Huge flow of immigrants to Canada is finally coming to an end
Canada is speeding up immigration processing. The last 2.5 months have been a record for the country.
According to the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the total number of unprocessed immigration applications is about 1.8 million, of which 848,598 are temporary residency applications. According to data released by the Ministry, the number of applicants for the federal skilled worker program dropped by more than 9,000 between December 15, 2021 and February 28, 2022. Consequently, more applications for this program were processed in 2.5 months than in all of 2021. In the second half of 2021, only about 600 applications per month were processed.
The number of Canadian Experience Class applicants on the waiting list dropped by more than 12,000. Overall, almost 24,000 visas were issued under the Express Entry system.
Express Entry serves a total of three immigration programs:
- Canadian Experience Class
- Federal Skilled Worker Program
- Federal Skilled Trades Program
In early 2021, Canada decided to shift its focus, slowing down processing under the federal skilled trades program and concentrating on converting more of Canada's temporary residents to permanent status. The measure was largely implemented through the Canadian Experience Class program, as it was more likely to meet the goal of admitting 401,000 immigrants. Prior to the pandemic, however, almost half of all approvals came through the federal skilled trades program.
In a February meeting with the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, Canadian Immigration Minister Sean Fraser reiterated his promise to reduce processing times for work permits. Fraser said Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada will use its $85-million CAD budget to reduce processing times, which have been worsened by the pandemic.
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