Facing months of financial strain and limited job prospects, Brampton resident Christian “Cali” Lopez has made the difficult decision to leave Canada and relocate to China in search of stability and opportunity.
Lopez, who earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2018 and initially spent four years teaching in China, returned to Canada in 2022 with hopes of building a sustainable career. But after two years of juggling part-time teaching, gig work, freelance marketing, and service industry jobs, he says he simply couldn’t keep up with the high cost of living in the Greater Toronto Area.
“I thought I’d be a teacher for life,” Lopez said. “But I had to pivot constantly. I got into brand ambassador work, online teaching — anything I could — but nothing was full-time, and it never felt like enough.”
Earlier this year, Lopez boarded a flight back to China with his partner, a Chinese citizen who also struggled to find full-time employment in Canada despite having permanent residency.
Now living in China on a spousal visa, Lopez continues to teach online — just 10 hours a week — and says he’s already able to save more money than when working 40 hours a week in Canada.
“Since coming back, I’ve already been approached by a marketing agency,” he said. “In just a few months, I’ve had more online income opportunities than during two years in Canada.”
A Growing Trend Among Young Canadians
Lopez isn’t alone. According to Statistics Canada demographer Julien Bérard-Chagnon, more than 100,000 Canadians left the country in 2024 — a notable increase from previous years. While many still head to the U.S. or U.K., destinations in Asia, including China, are gaining popularity.
The majority of these emigrants, Bérard-Chagnon notes, are in their 20s and 30s, often highly educated and foreign-born — a trend that raises concerns about Canada’s ability to retain skilled professionals.
“This could lead to a modern-day ‘brain drain,’” he said. “We are losing people with specialized skills and higher education, which could hurt the economy long-term.”
Still, some may eventually return. “Many leave temporarily to build experience, credentials, or financial security. If they come back, they bring valuable skills and connections with them,” he added.
Lopez hopes to be one of those returnees.
“I love my friends and family, and I want to come back,” he said. “I just couldn’t afford to stay. We’re hoping to save enough here that we can return and feel comfortable — but it’s scary.”
Is Canada Still Worth Staying In?
Despite the bleak outlook for some, career experts say Canada still offers compelling advantages for job seekers. Recruiting platforms like Jobillico and AMK point to benefits such as employment insurance, universal health care, parental leave, and high safety standards.
While the job market remains tight — Toronto’s unemployment rate hit 8.6% in April, with over 27,000 jobs lost compared to March — demand remains strong in sectors like health care, engineering, and tech.
Canada also consistently ranks among the world’s top countries for quality of life, happiness, and life expectancy — factors that experts say still make it a highly desirable place to build a future.