New research from the Indeed Hiring Lab finds that the foreign share of clicks on Canadian job postings has tumbled from nearly 8 % in mid-2023 to just 3 % by September 2026. Economist Sneha Puri links the decline to Ottawa’s multi-year effort to cap study permits and tighten temporary-resident programmes. The analysis, released 20 October 2026, shows sharp drops in engineering and agriculture occupations, where overseas job-seeker interest once filled critical skills gaps. The United States, long the top source of foreign clicks, now accounts for 21 %, down seven percentage points in two years. Interest from Asia and Nigeria has grown proportionally, but not enough to offset the overall slide. Indeed warns that fewer temporary migrants may ease pressure on housing and public services but could also shrink the labour pool and consumer spending. Engineering job postings, already well above the headline Job Postings Index, continue to climb— a sign that constrained talent supply may push wages upward or delay infrastructure projects. For employers with global recruitment strategies, the data underline the need to start international searches earlier, expand outreach to less-tapped regions and leverage intra-company transfer programmes where possible. Policymakers, meanwhile, face the challenge of balancing public concern over population growth with the private sector’s need for specialised skills.
Source: Indeed Hiring Lab
