Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver remain the destinations of choice for many newcomers; however, this trend is slowly changing. In 2007, cities outsidethe three above-mentioned received close to one third of Canada’s 236,000 new immigrants.

A new study by the Association for Canadian Studies shows that immigrants are earning more money in Calgary, Regina, and Saskatoon than they do inToronto. Many immigrants are heading to these Western cities, drawn by the employment opportunities in the more robust economies of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

In 2005, the average annual income in Calgary for an immigrant family was $102,118. In Regina it was $92,032 and in Saskatoon it was $91,356. In thetwo latter Saskatchewan cities, immigrant families earn 1 per cent more than non-immigrant families. Indeed, between 2001 and 2005, the province ofSaskatchewan moved from the bottom three provinces to the top three in terms of average income for immigrant families.

The study suggests that well-educated immigrants can land better paying jobs in smaller cities, such as Regina, because there is less competition forhigh-paying jobs among the smaller populations.