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Immigration Minister Jason Kenney visited Beijing recently one of the stops during his visit to Asia. He mentioned that China was "…the number one source country for immigrants to Canada…" The immigration minister went onto to say:
"Canada has benefited enormously from immigration from China."
Immigration Minister Kenney also had the following say about Chinese visitors to Canada:
- The first quarter of 2010 saw China ranked first in visas and extensions issued to visitors.
- There were14% more visitors from China in the first quarter of this year compared to the first quarter of 2009.
- There were 46% more visitors from China in the first quarter of 2009 compared to the first quarter of 2005.
Immigration Minister Kenney also had the following to say:
"That means more Chinese nationals are visiting their family here in Canada than ever before. With the implementation of the Approved Destination Status, which allows Chinese travel agents to advertise and organize tour groups to Canada, that number will only rise."
There has been a substantial increase in the number of students studying in Canada. There were 50,000 students living in Canada in 2009. This represents an increase in 300% in the number of Chinese students living in Canada in the last ten years. The Canadian immigration minister also had the following to say about Chinese students in Canada:
"We are committed to increasing the number of Chinese students attending Canadian colleges and universities;"
"…and in the course of my visit to Beijing, I made an important announcement about how our government will encourage even more students to study in Canada."
The Immigration minister mentioned that while Canadian Immigration wished to encourage immigration of genuine Chinese students, visitors and immigrants the Canadian Government also wanted to reduce levels of immigration fraud:
"While many consultants do good work, we want people to know that it's not necessary to hire a consultant to come to Canada."
"And with the help of the Chinese government, we want to put a stop to the ones who are engaging in fraud."
The list of cities around the World that the Immigration Minister Kenney included in his trip include, Paris, Delhi. Manila, Canberra and Sydney. This shows that Canada is serious about attracting the right sorts of immigrants from around the World.
