The Minister of Immigration promises to expedite the processing of work permits
The IRCC’s $85 million budget for the year has five priorities, including work permits
During talks with the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, Canada’s immigration minister reiterated his vow to improve work permit processing speeds.
Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) would use its $85 million budget to improve processing times, which have been exacerbated by the pandemic, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) Minister Sean Fraser told the committee last week. Service levels for work permits, study permits, evidence of citizenship, and permanent residency card updates would return to normal by the end of 2022, according to the minister.
Processing timeframes for work visas submitted from most countries, according to the IRCC website, are currently not fulfilling the processing requirement. IRCC is, however, processing a higher volume of work permits. Canada issued 420,000 visas under the International Mobility Program (IMP) and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) in 2021. (TFWP). In 2019, the total was estimated to be over 405,000.
The TFWP permits firms in Canada to hire foreign citizens to fill labor shortages. The IMP works to advance Canada’s broad economic, social, and cultural goals.
Except for International Experience Canada (IEC) work permits, which are meant to be processed in 56 days, the operating standard for work permits submitted outside of Canada is 60 days. The normal processing time for work permit extensions in Canada is 120 days. IRCC met these standards more than 87 percent of the time prior to the epidemic. The number of times the IRCC met its service requirements in 2020-2021 has yet to be revealed.
When the pandemic struck in 2020, IRCC operations all around the world were put on hold. As a result, there was a backlog of applications. The IRCC has over 85,000 work visa applications in its inventory as of February 1.
Daniel Mills, Assistant Deputy Minister of the IRCC, was also present at the meeting. The $85 million budget, according to Mills in French, will not reduce response time for permanent residents, but it will let IRCC to develop technologies like digital application systems and online application trackers. Minister Fraser previously stated that the processing time for new spousal sponsorship applications has been reduced to a year.
The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration is a bipartisan group of Canadian MPs who conduct research and make policy suggestions on how to improve the immigration system.
The significance of a quick work permit approval
According to the most recent job vacancy statistics, Canada had approximately 900,000 job openings in November. Immigration has long been promoted as a means of bolstering Canada’s labor market.
Because businesses in particular areas have long-established a constant need for foreign talent, some work permits for workers in such fields have been accelerated. The processing time for the Global Talent Stream, for example, is 10 business days. It’s designed to help firms in the computer industry hire international workers.
The province of Quebec has a list of vocations that are exempt from the Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) process’s advertising requirement. Although an LMIA is still required for these professions, they can obtain one considerably more quickly without needing to post a job vacancy.
Some foreign nationals require the LMIA before they can be hired. It’s a labor market test that the Canadian government may demand to prove that a worker in Canada is unfit for the job. For the GTS and the Quebec facilitated jobs list, Canada offers expedited LMIA processing.
Around a fifth of all work permits issued in 2021 will require an LMIA. An LMIA was not required for the remaining 75%.
Choosing to stay in Canada
If a person files for a work visa extension before it ends, they can stay in Canada on maintained status until the IRCC reaches a judgment. As long as they stay in Canada while waiting, they are able to work under the same restrictions as their work visa. Study permit holders and tourists seeking to prolong their temporary status may also be granted maintained status.
If the worker applies for permanent residency, they may be eligible for a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP), which allows them to remain in Canada while their application is being reviewed.