quebec). This investment recognizes that strong settlement services provide newcomers a solid foothold to contribute to Canadian society.

• We are not alone in this work: we rely on the extensive network of partners and organizations that deliver services to help newcomers build new lives in Canada.

• The department launched a Call for Proposals on November 14, 2023, inviting settlement service providers across the country to propose projects and initiatives to continue this important work.

If pressed:
• Many newcomers, such as refugees, arrive in Canada with unique medical needs as a result of their lived experiences. To complement provincial/territorial health care provision, the department funds settlement provider organizations to deliver non-clinical, mental health-related supports to newcomers. This includes short-term counselling, as well as referrals to community-based health services and information to promote mental health awareness.

If pressed CFP:
• The deadline to submit an application to the CFP 2024 for settlement and resettlement assistance funding was January 31, 2024. The department received almost 1,500 proposals from organizations and the department is currently reviewing the proposals with the expectation of communicating the results of the CFP over the course of the fall.
• The department will ensure that new funding agreements are in place by April 1, 2025.

• Canada is recognized internationally for its inclusive policies that support diversity and for its unique two-way approach to integration. One objective of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act Section 3 (1) (e) is “to promote the successful integration of permanent residents into Canada, while recognizing that integration involves mutual obligations for new immigrants and Canadian society”.

• Canada has a managed immigration model that includes setting annual immigration levels, selecting immigrants, supporting their settlement in the early years after arrival, facilitating the acquisition of Canadian citizenship and assisting with long-term integration. The ultimate goal is for newcomers to fully participate in the economic, social, cultural and political life of Canada.

Settlement services for newcomers in Canada

• All permanent residents (including protected persons, such as resettled refugees) are eligible to receive settlement services in English or French, until they become Canadian citizens. Temporary residents, asylum seekers and Canadian citizens are generally not eligible for federally-funded settlement services.

• Federally-funded settlement services are delivered in many languages by more than 550 third-party service provider organizations across Canada (excluding Quebec, where services are determined by the Canada-Quebec Accord). This includes close to 80 Francophone service providers in Francophone-minority communities.

• Through these organizations, newcomers can access the following federally-funded settlement services multiple languages including English or French:

• Needs and assets assessments and referrals;
• Information and orientation, both pre- and post-arrival to Canada;
• Language training
• Employment-related services;
• Community connections to build social cohesion and allow newcomers to develop a sense of belonging; and
• Additional support services to encourage uptake and remove barriers to accessing settlement services, including child care, transportation, translation, interpretation, short-term counselling and provision of services for newcomers with disabilities.

Newcomer mental health and well-being

• While health care is a provincial/territorial responsibility, federally-funded settlement services also offer newcomers a number of non-clinical mental health and well-being supports. Some federally-funded settlement provider organizations deliver short-term counselling as well as community-based health information that promotes mental health awareness and access to health care services, in addition to referrals to community health services.

• In addition, the federal Settlement Program offers Case Management as a client-centered, comprehensive approach to service delivery for newcomers facing persistent and multiple barriers to integration, which includes a tailored settlement plan, supported by coordinated referrals to settlement and community services.

• The department also partners with organizations such as the Canadian Mental Health Association and the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health to help institutions such as hospitals and community health centers better address newcomers’ mental health needs.

Supporting specific populations

• Targeted programming and supports are available to specific newcomer populations that face distinct barriers to integration. Targeted programming contributes to departmental commitments to Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus), and to priorities such as Anti-Racism, Gender Equality, and addressing inequities for diverse populations. It also provides an opportunity to design or enhance services to meet the needs of specific newcomer client populations facing distinct barriers to settlement and integration (e.g., programming exclusively intended for women, seniors, youth, 2SLGBTQI+ populations, racialized newcomers, people with a disability, and to address issues such as sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), and mental health)

• As part of the recent call for proposals, the department invited applications under a new Equity Stream. Under this stream, the department will provide funding to a limited number of intermediaries to support lower-capacity, grassroots organizations that serve and are led by equity-deserving populations to enhance these organizations’ capacity to apply for and be successful in future departmental funding processes. The Call for Proposals also invited applications for indirect service provision to build capacity of Service Provider Organizations in equity, diversity and inclusion.

