More than a third of young nurses in Canada do not renew licences, says think tank

MONTREAL – A new report says more than a third of the registered nurses in Canada under the age of 35 in 2023 did not renew their licences the next year.

The Montreal Economic Institute compiled the numbers in the report using the latest data available from the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

The health information organization’s numbers are based on licence applications from provincial and territorial nursing regulatory bodies.

It reveals that for every 100 nurses under the age of 35 who were registered to practise in Canada in 2023, 34 did not renew their registration in 2024.

The numbers suggest an improvement from the previous year, when 40 per cent of nurses did not renew their licences.

The Montreal-based think tank has promoted more private sector involvement in the health care system to improve services.

Gabriel Giguère, a public policy analyst at the think tank and co-author of the report, said the report shows Canada still has work to do to persuade nurses to remain in the profession.

“This sends a very clear message about the retention rate of young nurses, and it’s a bad one,” he told The Canadian Press. 

The report notes how recent survey responses suggest factors such as excessive overtime, poor working conditions, high stress and the risk of extreme fatigue on the job may be contributing to the exodus of some nurses.

The think tank also suggests in the report that provinces could help encourage more nurses to remain in the profession if they had additional opportunities in the private sector that offered more flexibility, such as in travel nurse agencies, private clinics or telehealth companies.

It also notes how some provinces such as Quebec have programs that pair novice nurses with colleagues who have more experience.

“British Columbia has job swapping pools, which allow nurses to trade shifts without needing approval from administrators,” the report said. “Union contracts should also be renegotiated to reward skills and competence over seniority.”

The report also highlights that, countrywide, the proportion of nurses under the age of 35 rose from 27.7 per cent in 2014 to over 30 per cent in 2017 and has remained between 30 per cent and 31 per cent since then.

The number of unfilled positions — which stood at more than 27,000 in 2025 — has declined from its peak of approximately 41,000 unfilled positions in 2023. 

“When you look at it year by year, it’s obviously a good thing to have fewer job openings,” said Giguère, nuancing that the 10-year trend is not moving in the same direction. 

In 2016, there were just over 9,000 job openings, three times fewer than today. 

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2026.