News of the week: long-awaited hope for the removal of restrictions

In the week of May 17-23, not only did the immigration selections become known, but also the possible opening of the borders and the loosening of the lockdown.

Immigration news

In one week, Canada held 4 immigration selections:

BC invited 82 IT professionals;
The province of Ontario has conducted the first selection of Canadian university graduates under a new candidate evaluation system;
Prince Edward Island delighted 155 candidates in streams for entrepreneurs and foreign professionals;
In the Express Entry drawing, luck smiled on 1,842 participants with Canadian experience.

Canada's immigration system is without exaggeration one of the best in the world, but there's no limit to perfection. A parliamentary committee made up of representatives of Canada's political parties has compiled proposals for improvement. Some of them are already in the process of being implemented. For example, the immigration minister said he could expand the application limit for the new programs, which launched May 6, because for one stream the limit ran out the next day.

The province of Ontario is keeping up with the federal government and has recently created a new system for evaluating candidates, simultaneously launching two immigration streams. The first selections for them have already passed. My wife and I, who is a licensed immigration consultant, recorded a video and broke down whether it's realistic to score a passing grade under the new system.

And New Brunswick is targeting the search for Ukrainian professionals. The province has scheduled a virtual information session for sawmill operators, where candidates can learn about the province's immigration programs and talk to employers.

Pandemic and vaccination

The ice has turned — Canada can look forward to easing restrictions. The Public Health Agency expects this to start happening as early as summer, and residents could almost fully return to normal life in the fall.

Ontario authorities have already developed a plan to phase out quarantine measures that could go into effect in June, and Alberta has relaxed rules slightly for vaccinated residents. But don't expect any serious easing for those who have been vaccinated. At least, Canada's Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Health believes the restrictions will be the same for everyone.

In other great news, the COVID-19 vaccine developed in Canada is in its third phase of clinical trials. It showed excellent results in the second one, and the company hopes to submit its drug to regulators for review as early as the summer.

Unfortunately, despite such positive developments, optimism is not everywhere. Toronto's summer festivals will again be gone, for the second summer in a row, and Manitoba has seen such an increase in COVID-19 infections that it has become the leader in cases per 100,000 residents.

Travel

Canada and the US have finally started preliminary discussions about opening the land border. It won't happen anytime soon because it will remain closed for at least another month, but there is already hope. Also, Canada allows its residents to travel to the U.S. for vaccinations and not comply with the 14-day quarantine upon return. But the U.S. Border Protection Agency does not consider vaccination a valid reason, so those who attempt to cross the border may not be allowed to pass.

Air service with India and Pakistan, which has been banned since April, may not resume. The government permits the possibility of extending the ban due to the unfavorable epidemiological situation in the countries.

But while the borders are closed, there's time to look for a vehicle to travel in as soon as they open. I did a review of my favourite car, which I drove around Canada and the US with my whole family and moved from Montreal to Ottawa. For America, this is the kind of car I think is the perfect choice.