The number of international immigrants coming to Alberta in 2020 was 47% (20,736) smaller than the year before.
The inflow of international migrants to Alberta began to falter during the onset of the pandemic before contracting by 65% in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
The numbers started to improve at the tail end of 2020, but were still down by 21% compared to their pre-pandemic level as of the first quarter of 2021.
The number of international emigrants leaving Alberta ground to a halt during the early months of the pandemic with only 19 Albertans moving to other countries during the second quarter of 2020—a drop of 99% compared to the same quarter the year before.
Emigration levels have increased, but were still down by 21% during the first quarter of 2021 versus where they were over the same period in 2019 before the disruptive effects of the pandemic.
After accounting for returning emigrants, temporary emigrants and non-permanent residents, Alberta gained 24,911 people on a net basis from international movements in 2020 versus 48,805 in 2019.
As travel restrictions are eased, vaccination rates increase and the backlog of immigration paperwork is addressed, we should see the flow of international migrants in and out of Alberta return to pre-pandemic levels, but this could take until 2022.
Answer to the previous trivia question: Considering only the jobs at which individuals typically work the most hours (i.e. their main job), about 16% Alberta workers were self-employed as of June 2021. Today’s trivia question: Which star of the hit TV show “Family Ties” was born in Edmonton and now lives in New York?
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