The population of Metro Vancouver is expected to grow at a slower pace than projected due to recent federal immigration policy changes.
According to Metro Vancouver, the region is estimated to grow by an annual average of 42,500 net new residents.
It is projected to reach a population of 4.1 million people by 2050, which is a decrease of 50,000 from the projection in 2024.
“Metro Vancouver remains a region that is growing steadily, and our regularly updated projections ensure we continue to plan responsibly for housing, infrastructure, and services that support our growing and diverse communities,” Mike Hurley, chair of Metro Vancouver’s Board of Directors, said in a statement.
Last year, the federal government announced it was introducing restrictions to the temporary foreign worker program (TFW).
The government said it will refuse applications for low-wage temporary foreign workers in regions with an unemployment rate of six per cent or higher.
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A low-wage job is defined as one that pays below the median hourly wage in the province where the job is located.
For employers, there will be a cap of 10 per cent of employees coming from the low-wage stream of the TFW program and a reduction of the maximum duration of employment from two years to one, according to the Employment and Social Development Canada.
“This does have implications on housing policy and utility planning across the region with this new information,” Jonathan Cote, Deputy General Manager, Regional Planning and Housing Development for Metro Vancouver, told Global News.
“The region is still growing but it is at a much slower rate and it does have planning implications and policy implications in the region.”
According to Metro Vancouver, growth is expected to slow in the region between 2025 and 2027 due to fewer non-permanent residents, before returning to more stable growth.
Immigration remains the primary driver of population growth in Metro Vancouver over the long term and is set to account for 90 per cent of the growth from 2024 to 2051.
Metro Vancouver’s projections are a critical planning tool used by member jurisdictions, TransLink, and other regional agencies to estimate future demand for land, housing, jobs, utilities, and transit.
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