We began the year with 1.2 million permits set to expire – Trudeau’s parting gift. Over 3,000 people losing status every day. By April, a federal election brought Mark Carney to power. His first act? Introducing anti-migrant legislation that would make deportations easier and strip rights faster.
Under the shadow of a tariff war that never really unfolded as it was predicted to – both major political parties competed to scapegoat migrants for the affordability crisis caused by an economy in freefall. Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives demanded an end to the temporary foreign workers program and called for military helicopters at the border. Carney’s Liberals were delighted to oblige.
Throughout the year, migrants were blamed for crises caused by landlords, speculators, and billionaires. Instead of choosing dignity and rights, both parties chose racism.
In the face of this assault, we fought back. Together, the Migrant Rights Network and migrant justice movements defended our communities. We mobilized 70+ cities on September 20. We exposed plans to let bosses steal $1.5 billion from workers. We led the fight against Bill C-12.
And we did this together – over 500 organizations joined us, and tens of thousands of you signed petitions, made phone calls, and took to the streets.
2025 Highlights
March – April: During the federal election, thousands of us sent emails to every candidate demanding rights, not cuts. We made migrant justice impossible to ignore.
June – December: From the day Bill C-2 was introduced, we organized against it. Hundreds of organizations signed a statement opposing it. We joined the Stop Bill C-2/C-12 Coalition. When the government renamed Bill C-2 and claimed it was “toned down,” we called the lie. We held press conferences after being shut out of committee hearings. We ran phone banks, email campaigns, and national webinars. We took action in Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto and beyond. And right now, we are calling on Senators to vote it down, while we prepare to defend ourselves if the law is implemented.
September 20, 2025: Over 70 cities mobilized for Draw the Line—uniting migrant justice with climate, Indigenous, anti-war, and labour movements against Carney’s agenda of cuts, surveillance, and scapegoating.
November 2025: Budget 2025 and immigration levels announced together – a first. The budget kept permanent residency at only 380,000 spots for 3 million people on temporary permits or without status. It slashed refugee spots by over 10,000 (on top of 14,000 cut in 2024), cut international student permits in half to 155,000, reduced temporary foreign worker visas by 22,000, and slashed refugee healthcare from $598M to $411M with co-pays added. Meanwhile 57,000 public sector jobs were cut, and $89 billion allocated for war. We joined the Canadian Association of Professional Employees, Council of Canadians, 350.org, and World Beyond War to demand opposition parties reject it.
Fighting for Status and Stopping Exploitation
Care Workers: After decades of organizing, care workers won permanent residency on arrival. We launched resources to protect workers from scams and help them apply. But the program opened capped at 5,500 spots, shutting out over 40,000 workers. We occupied federal offices. We demanded: no caps, regularization for those forced undocumented, clear the backlog.
Exposing “Reforms” That Deepen Abuse: In July, we released “Controls Not Protection”—514 migrant workers who responded to the government’s secret plans:
- Bosses empowered to steal 5-30% of wages ($15,600/year per worker)
- “Tied” permits rebranded but workers still trapped
- Housing guidelines vague and unenforceable
- Healthcare still blocked by employers
This new program has not been implemented yet because of our outcry – and we will continue to monitor it and respond.
Opposing Lies, Telling Truths
Throughout the year, we spoke up when political parties, particularly the Conservative Party, pushed lies:
Landlords caused the housing crisis – not migrants. Rent rose 4.5% even as student numbers dropped. We released videos and graphics breaking down the real culprits: speculators, weakened rent controls, and developers building luxury condos instead of affordable housing.
Bill C-2/C-12 is a mass deportation machine – not border security. We led the coalition warning about surveillance expansion, attacks on due process, restrictions on asylum, and powers to cancel permits for entire groups at once.
Migrants didn’t cause youth unemployment. Youth unemployment was 14.6% in 2025 vs. 13.4% average 2009-2025. Temporary foreign workers don’t work in ‘youth jobs’ and have been coming to Canada for over half a century. The real problem: bosses refusing to pay decent wages.
Trump’s tariff threats are a distraction. While politicians blamed migrants and militarized the border, we pointed to the real issue: billionaires getting richer while working people struggle. We intervened in the “Buy Canadian” debate – demanding that this must include defending migrant workers who grow and process our food.
Responded to polling: This year – we saw a number of polls that focused on how the public believes there are too many migrants. We showed how the people believe what they are being told even as 60% of newcomers are reporting facing racism and exploitation.
Rights, not numbers. We showed how the focus on the numbers of migrants is a way to distract from the rights of migrants. Without permanent status, migrants face abuse.
Joined with movements fighting for justice: We joined with climate, Indigenous sovereignty, worker rights, women’s rights, housing justice movement and more. When racism divides the working class, we all lose.
Forward to 2026
Following Carney’s election, we outlined ten demands for a system rooted in rights, dignity, and justice. We are calling for permanent resident status for all migrants — including undocumented people, an end to deportations and detention, and an end to employer-controlled immigration that traps people in abuse. We are fighting for real rights for care workers, farm and food workers, construction workers, and international students; fair wages and full labour protections; family unity; and the defense of refugee rights, including expanded resettlement and an end to the Canada–US Safe Third Country Agreement. Read our demands in full here: https://migrantrights.ca/2025demands/
We will continue to build power alongside labour unions, climate justice organizations, housing justice and anti-war movements to reject austerity politics that blames migrants while funding surveillance and war.
We will:
- Support migrant self-organization
- Do mass public education to counter xenophobia and build solidarity between all workers
- Push for policy changes that protect livelihoods and ensures permanent resident status
- Defend migrants and refugees against wage theft, abuse, deportations and more bad laws.
Together, Onwards
2025 showed our power. Over 70 cities united on September 20. Care workers occupied federal offices. Hundreds of organizations stood together. Thousands made calls, sent emails, took to the streets.
The line is clear: on one side, billionaires, politicians, corporate power. On the other: all of us.
2026 will demand more. But we’re ready. Onwards.