People Leaving Nova Scotia: Net Emigration Trends from 1972 to 2024

Emigration in Canada refers to people who leave the country to live abroad, either permanently or for an extended period. While Canada is known for welcoming immigrants, it also sees thousands of residents moving away each year for reasons such as job opportunities, family, retirement, or lifestyle changes.

Tracking net emigration—the difference between people leaving and returning—helps show how Canada’s population is changing over time. This data is important for understanding migration patterns and planning for the country’s future needs.

How Net Emigration Is Calculated in Canada

Net emigration is calculated by subtracting the number of returning emigrants from the number of people who leave Canada (emigrants). For the period from 1991 to June 2016, the calculation includes temporary emigration as well: emigrants plus net temporary emigration, minus returning emigrants.

Number of People Leaving Nova Scotia per Quarter

Year	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Total
1972	52	56	74	56	238
1973	52	71	137	113	373
1974	86	94	105	101	386
1975	85	77	80	69	311
1976	59	68	74	56	257
1977	41	55	92	71	259
1978	53	63	94	71	281
1979	53	55	65	41	214
1980	34	38	44	32	148
1981	26	55	135	70	286
1982	47	47	91	65	250
1983	45	65	108	54	272
1984	35	51	91	40	217
1985	25	59	93	87	264
1986	13	79	117	112	321
1987	63	57	163	78	361
1988	25	40	118	92	275
1989	57	71	116	88	332
1990	53	125	206	81	465
1991	154	114	349	177	794
1992	180	132	279	161	752
1993	139	161	200	146	646
1994	94	113	420	255	882
1995	159	207	346	209	921
1996	129	147	273	216	765
1997	173	212	332	225	942
1998	163	175	366	231	935
1999	150	167	316	219	852
2000	160	169	427	276	1,032
2001	194	201	595	295	1,285
2002	151	130	413	296	990
2003	189	175	316	261	941
2004	235	199	500	308	1,242
2005	269	276	304	271	1,120
2006	238	176	149	183	746
2007	137	86	156	116	495
2008	111	22	230	162	525
2009	108	47	240	123	518
2010	118	20	223	190	551
2011	170	144	371	183	868
2012	187	149	209	210	755
2013	174	122	174	163	633
2014	160	146	255	158	719
2015	157	151	232	166	706
2016	170	108	279	153	710
2017	95	51	339	195	680
2018	280	216	104	131	731
2019	159	57	10	109	335
2020	43	8	-43	20	28
2021	84	80	49	87	300
2022	157	116	56	105	434
2023	172	142	56	108	478
2024	179	146	59	111	495

Data Source:

Source Name:	Statistics Canada. Table 17-10-0040-01 Estimates of the components of international migration, quarterly
Source Link:	https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/cv.action?pid=1710004001
Release Date:	2025-03-19