Over the past several weeks we have reviewed BC’s new business immigration program that was re-opened on July 2, 2015. As can be seen, the BC PNP Entrepreneur stream is...
On July 2, 2015 the BC PNP program re-opened their business immigration category for entrepreneurial applicants. The new system requires prospective applicants to pre-register with an online profile that will allow the provincial government to quickly assess registrants based upon a number of criteria. A scoring component is used to select those applicants with the highest scores will be given an Invitation to Apply (ITA), which is required to submit a business application to the BC PNP office. Let's review the scoring criteria to see how to get that pivotal ITA!
Canadian employers have been challenged to fill pressing labour shortages for many years and the projections are that these shortages will continue for years to come. Notwithstanding all the various opinions as to the best way to resolve our shortage of workers, immigration is universally recognized as being essential to address Canada’s immediate and long term labour force needs. For employers seeking to resolve their labour shortages, it is becoming essential to navigate Canada's immigration programs in order to keep your workforce strong and your business thriving. Here's what you can do to master the immigration game!
Canada's new immigrant selection system for economic immigrants, Express Entry came into effect on January 1, 2015 and has dramatically changed our immigration program. What used to be an immigrant driven self selection model is now a government driven selection model. The government will only choose the very best applicants and offer them an "invitation to apply" - an ITA. Without an ITA, a prospective immigrant can not apply for permanent residence to Canada. The basis upon which Citizenship and Immigration Canada ( CIC) selects which applicants to provide with an ITA, is the information contained in a profile that a potential applicant submits to the government. The higher the score an applicant receives on the ranking of their profile, the more likely they will receive an ITA. Obviously, the temptation to enhance one's profile is very real. Resist that temptation! Inaccurate information that is provided in your profile could result in a finding of misrepresentation and a five year bar to ANY application to Canada - permanent or temporary!
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.
On January 1, 2015 Canada’s immigration program was dramatically and fundamentally changed. Overnight our immigration program morphed from an applicant driven model, to a government selection driven model. Up until December 31,...
This past weekend Canada’s Minister of Immigration Chris Alexander formally changed what was previously known as the Live-In Caregiver Program to the new Caregiver Program. Speculation had been circulating for years that the program might be drastically changed including eliminating the Permanent Resident component. Fortunately the residency component has been maintained and the program has been modified to eliminate the need for caregivers to reside with their employers and to allow for speedier processing of permanent resident applications.
The spring and summer have been busy ones for Jason Kenney, Minister for Employment and Social Development. In early April he announced the first businesses ever to have been blacklisted for breaching the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. The media blitzkreig that followed lead within days to the complete shut down of the program for anyone in the food and beverage industry. A few weeks later an entirely new Temporary Foreign Worker Program was introduced changing the rules of the game completely and severely limiting the foreign worker program. The changes to Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) are significant and all employers who have a need for foreign labour need to know the new rules of the game.
Last week Canada's Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Chris Alexander tabled his Annual Report to Parliament presenting an immigration action plan that will continue to maintain an overall high level of immigration with an increased focus on economic immigration. In 2014 Canada plans to welcome between 240,000 to 265,000 new permanent residents, continuing the highest level of sustained immigration in Canada's history. Two key components of the economic immigration program, the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), are slated to achieve their highest levels of admissions ever. The 2014 immigration plan is targeted to achieve continued economic growth for 2014 and the coming years ahead.
Canada's skilled worker program for permanent residence was re-opened on May 4, 2013 after several months of being suspended. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney closed the program in June of 2012 to further address a backlog of applications as well as to overhaul the program. The skilled worker category has been the cornerstone of Canada's economic immigration program for decades but in recent years had built up a backlog of nearly one million applications that were often taking in excess of five years to process. The newly re-introduced skilled worker program is designed to allow processing to occur far more quickly. In addition the new program changes shift emphasis from education and foreign work experience to language proficiency and Canadian work experience with the goal of enhancing an immigrant's ability to integrate into the Canadian workplace more quickly.
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