The Big Story Will Canada's immigration system regret relying on AI?
Mar 16, 2026
Joshua Schachnow, family lawyer and CEO of Visto.AI, brings legal-tech perspective on immigration and AI. He discusses Canada's rising immigration numbers, the pressures from international students and private colleges, and how AI might triage applications and handle inquiries. He warns about transparency, privacy, vendor choices and potential court backlogs.
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Uncontrolled Student Growth Created Systemic Strain
- Canada's immigration surge from ~2017 to 2022 grew international student numbers from ~100k to 400–600k per year.
- Joshua Schachnow links that spike to expanding agent industries, private colleges, and unchecked revenue incentives that outpaced resources.
Quality Dropped As Quantity Ballooned
- Rapid expansion lowered quality as bad actors used fake exams and documents while private colleges multiplied in strip-mall style setups.
- Schachnow says quantity exploded but quality dropped, producing housing stress and graduates with poor job prospects.
Immigrants Who Entered Legally Now Criticize The System
- Some immigrants who entered legitimately now oppose current immigration practices, feeling others bypassed the hurdles they faced.
- Schachnow recounts immigrants saying they jumped through hoops in earlier years while newer entrants used easier or fraudulent routes.