Special measures in response to the situation in Ukraine

• In March 2022, the Department introduced the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET) to offer a pathway to temporary residence to Ukrainians and their family members fleeing Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which provided them with options to work, study or simply stay in Canada for up to three years. Intake of overseas applications under the CUAET closed on July 15, 2023.

• In April 2022, the Settlement Program’s Terms and Conditions, which typically only provide service eligibility to permanent residents, were amended to temporarily extend eligibility to Ukrainian temporary residents and their family members until March 31, 2023 (later extended until March 31, 2025).
o The extension of federally-funded settlement service eligibility to these individuals, allows for those fleeing the invasion to fully participate in Canadian communities. These services include activities that promote connections with communities, provide information about life in Canada including how to obtain longer term housing, language training and employment.
o Between April 2022 and June 2024, 159,339 unique Ukrainian and CUAET clients accessed settlement services provided by service provider organizations funded by the department.

• CUAET holders who arrived in Canada by March 31, 2024, were also eligible for temporary accommodations of up to 14 nights and the ability to apply by June 30, 2024, for transitional financial assistance ($3,000 per adult, 1,500 for those 17 years old and under), to help meet their basic needs.
• To support family reunification for those who want to remain in Canada, in October 2023, the department launched the family reunification pathway to permanent residence. In addition to the family reunification pathway, Ukrainians can apply for permanent residence through various immigration programs and streams, including economic pathways and through family sponsorship.

Special measures in response to the situation in Israel and the Palestinian Territories

• The department will communicate with clients coming to Canada to advise them of the services that they are eligible for.

Housing availability and affordability for newcomers

• The government recognizes that the lack of affordable and available housing is affecting both Canadians and newcomers.

• For newcomers, housing is a key component in their successful settlement and integration, which allows them to achieve the long-term social and economic benefits of immigration.

• In January 2024, the department announced an additional $362.4 million in funding for the Interim Housing Assistance Program (IHAP) as part of the 2023–2024 fiscal year. This is in addition to the $212 million in national funding made available in July 2023 through IHAP. Through the IHAP, the Government of Canada provides funding to provincial and municipal governments, on a cost-sharing basis, to address extraordinary interim housing pressures resulting from increased volumes of asylum claimants.
• In collaboration with settlement service providers in communities across Canada, as well as federal and provincial and territorial partners, the department will continue to provide information to newcomers to assist them with finding housing.

• To better support government-assisted refugees and other eligible clients, the department funds immediate and essential services under the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP). These services are generally provided during the first four to six weeks of an eligible clients’ arrival in Canada and include temporary accommodation and assistance finding permanent accommodation. Eligible clients may also receive income support, which includes a one-time start-up payment to help clients set up a new home, as well as monthly income support generally for one year for shelter and other basic needs.

• The Settlement Program also plays an important role in increasing the supply of housing by supporting the successful integration of newcomers into the Canadian labour market, including in the skilled trades and construction sector, through a suite of employment-related services funded by the department.

Opportunities for newcomers to learn French

• The department’s Settlement Program promotes both of Canada’s official languages by funding language training across the country (outside Québec) in French or English, to meet the needs of newcomers settling in Canada. Programming is designed to be flexible and accessible to all permanent residents and other eligible clients, through full- or part-time classes, in classroom, online or hybrid classes. To facilitate participation, training is offered to newcomers in tandem with support services such as care for their children and transportation.

• With the new Policy on Francophone Immigration launched in January 2024, the department continues to strengthen its work across the immigration continuum, including in support of the successful settlement, resettlement and integration of a growing number of French-speaking and bilingual newcomers in Francophone minority communities.

• The Government announced in April 2023 funding of $10.5 million for the period 2023-28 from the new Action Plan for Official Languages (2023-2028) to expand the availability of this programming.

• In addition, the government has committed $50 million over five years to further consolidate the Francophone integration pathway, which seeks to facilitate the settlement and integration of newcomers to Canada and bolster the reception capacity of Francophone minority communities. This will be achieved through existing initiatives, such as Welcoming Francophone Communities, and new measures, such as a strategy to better support French-speaking women immigrants.

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