No, Trudeau didn’t announce three-year immigration ‘freeze’ for Canada | Fact check
The claim: Justin Trudeau announced three-year ‘freeze’ on immigration to Canada
A Nov. 18 X post (direct link, archive link) by Students for Trump founder Ryan Fournier claims Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has vowed to stop all immigration to Canada temporarily.
“BREAKING: Justin Trudeau just announced a 3-year freeze on accepting immigrants into Canada,” reads the post in part.
It was reposted more than 9,000 times in two weeks. Similar posts were shared on Facebook and Instagram.
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Our rating: False
Trudeau announced that Canada would reduce the number of immigrants admitted to the country over the next few years. He hasn’t said immigration would "freeze" or stop entirely.
Trudeau announced plan to reduce immigration to Canada, not ‘freeze’ it
While the X post presents the claim as breaking news, it’s an apparent reference to Trudeau's announcement about a month earlier when he said Canada would “significantly reduce the number of immigrants” coming to the country for the next two years.
“This is temporary – to pause our population growth and let our economy catch up,” Trudeau wrote in an Oct. 24 X post. “We have to get the system working right for all Canadians.”
However, Trudeau hasn’t called the new measures a “freeze,” nor has he said it would completely halt immigration to the country.
Canada previously said it would admit 500,000 new permanent residents in each of the next two years. But now it plans to allow only 395,000 in 2025 and 380,000 in 2026, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the government department that administers the country’s immigration system.
Canada also plans to reduce the number of temporary residents to 5% of the country’s population by the end of 2026, and it sets a target of 365,000 permanent residents in 2027.
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In a nearly seven-minute YouTube video, Trudeau explains the steps being taken to reduce immigration to the country, saying Canada’s population has grown quickly since the pandemic and “bad actors like fake colleges and big chain corporations” have exploited its immigration system.
“When the post-pandemic boom cooled and businesses no longer needed the additional labor help, as a federal team, we could have acted quicker and turned off the taps faster,” he said.
Trudeau has dismissed calls from some members of his party not to seek a fourth term amid criticism of his immigration policies and a rising cost of living, The Associated Press reported.
President-elect Donald Trump echoed the claim in an Oct. 24 post on Truth Social, saying, “Even Justin Trudeau wants to close Canada’s Borders.” Trudeau met with Trump in Florida on Nov. 29 after Trump said he would enact a 25% tariff on products from Canada and Mexico, as Paste BN previously reported.
Paste BN reached out to Fournier for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Reuters also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources
- Justin Trudeau, Oct. 24, X post
- Justin Trudeau (YouTuve), Oct. 24, Why Canada’s changing its immigration system
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, Oct. 24, Government of Canada reduces immigration
- The Associated Press, Oct. 24, Canada will reduce immigration targets as Trudeau acknowledges his policy failed
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