More than 16,000 new Canadians were sworn in last month, a dramatic jump from the 8,250 new citizens of January 2013.
Last month, new citizens from 190 different countries were sworn in at 244 citizenship ceremonies held across Canada. According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), the investments made by the Canadian government in its Economic Action Plan 2013 were the primary reasons for the increase. CIC says the investments “helped make the system more efficient, and strengthened the integrity of the citizenship program.”
The numbers of new Canadians granted citizenship in both January, as well in all of 2013, are indicative of a long-standing trend of the nation’s high immigration rate. 10,745 individual immigrants were granted Canadian citizenship in 2013.
Over the last seven years, Canada’s immigration numbers have been continuously strong. Since 2006, the country has experienced an average of 257,000 newcomers each year.
As a result of this high level of immigration, CIC says there has also been a 30 percent spike in the demand for Canadian citizenship during that same period.