This is the categorization of immigrants by the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) based on the circumstances of their admission to Canada as Permanent Residents. This term may also be referred to as the "immigration class".
Individuals may be admitted as immigrants to Canada under one of the following categories: Economic immigrant, Immigrant sponsored by family, Refugee or Other immigrant, as described on the Statistics Canada website (Statistics Canada website - Classification of admission category of immigrant - https://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p3VD.pl?Function=getVD&TVD=323293&CVD=323294&CLV=0&MLV=4&D=1 - accessed September 9, 2022).
For more detailed information on Immigration Admission Category, including the data sources and methodology used to develop the concept, please see the Immigration Admission Category concept.