**Canada's population growth has slowed sharply to its weakest pace in over a century amid sustained policy-driven reductions in temporary resident inflows.** As of July 1, 2026, the total stood at 41.8 million, up just 0.5 percent or 189,425 people year-over-year—the lowest annual increase since the mid-1940s—following earlier revisions that erased preliminary signs of outright decline. Non-permanent residents have fallen from a 2024 peak near 3 million to about 2.78 million (6.7 percent of the population) as the government enforces lower targets of 385,000 new temporary arrivals in 2026 alongside 380,000 permanent residents. Net outflows of temporary workers and students, combined with reduced asylum claims, continue to offset most inflows, while natural increase remains modest. Trader balance at roughly even odds reflects uncertainty over whether year-end 2026 totals will finish above or below 2025 levels, with the November immigration levels plan for 2027–2029 and any signals of a “controlled increase” in permanent admissions the key near-term variables that could shift the trajectory.