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

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

In my over thirty years of practice as an immigration lawyer it has been a fundamental principal of immigration processing that applicants should generally apply for both Canadian temporary or permanent status from outside of Canada. While there are some exceptions to this requirement, they have been few. That all changed during the global pandemic with many workers, students and visitors being stranded in Canada with no ability to travel for months and, in some cases, years.

On November 1, 2022, the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced that his department plans on welcoming 500,000 new immigrants to Canada annually by 2025. The announcement comes on the heels of a record-setting year in 2021 when Canada welcomed over 405,000 newcomers. While most observers will focus on the 500,000 figure itself, it is important to also focus on the types of immigrants that the Minister is targeting.

On April 4, 2022 the Department of Employment and Social Development Canada (“ESDC”) announced sweeping new Temporary Foreign Worker Program ("TFWP") policies that will make it easier for Canadian employers to hire temporary foreign workers (“TFWs”) through the Labour Market Impact Assessment (“LMIA”) process. These policies come on the heels of strong economic reports showing that the Canadian economy has rebounded from the worst effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and that there is currently a high job vacancy rate in the country. Let’s review the three major changes that every employer needs to know!

Today, the Honourable Marco E.L Mendicino, Minister of Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC”) announced two new pathways that offer Canadian permanent residence for Hong Kong residents who are currently in Canada. Canada and Hong Kong share a long historic relationship and Canada has continuously shown a commitment to support the citizens of Hong Kong. In June 2020, China imposed controversial National Security Laws in Hong Kong which threatens the security, liberty and privacy of Hong Kong nationals.

The Canadian Government is committed to supporting international students through the challenges of the Coronavirus (“Covid-19”) pandemic. On January 8, 2021, Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC”), the Honourable Marco Mendicino, announced a temporary policy to help former international students remain in Canada to live, work, and continue to integrate into Canadian society.

On January 8, 2021 Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the Honourable Marco Mendicino, announced a unique COVID-friendly work permit program for current and former holders of Post Graduate Work Permits (PGWPs). International students who complete their education in Canada are eligible for work permits of 1 to 3 years duration depending upon the length of their program of study.

As we reach the end of 2020, the effects of COVID-19 on Canadian immigration levels has become apparent: the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has not processed and approved as many permanent residency applications as it expected to in 2020. In many cases, existing permanent residency applications will not be finalized in 2020 because of COVID-19 related shutdowns slowing down IRCC’s standard processing speed and preventing applicants from meeting basic immigration requirements such as obtaining police clearance results or completing biometrics (fingerprinting) enrolment.

Sas and Ing Immigration Law Centre LLP

A partnership between Catherine Sas Law Corporation and Victor Ing Law Corporation

Copyright © sasanding 2021