Hong Kong migration to Canada soars to levels unseen since 1998, as ‘domino effect’ draws workers, students, returnees
- More than 22,500 Hongkongers received Canadian permanent residency, work or study permits in 2021, up 256 per cent from 2019
- About a third received open work permits created in the wake of the national security law, but data shows the exodus spread to other visa categories
Migration from Hong Kong to Canada has soared to levels not seen since 1998, the year after the city’s handover to China, according to new data.
The exodus from the territory comes after Ottawa set up new exit routes for young Hongkongers in response to the crackdown on anti-government protests in 2019 and Beijing’s imposition of a national security law in 2020.
But the flow of Hongkongers to Canada has cascaded through other immigration and visa categories too, the data shows.
Large numbers of Hongkongers have been leaving since the introduction of the national security law against secession, subversion of state power, terrorism and foreign interference. Critics say the law has suppressed dissent and eroded freedom in the city.
Canada became a popular destination for Hongkongers before the handover, and the new data depicts another surge across the Pacific.
