In 1947, Canada became the first Commonwealth country to gain its own citizenship act when the Canadian Citizenship Act took effect on Jan. 1.
Prior to that, Canadians were considered British subjects residing in Canada, not Canadian citizens.
Prime Minister Mackenzie King had the honour of receiving the first Canadian citizenship certificate.
Canada's cultural mosaic at a glance, according to the 2006 census:
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Those born outside the country account for 19.8 per cent of Canada's population, the highest level in 75 years.
- Only Australia, at 22.2 per cent, surpasses Canada in terms of the immigrant percentage. Canada outranks the United States however, in which the foreign-born represent 12.5 per cent of its population.
- 93.6 per cent of immigrants can speak either English or French.
- Of the total number of immigrants between 2001 and 2006:
- 58.3 per cent came from Asia, including the Middle East.
- 16.1 per cent came from Europe.
- 10.8 per cent came from the Caribbean, and Central and South America.
- 10.6 per cent came from Africa.
- Based on available projections, it is expected that immigration will account for all net population growth sometime between 2026 and 2031, and for all labour force growth between 2011 and 2016.
- Skilled workers account for almost half of all immigrants. Canada's top five international sources for skilled workers are:
- China
- Pakistan
- India
- Taiwan
- Iran
- The top source countries for refugees are:
- Afghanistan
- Sri Lanka
- Pakistan
- Yugoslavia
- Iran
- 1.1 million people immigrated to Canada in between 2001 and 2006.
- This influx was responsible for two-thirds of the country's population growth.
- Of these, 60 per cent were economic immigrants, 24 per cent were family class immigrants, 14 per cent were refugees and two per cent were from other categories, according to Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
- 38 per cent of arriving immigrants between 25 and 64 years of age had a bachelor's degree as their highest level of education, according to Citizen and Immigration Canada.
- More than half of recent immigrants chose to settle in Ontario, with Quebec a distant second choice, at 13.8 per cent.
- Seven out of 10 immigrants choose the three biggest cities — Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver — as their new home between 2001 and 2006. Toronto attracted the largest proportion (447,900), while 165,300 chose Montreal and 151,700 settled in Vancouver.
- Canada's smaller hubs are attracting newcomers, with Calgary, Ottawa-Gatineau, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Ont., and London, Ont., as the destination of choice for 16.6 per cent of recent immigrants.
- China - 155,105
- India - 129,140
- Philippines - 77,880
- Pakistan - 57,630
- United States - 38,770
- South Korea - 35,450
- Romania - 28,080
- Iran - 27,600
- United Kingdom - 25,655
- Colombia - 25,310
- 150,000 people become Canadian citizens every year.
- 85 per cent of landed immigrants go on to become Canadian citizens.
- 2,901 citizenship ceremonies were held between 2005 and 2006.
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