Canadian Immigration News

The department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has issued a program delivery update concerning temporary entry to Canada. This update notes that multiple-entry visas should now be considered the standard, and any single-entry visa issuance requires officers to provide an explanation recorded in the application notes.

The Canadian Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, John McCallum, has said that Ottawa is looking to make changes to how immigrants to Canada may become citizens.

A full-scale review of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which allows Canadian employers to hire foreign nationals to fill labour shortages in Canada, appears imminent. MaryAnn Mihychuk, the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour in the Liberal government of Canada, has said that she will ask a parliamentary committee for proposals to optimize the program.

The Mon projet Québec application management system, a new secure online space for managing applications to the Quebec Skilled Worker Program (QSWP) for immigration to Canada, has been experiencing significant technical problems through the morning of February 16, 2016.

In a case that may have wider ramifications for certain foreign students in Canada, the Federal Court has ordered Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to reconsider the post-graduation work permit (PGWP) application of a foreign student whose initial application was rejected because he took some of his courses online.

The government of Quebec has updated its website and, for the first time, publicized its intention to reopen the popular Quebec Skilled Worker Program (QSWP) for Canadian immigration in the summer of 2016.

A Statistics Canada report has found that international migration remains the principal source of population growth in census metropolitan areas (CMAs), particularly in Western Canada. The study covers the years 2014/2015.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC, formerly known as CIC) has provided updates to the published instructions on police certificates with respect to the Express Entry selection system for immigration to Canada.

The latest draw from the Express Entry pool has seen a total of 1,505 candidates being issued Invitations to Apply (ITAs) for Canadian permanent residence. The 27th draw took place on February 10, 2016, and each candidate who received an ITA had 459 or more Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points. The Express Entry immigration selection system allows Canada to invite candidates who have made an 'Expression of Interest' in immigrating to Canada to apply on a priority basis.

The government of Canada has approved a measure that will allow nationals of Haiti and Zimbabwe six additional months to apply for permanent residence without risk of removal from Canada.