Immigration

Key Messages
Simcoe County
District of Muskoka
Period of Immigration
Place of Birth – Overall Immigrants
Place of Birth – Recent Immigrants
Technical Notes
Further Reading

Key Messages

• According to the 2021 Census, 14.8% of Simcoe Muskoka’s population (or 87,470 people) were immigrants to Canada. By comparison, in Ontario, 30.0% of the population (or 4,206,585 people) were immigrants to Canada.
• Within Simcoe Muskoka, Bradford West Gwillimbury (32.7% or 13,830) is the only Census subdivision with a higher percentage of their population composed of immigrants compared to the province of Ontario (30.0% or 4,206,585).
• The most common place of birth for immigrants has changed over time. The most common place of birth for recent immigrants is different compared to the most common place of birth for the overall immigrant population in Simcoe Muskoka.

Simcoe County

• In Simcoe County, 15.7% of the population or 82,290 people were immigrants to Canada and of those, 9.2% (or 7,605) were recent immigrants (i.e., immigrated within the past 5 years) in 2021.
• Bradford West Gwillimbury (32.7% or 13,830 immigrants), Innisfil (19.6% or 8,465), and New Tecumseth (19.3% or 8,400) had the highest percentage of their populations identifying as immigrants.

District of Muskoka

• In the District of Muskoka, 8.0% of the population or 5,180 people were immigrants to Canada, and of those, 4.4% (or 230) were recent immigrants (i.e., immigrated within the past 5 years) in 2021.
• This is much lower than the provincial rate, with 30.0% of Ontario residents identifying as immigrants.
• Georgian Bay (10.8% or 370) and Lake of Bays (10.3% or 385) had the highest percentage of their populations identifying as immigrants.

Period of Immigration

• Over a third (35.9% or 31,400) of the 87,470 immigrants that live in Simcoe Muskoka arrived prior to 1980.
• Nine percent (9.0% or 7,835) of all immigrants living in Simcoe Muskoka reported themselves as recent immigrants who came to Canada between 2016 and 2021. In comparison, 13.9% of Ontario’s immigrants (or584,680) reported arriving between 2016 and 2021.
• Seventeen percent (17.9%) or 15,615 immigrants living in Simcoe Muskoka immigrated to Canada within the last 10 years (2011-2021).

Place of Birth – Overall Immigrants

• Among immigrants residing in Simcoe Muskoka, 50.5% (or 44,215) were born in Europe.
• In Ontario, 52.9% (or 2,225,590) of Immigrants were born in Asia, while 25.0% (or 1,049,725) were born in Europe.

Place of Birth – Recent Immigrants

• Among recent immigrants in Simcoe Muskoka, 57.1% (or 4,470) were born in Asia, while 19.1% (or 1,495) were born in Europe. In Ontario, 68.7% (or 401,940) of recent immigrants were born in Asia.
• The top five places of birth for the recent immigrant population in Simcoe Muskoka included India (18.4% or 1,440), the Philippines (8.1% or 635), other places of birth in Europe (6.9% or 540), Pakistan (6.4% or 500), and Syria (4.1% or 325).
• The top five places of birth for the recent immigrant population in Ontario is similar to the overall immigrant population in Ontario, with the exception of Syria replacing the United Kingdom.

Additional analysis of immigration data by age, mother tongue, home language, knowledge of official languages, visible minority status, education, employment, and income will be updated as it become available.

Technical Notes

For the first time, information on immigrant status and year of immigration was obtained from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s administrative records, compared to previously being collected directly in the Census questionnaire. As a result, historical comparability with previous censuses is affected because the methods used for data collection are different (response vs. administrative value) (Statistics Canada, 2022).

Census subdivision (CSD) generally refers to municipalities (e.g. Clearview Township) as well as areas considered equivalent to municipalities for reporting census data, such as First Nations communities (e.g. Chippewas of Rama First Nation).

Local First Nation communities are included in the overall population totals for Census divisions (Simcoe County and the District of Muskoka). In regard to reporting of data at the Census subdivision-level, SMDHU is in the process of initiating conversations with local First Nation communities to determine which communities, and to what detail, data will be displayed on our HealthSTATS pages. As these conversations are had and decisions are made, updates may occur to this page.

Further Reading

• What are the Census Geographies in Canada?
• 2021 Immigrant Health Outcomes Survey

Page Last Modified: May 2, 2023