Canada’s population growth has slowed sharply in 2026 amid federal efforts to reduce the non-permanent resident share from its 2024 peak near 7.2 percent. Statistics Canada’s September 2026 quarterly estimates showed the population at 41.8 million on July 1, with year-over-year growth of just 0.5 percent—the weakest rate in over a century—driven by declining net inflows of temporary residents and international students alongside stabilized permanent resident targets of 380,000 annually under the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan. Non-permanent residents fell to 6.7 percent of the total, with outflows offsetting most permanent immigration gains. Earlier projections of possible outright declines or flat growth for the calendar year, reinforced by policy emphasis on easing housing and service pressures, underpin the slight trader lean toward a net decrease by year-end despite revisions that confirmed modest positive growth through mid-year.