Permanent residents can now join Canadian army

Toronto, November 14

The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) have announced that permanent residents, of whom Indians form a large chunk, will now be allowed to enlist, as the military struggles with low recruitment levels, according to a media report.

The move came five years after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) announced that they’re changing their “outdated recruitment process” which will allow permanent residents who have lived in Canada for 10 years to apply, CTV News reported.

80 lakh immigrants in Canada

10L more to arrive during 2022-24

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Indians form a large chunk

1 lakh Indians got PR in 2021

The announcement came close to Remembrance Day, amid reports that the Canadian military is struggling to recruit new members to fill thousands of vacant positions.

As of 2021, there were more than 80 lakh immigrants with permanent residence living in Canada, roughly 21.5 per cent of the total population.

Nearly 1,00,000 Indians became permanent residents of Canada in 2021 as the country admitted a record 4,05,000 new immigrants in its history. One in five people coming to Canada was born in India, the data shows, making it the top country of birth for recent arrivals.

Canada is likely to welcome more than a million new permanent residents between 2022 and 2024, which drastically widens the pool of candidates the military can choose from.

Permanent residents were previously eligible only under the Skilled Military Foreign Applicant (SMFA) entry programme.

The CAF sounded alarm in September over a severe shortage of recruits to fill thousands of vacant positions, meeting about half the number of applicants it needs per month to meet the goal of adding 5,900 members this year.