EDMONTON — Albertans will vote on five questions about immigration and access to Alberta-funded social services in the upcoming referendum, and Alberta Immigration Minister Joseph Schow says the purpose is to secure more provincial control rather than block all immigrants.Critics of Alberta's Oct. 19 referendum have characterized some of the questions as "anti-immigrant," but Schow told the Western Standard the UCP wants to ensure immigration levels are sustainable in the short and long term while also being tied to the needs of Alberta's economy."The Prime Minister himself knows he has bills to pay, and he knows Alberta pays a lot of those bills," said Schow during an interview with the Western Standard."And so we can't risk Alberta becoming a have-not province, and we need to make sure that we have stable immigration, meeting the demands of today and for the future.".Premier Danielle Smith announced Alberta's Oct. 19 referendum in February as a precursor to Budget 2026. Smith called the referendum, in part, after placing partial blame for Alberta's estimated $9.4 billion deficit on unstable immigration levels that burdened Alberta's social services.The referendum will ask five immigration questions, starting with whether Albertans want the UCP government to pursue more control over immigration "for the purposes of decreasing immigration to more sustainable levels, prioritizing economic migration and giving Albertans first priority on new employment opportunities."Prior to changes made in 2025, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government shifted federal immigration away from "highly skilled" economic immigrants and prioritized temporary immigrants, asylum seekers and international students.The UCP government says Alberta's population has grown by 600,000 over the past decade, and that more than 400,000 temporary residents and asylum seekers have entered Alberta in the last three years."These (levels) have gone up, these have gone down, and we do appreciate the moves by the current prime minister, or at least the sentiment that they need to curtail some of the immigration coming into Canada," Schow said."But what this is really about is having more say, more input, more shared responsibility with the federal government for years to come, and setting that tone going forward.".Schow said it goes beyond simply lowering the number. Immigration is a shared federal/provincial responsibility, with the federal government setting national immigration levels while provinces contribute through the Provincial Nominee Programs and other such tools."We're asking that every fall, when they set their levels plan for the provincial nomination program, which leads to permanent residency or temporary workers, that they account for our input because we in Alberta know the industries that are coming," Schow said.The minister pointed to aviation workers and specialized mechanics as "highly skilled" temporary workers who could help meet the needs of Alberta's labour market.Some businesses have raised concerns about the shift, however, emphasizing that temporary foreign workers help fill needs in industries such as agriculture, where Canadians or permanent residents are traditionally more reluctant to work.Schow said the government recognizes this need and is not looking to get rid of all temporary foreign workers, but the system needs to prioritize giving Albertans the first opportunity."The spirit of the program is to make sure that Albertans have first crack at Alberta jobs," Schow said. "And we're seeing job fairs in places like Calgary where students are lining up for hours.""Thousands of them competing for only a handful of jobs, and those jobs are in things like the service sector, and it's critical that Albertans get opportunities for those jobs.".The second question will ask whether only Canadian citizens, permanent residents and individuals with an "Alberta-approved immigration status" should be eligible for provincially funded programs, such as health care, education and other social services.Schow said the government will determine what "Alberta-approved immigrant status" means after the referendum, if it is given that mandate.The third question will ask whether families of non-Canadian citizens or permanent residents without an "Alberta-approved immigrant status" should pay a fee before accessing health care and education systems.The fourth question asks whether temporary residents and their families should live in Alberta for 12 months or pay a fee before accessing social services.Schow said the government is seeking the above-mentioned mandates because it believes the current costs of providing services to temporary residents are unsustainable..The UCP estimates that Alberta spends over $1 billion annually on providing these services to temporary residents and their families, including $600 million on 45,544 children in the education system, tens of thousands of ER and doctor visits equating to $400 million, and more than $100 million on child and family benefits and student aid.Those figures are estimates used by the UCP to advocate for the policy change."Temporary workers, they do pay taxes, and last year it equated to about 150 million dollars," Schow said. "But the expenses paid through social services for the same workers was just over a billion.""So, you can also see that those numbers are not sustainable, and that is exactly why we're asking for this mandate from Albertans, so that we can proceed with putting practices and policies in place that protect our economy, protect our healthcare system, protect access to education, and protect our budgets."Smith previously mentioned $1,900 per person.The fifth immigration-related referendum question asks whether the government should require individuals to show proof of Canadian citizenship, such as a passport, birth certificate or citizenship card, before voting in Alberta elections.Albertans will vote on these and five other questions in a referendum on Oct. 19. The referendum is classified as "non-binding," meaning that the government is not bound to uphold the mandate given, but Smith said she does not think questions should be asked if they do not intend to follow the response.
