Canada’s economy continues to see a substantial financial drain as over $12 billion was sent abroad last year in remittances, primarily by immigrants supporting families in their home countries.
This represents a striking 50% increase compared to 2013 when the figure was just over $8 billion, according to data from the World Bank.
Over the same decade, remittances flowing into Canada have shrunk. In 2013, inward remittances amounted to $1.7 billion; by 2023, that figure fell to $1.2 billion—a 29% decline.
The disparity makes Canada a net exporter of wealth through remittances, a trend that has implications for the domestic economy.
Relative to GDP, Canada sends 33% more in remittances than the United States annually, making it the 15th highest country for outgoing remittances as a share of GDP worldwide. A significant portion of these funds are sent to India, as well as the Philippines and China.
This financial outflow is on top of Canada’s taxpayer-funded foreign aid, which amounted to $15.5 billion in 2022-2023, according to Global Affairs Canada.
Meanwhile, quarterly trends show that there are no signs that outward remittances are slowing down as Canada’s population continues to grow at record rates, largely driven by mass immigration.
The remittance figures highlight a significant movement of Canadian resources overseas with questionable oversight.
A March 2023 report by the Department of Finance on the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing warned that remittances being sent abroad by migrant workers to home countries that “may be high risk for money laundering and terrorist financing” was a chief concern.
Of particular concern are alternative remittance money services which “can allow high-risk clients to wire funds to high-risk jurisdictions through their informal networks.”
Overall, the global remittances being sent abroad by migrants have surged to a loss of $650 billion USD annually for their host nations and could soon exceed $1 trillion as migration increases.
