Barbadian Canadians

Barbadian Canadian or Bajan Canadians are Canadian citizens of Barbadian descent or Barbados-born people who reside in Canada. According to the 2016 Census 37,780 Canadians claimed full or partial Barbadian ancestry. Barbadian Canadians have the highest median income and the lowest incidence of poverty among Black Canadian groups. Barbadians first start migrating to Nova Scotia in the early 1900s settling largely in the neighbourhood of Whitney Pier in Sydney. In Cape Breton, they established chapters of the United Negro Improvement Association and the African Orthodox Church.

The Immigration Act of 1952 in Canada had certain provisions that limited Black immigration. However, in 1955, without any dependents, in good health, and with at least an eighth-grade education were eligible for landed immigrant status upon committing to one year of domestic service. This program remained in effect until 1967, when the nonracial Points-based immigration system was introduced to determine immigrant qualifications. As a result of this program, approximately 1,000 Barbadian women were able to immigrate to Canada. Subsequently, over 2,000 Barbadian immigrants who were granted Canadian citizenship in the mid-70s were immigrants who entered Canada between 1966-1975. During the period from 1973 to 1978, there was a significant increase in Caribbean immigration to Canada. West Indians accounted for over 10 percent of all immigrants during this time. Among them, a considerable portion were Barbadians who primarily sought economic prospects.