Canada’s settlement services are going digital. AI should support workers, not replace them

A well-designed AI system could help newcomers find English or French classes, employment workshops, food banks, legal clinics, housing information or community events. (Unsplash/John Lockwood) Artificial intelligence is no longer just a technology-sector issue.

It’s transforming how public services are organized and delivered, including settlement services for immigrants and newcomers in Canada.

Settlement services are often the first bridge to housing, employment, language training, health care, legal information, education and community life for newcomers.

In Canada, the settlement system is vast: in 2024–25, more than 550 partner organizations helped slightly more than 690,000 newcomers outside Québec alone.

Digital tools have already entered settlement work .

The important question we need to answer is how AI should be used: as a tool that strengthens human services, or as a shortcut that risks replacing professional care with automated answers? As an immigration policy researcher, the answer is clear to me: AI can help settlement agencies work faster and reach more people, but it should support workers, not replace them.

Read more: Are algorithms unfairly screening out immigrant job applications? Where AI can help A well-designed AI system could answer routine questions at any time of day.

It could help newcomers find English or French classes, employment workshops, food banks, legal clinics, housing information or community events.

It could also support staff by organizing referrals, sending reminders and reducing repetitive administrative tasks.

This fits the federal government’s AI Strategy for the Federal Public Service 2025–2027 , which emphasizes human-centred, responsible and secure AI adoption.

The strategy presents AI as a way to improve services and help workers focus on more complex tasks, not as a replacement for human judgment.

Settlement work is a good example of why that distinction matters.

Newcomers rarely need only one piece of information.

A person may need a job but also language training, child care, credential recognition, tenant information and help understanding health care.