DataNB
The latest from the New Brunswick Institute for Research, Data and Training

One of the central goals for the province of New Brunswick is to boost economic development by increasing labour market participation, and immigration is key to this plan. However, while NB has welcomed a growing number of immigrants over time, a substantial number still choose to leave the province years after landing.

This raises questions, such as, “Who decides to stay? Who decides to leave? And what factors influence these decisions?”

Understanding the backgrounds and experiences of immigrants residing in NB may help the province address challenges related to immigrant retention. Since there is a well-established link between mobility and economic opportunity, focusing on the entry streams and economic experiences of immigrants in NB may shed light on a correlation between experiences and retention. NB-IRDT’s 2021 publications on immigrant retention do just that.

Immigrant Retention in New Brunswick (McDonald & Miah) estimates the retention rates of all immigrants who intended to arrive in the province by immigration stream, and Immigrant Income and Labour Market Outcomes (Boco et al.) examines the economic outcomes and retention rates of immigrants to investigate trends and determinants of income and retention. Comparing these two reports allows us to highlight similarities and differences in the datasets, associated methodologies, and results.

We aim for the findings of these reports to contribute to evidence-based assessments of provincial immigration policies and efforts, while presenting detailed descriptive and empirical evidence on the evolution of immigrant retention and immigrants’ post-landing labour market experiences in NB.