The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Diane Finley recently announced new federal funding to assist in the settlement and integration of new comer immigrants to Canada. the new funding of $121.6 million will be provided over the next three years. This funding is in addition to the $1.3 billion provided in Budget 2006, bringing the total investment to more than $1.4 billion over a five-year period.

On December 7, 2007 The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Diane Finley announced a $38 million in funding for 15 partner agencies in the Halton and Peel Regions of Greater Toronto Area to deliver settlement and integration services to immigrants in the community. This funding, will help more than 150,000 newcomers access settlement services including help finding a job through employment related services, orientation, translation and interpretation services; help with referrals to community resources; and counselling services.

National headquarters of Citizenship and Immigration Canada is issuing a national Call for Proposals for the following 2 programs:

• programs and services to support the settlement and integration of newcomers into Canadian society
• refugee resettlement and assistance programs.

Proposed activities must meet the criteria identified in one of the following areas: Overseas Activities; Needs Assessments; Resettlement; Service Bridging; Language/Skills Development; and Social Engagement.

According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada's 2009 Annual Report, Canada is actually maintaining its immigration levels to meet the country's medium- to long-term economic needs. While other countries have cut back immigration levels as a short-term response to the global economic downturn, Canada is actually maintaining its immigration levels.

In accordance with the Access to Information Act (ATI), information can be obtained on immigration records held by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. ATI reports have valuable information on the processing of your Canadian permanent and temporary residence applications. It is not the same as the e-Client found on CIC website, which provides very limited information on the status of your file.

To protect the health and safety of Canadians, as well as reduce and prevent excessive demand on Canada's health and social services system permanent or temporary resident applicants may be required to undergo a medical exam. Your dependants must also pass a medical examination if they are coming with you or even if they are not coming with you. Applications for permanent residence will not be accepted if that person's health..

Canada's new government has announced support and funding for a project organized by Carrefour d'immigration rurale (CIR) Evangeline in Wellington, P.E.I. (Canadian Province of Prince Edward Island), to assist in attracting immigrants to this rural Francophone community. A funding of $49,150 provided by Canada's New Government through the Official Languages Action Plan, is being used for a number of activities including community and school awareness programs..

Most newcomers and immigrants to Canada tend to settle in the three biggest cities which are Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Many newcomers have also choosen to live in the medium-sized cities, which they feel have as much to offer as the larger cities with a better quality of life. Of the 1.1 million immigrants who landed in Canada between 2001 and 2006, about 70 per cent settled in one of the "big three" cities..

The point system is one of the selection tools used to determine if you are eligible to apply for Immigration to Canada. It is assessed on six main factors including age, education, work experience, language ability and adaptability. The maximum possible score is 100. If your score is the same or higher than the pass mark, then you may qualify to immigrate to Canada in the selected category.

On August 24th, Canada's Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced the implementation of the redesigned permanent resident (PR) card. The PR card will be in circulation beginning today. The new card contains micro-lettering and fine line patterns that are resistant to copying, similar to banknotes. Also, the card holder's photograph and personal details are recorded on a bar code in an encrypted format that may only be read by authorized officials.