Canadians Abroad: Canada’s Global Asset
Yuen Pau Woo
Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada
Introduction
 Why “Canadians Abroad”?
 Mobility of highly-skilled workers
 More than consular services
 Canada as an “emigrant” nation?
Profile of Canadians Abroad
 2.8 million Canadians live abroad (approximately 8%
of Canada’s population)
 Hong Kong has the second largest population of
Canadians abroad (300,000) after the United States
 The majority of Canadians abroad are Canada-born;
naturalized Canadians are the faster growing group
 Canadians abroad are predominantly of working age
 21-25 year olds have highest tendency amongst
Canadian adults to live abroad
Profile of Canadians Abroad (cont’d)
 Variation by country of origin, ethnic group
 Naturalized Canadians from Mainland China, India, the
Philippines and Vietnam are unlikely to move abroad
(2.7%, -4%,-0.12%, -4.7% outmigration rates 1996-2006)
 Naturalized Canadians from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan
and Singapore show relatively high tendency to move
abroad (25%, 30%, 12.5%, 12% outmigration rate 19962006)
 Canada-born individuals of Chinese, South Asian and
Eastern European background show higher tendency to
move abroad than other ethnic groups
Hong Kong:
Canada’s Largest City in Asia
 2010 survey of more than 35 000 households in Hong Kong
 67% of respondents are Hong Kong-born
 83% are dual citizens of Canada and Hong Kong
 Two-thirds have been outside of Canada for more than 10
years
 Predominantly of working age
 Women and men are almost equally represented
Motivations for Living in Hong Kong
 Job opportunities and family reasons are the most
commonly cited motivations:
o 80% of respondents considered job opportunities
“important” or “somewhat important”
o 71% considered family reasons to be “important” or
“somewhat important”
 Motivations Vary by Age
o Job opportunity is most significant for those in their
30s through 50s
o Tax reasons are an “important” or “somewhat
important” for the majority up to age 60
o Education is the most important factor for teens
Is There a Connection to Canada?
 Canadians living in Hong Kong show multi-faceted
personal and emotional connections to Canada
 Educational ties
o 52% of our sample went to school in Canada. Of these
respondents, the majority received a Bachelor degree
o 29% of our respondents indicated that they will send their
children to school in Canada or to a Canadian school in
Hong Kong
 Family ties
o 2/3 of respondents reported immediate family in Canada
Is There a Connection to Canada? (cont’d)
 Plans to Return to Canada
o Half of respondents plan to return to Canada within 10 years
o Only 17% plan never to return
o Province of last residency was Ontario or British Columbia
for 80% of our sample
 Canada as Home
o 46% consider Canada home “all the time” or “sometimes”
o 25% reported donating time or money to a Canada-related
event in Hong Kong
o The majority of respondents have contacted the Government
of Canada during their residency in Hong Kong
Is There a Connection to Canada? (cont’d)
 Visits to Canada
o 56% of respondents reported that they visited Canada when
possible
 Economic Ties
o Economic ties are comparatively less developed than personal
ties and demonstrate a key area of opportunity for Canada
o 25% retain a professional practice license in Canada
o 79% of those who contacted the Canadian Consulate in Hong
Kong sought trade and investment information
o 10% of respondents do business with Canadian clients
o 19% pay taxes in Canada
Views on Government Policies Impacting
Canadians Abroad
 The majority of Canadians in Hong Kong feel that all
Canadians should have the same citizenship rights
regardless of their place of residence
 A 2010 Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada survey shows that
Canadians in Canada largely agree with this sentiment
 Dual Citizenship
o 79% of surveyed Canadians in Hong Kong agree that
Canadian citizens should be entitled to dual citizenship
o 63% of domestic Canadians agree
Views on Government Policies Impacting Canadians Abroad (cont’d)
 Hereditary Citizenship
o 80% of surveyed Canadians in Hong Kong agree that
children of Canadians should have the same citizenship
rights regardless of where they are born
o 66% of domestic Canadians agree
 Voting Rights
o 66% of surveyed Canadians in Hong Kong agree that
Canadian citizens should have the same voting rights
irrespective of residence
o 51% of domestic Canadians agreed
Consular Services
 Consular revenues exceed expenditures
 Many services offered on a cost-recovery basis
 In most situations, citizens must repay Canadian
government for cost of evacuation
 Most Canadians outside of Canada pay 11 per cent
to 15 per cent higher passport renewal fees than
individuals in Canada
 PRC does not recognize dual citizenship:
implications for dual citizens of Hong Kong and
Canada
Economic Implications
 Impact on health and welfare services: large scale return of
retirement-aged Canadians abroad?
 Naturalized Canadians returning to Hong Kong
economically outperform their counterparts who remained
in Canada
 Canada-born returnees generally earn higher salaries than
their counterparts who never left Canada; naturalized
Canadians earn less
 Trade: for countries with high return rates from Canada,
there is positive correlation between return rate and
bilateral trade growth
How Can Canada Enhance Attachment with
Canadians Abroad?
The Government of Canada should:
 Develop a coordinated Canadians abroad policy
 Consider consolidating government functions related to
Canadians abroad into a single federal government ministry
o Just over half (53%) of surveyed Canadians in Hong Kong
agree that Canada should establish such an agency
o A higher percentage of domestic Canadians (73%) agree
 Fund Canadian embassies and consulates to be more
proactive in engaging Canadians in their jurisdictions
How Can Canada Enhance Attachment with Canadians Abroad? (cont’d)
 Consider re-examining the restriction of citizenship by
decent to one generation born abroad and the removal of
voting rights to Canadians who have been abroad more
than five years
o Our surveys suggest that Canadians both at home and
abroad support principles of equity in determining policies
related to Canadians abroad
 These limitations especially impact Canadians in Hong
Kong because they are predominantly naturalized citizens
and have lived abroad for more than five years