Pre-arrival settlement services are key to setting newcomers up for success in Canada. They provide newcomers with the information and support they need to make informed decisions about their new lives in Canada before they arrive, which helps them successfully transition to their communities and find work faster.

“Ensuring that immigrants are able to receive high-quality and reliable information results in better decision-making and an easier transition to Canada. With our investment and continuing support, Collège La Cité will be able to provide more individuals with services such as pre-departure assistance and integration programs once they arrive in Canada. The success of newcomers relies on Canada’s continuing commitment to provide state-of-the-art accessible services.”

– The Honourable Mona Fortier, President of the Treasury Board

“Providing services to newcomers before they arrive in Canada is critical to successful integration. These services help newcomers make decisions about the life they want to live in Canada as early as possible in their immigration journey and helps them contribute to the economy more quickly. The success of newcomers in Canada is down to the hard work and efforts of groups like the Colleges and Institutes Canada and Collège La Cité. Ensuring that early success, especially for the Francophone community, is critical to our economy and ensuring long-term prosperity for Canada and its people.”

– Marie-France Lalonde, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

“I am delighted that La Cité can actively contribute to the socio-economic integration of French-speaking immigrants. Thanks to Connexions francophones, a unique portal registration and referral system, our pan-Canadian partnership offers a seamless, redundancy-free pathway for Francophone immigrants. Newcomers are efficiently directed to regional partner organizations, employability services and post-arrival settlement services. We are pleased that newcomers who have participated in our various employability activities, such as our virtual job fairs, are well prepared to enter the Canadian job market, and they begin working quickly following their arrival in the country.”

– Lise Bourgeois, President and CEO, Collège La Cité

“We are very proud to be a pre-arrival service delivery partner for newcomers to Canada. Since 2007, Planning for Canada has helped more than 59,000 newcomers and their families make informed decisions and arrive with confidence. Investments in newcomers are investments in our communities.”

– Denise Amyot, President and CEO, Colleges and Institutes Canada

• As announced on May 11, 2023, the Minister approved a two-year extension of pre­arrival contribution agreements from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2025. Through these agreements, funding for 15 service provider organizations totals over $60 million until 2025. 

• Today’s funding announcement is part of over $60 million in pre-arrival settlement funding invested across Canada. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s pre-arrival services program maximizes the economic and social integration of newcomers by

  • directly connecting clients with the information and services they need through a streamlined, easy-to-navigate process
  • encouraging newcomers to apply for recognition of their foreign credentials before they arrive, if needed
  • linking clients to federal and provincial settlement services in Canada

• In total, 15 service provider organizations will receive additional funding to support pre-arrival services. These organizations serve clients in the country of origin and are based in British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario and internationally.

• Canada has funded pre-arrival services since 1998. While initially only provided to refugees, services were expanded to include other categories of immigrants in 2001.

Related products

• News release – Investing in pre-arrival services for newcomers

Contacts for media only:

Bahoz Dara Aziz 
Press Secretary
Minister’s Office
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Bahoz.DaraAziz@cic.gc.ca

Media Relations
Communications Branch
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
613-952-1650
media@cic.gc.ca