The BC Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP) has just announced its skills immigration programs for 2016. On January 27, 2016, the BC PNP revealed the “Skills Immigration Registration System” (SIRS) that fundamentally changes the way that new applications will be processed starting this year.
Attracting and retaining international students has long been a priority for Canada’s immigration program. Every year thousands of students from all over the world enter Canada to seek a quality education. The top source countries of international students in Canada in the past 10 years have been China, India, Korea and France.
For many years it has been possible to submit immigration applications online as an alternative to the traditional method of submitting paper applications. Only recently, however, has Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) begun introducing applications that can only be submitted online. This online trend affects many programs, including CIC’s Express Entry System.
Minister of Immigration, Chris Alexander, continues to make the hiring of foreign workers difficult for Canadian employers. On February 21, 2015 Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) introduced new rules that require employers hiring foreign nationals under the International Mobility Programs, such as intra-company transferees and international experience class workers, to complete a new form and pay a $230 fee per worker as part of a new employer compliance program.
The past few years have been tough ones for business persons seeking to access Canada's Business Immigration program. On July 1, 2011 the Entrepreneur category was suspended and on July 1, 2012 so was the Investor program. On February 11, 2014 the Government of Canada decided to formally terminate both programs.
Tens of thousands of sponsored family members are admitted to come to Canada every year as permanent residents. While the majority of family members admitted are spouses and partners, the second largest category of admitted family members are the parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens and permanent residents.
In a news release published in August, 2014, Citizenship and Immigration (CIC) Minister Chris Alexander announced that Canada had welcomed 150,000 new citizens in 2014. Since 2006 Canada has welcomed over 1,300,000 new Canadians.
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