2025 - Immigration Lawyer Vancouver, Canada | Sas & Ing Immigration Law Centre
 

Home2025 - Immigration Lawyer Vancouver, Canada | Sas & Ing Immigration Law Centre

I have repeatedly said in the past year or so that in my many years as a Canadian immigration lawyer, I have not seen so many changes to our immigration program in so short a period of time as in 2024 and 2025. As the changes have taken effect, we are now seeing the outcomes on applicants. Let’s review some of the most significant effects on immigration processing and the implications.

On October 8, 2025 the Minister of Public Safety introduced to Parliament Bill C-12, entitled the Strengthening of Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act. Bill C-12 providessweeping powers to the government to control all facets of immigration processing, affecting both potential immigrants as well as those already living in Canada. Suffice it to say there has been no shortage of concern over exactly how the government plans on using these incredible powers, but in this blog we will provide an overview of what the buzz is about and why some of the concern may be overblown.

The past year has not been a year of good news in our blogs. Since at least December of 2024 our messages have been about restrictions, delays, limitations and refusals. However, three cases that we have had in our office in the past few months demonstrate that sometimes Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) does show compassion in times of crisis reuniting family members together in Canada. Let’s look at the circumstances of these cases and the steps that applicants took to earn IRCC’s trust to bring their family members to Canada.

On November 7, 2025 the Honourable Lena Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, released her department’s annual report on immigration admission levels, setting out key immigration objectives for the next three years. Like all previous reports, this one features concrete data regarding last year’s (2024) immigration levels in Canada, while setting new admission targets for the next three years from 2026 through to 2028.

In September 2025, Service Canada introduced a new rule applicable to employers who wish to hire foreign workers through Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) stream. The rule requires employers to use the “Direct Apply” feature on the Canadian Job Bank – a previously optional feature that allows job seekers to digitally submit their resumes to a hiring employer on the Canadian Job Bank platform, rather than only through traditional methods such as email or mail. Employers who do not use the Direct Apply feature can expect to receive a negative LMIA result, so read on to find out more about this new requirement.

In our immigration law practice, my partner Victor Ing and I are routinely surprised by the clients who contact us at the eleventh hour seeking our advice as to how we can solve their immigration problems. Whether it is extending a work or study permit, obtaining an LMIA to support a work permit application or submitting an H and C application for permanent residency or even making a Stay of Removal application to the Federal Court, it is remarkable how many people leave their immigration matters to the last minute. As the quote above from John Sculley clearly states, “timing is life is everything”. That may be even more true in the Canadian immigration realm where it can result in coming to or remaining in Canada. Let me share a few real-life examples with you.

Throughout the past year my partner, Catherine, and I have been warning prospective immigrants about how difficult it has become to qualify for temporary and permanent resident visas in Canada due to our government’s concerted efforts to drive immigration levels down from previous highs that we saw during the pandemic. According to a recent Globe and Mail poll, most Canadians are in favour of these policies to reduce both temporary and permanent immigration. With public sentiment on their side, it is unlikely that the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will ease current immigration restrictions soon. Against this backdrop when immigration options are limited, and entering or remaining in Canada seems a remote possibility, prospective immigrants need to be alert to potential bad actors on the immigration scene promising unrealistic results and quick fixes to all their immigration woes. The problem of “ghost consultants” is a longstanding one in the immigration field and you should be on the lookout for them.

The Canadian immigration world is not that welcoming these days and it hasn’t been for the past couple of years as our many blogs have discussed. Express Entry (EE) scores are higher than most applicants can meet, draws for EE applicants focus only on in Canada applicants, the business immigration programs have been either shut down (until the end of 2026 for self-employed (SE) applicants) or significantly reduced for Start Up Visa (SUV) applicants, and the TFW program and international students have had caps introduced. Overall there is a tightening of the belt in terms of immigration processing and prospective applicants are feeling the pinch. When people can’t get what they want, they turn to other options and the most obvious choice is the Humanitarian and Compassionate (H and C) application. Spoiler Alert: Here’s more bad news - the H and C application is not meant to solve everyone’s problems.

Sas and Ing Immigration Law Centre LLP

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