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LATEST IMMIGRATION NEWS | |
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Government of Canada will welcome more economic immigrants in 2010 Toronto, June 26, 2010 - Canada is adjusting its 2010 immigration plan to put even greater emphasis on economic recovery and further reduce the federal skilled worker backlog, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney told a news conference today. ''When I met with my provincial colleagues last week, they all stressed the importance of economic immigration,'' Minister Kenney said. ''As we recover from the recession, increasing economic immigration will help ensure employers have the workers they need to supplement our domestic labour supply.'' Each year, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) sets out a plan for the number of immigrants it intends to welcome within economic, family and humanitarian immigration categories. The planned range for 2010 is 240,000 – 265,000 immigrants. CIC generally achieves the midpoint of this range. In 2010, CIC anticipates achieving the upper end of this range, allowing Canada to welcome more immigrants in the economic category than originally planned. This includes federal skilled workers and record-level numbers of provincial nominees, without reducing the number in the family or humanitarian immigration categories. Minister Kenney noted that some of his provincial colleagues expect the need will grow further in the years ahead. ''This is something we will need to take into consideration when we consult more broadly on plans for future years,'' he said. Even with higher numbers of economic immigrants, Canada still receives many more applications than can be processed in a timely way. As a result, the department is limiting the number of new applications it will consider in the federal skilled worker category every year. ''Canada will continue to welcome historically high numbers of immigrants, but we need to manage the number of new applications or risk creating new backlogs and longer processing times,'' Minister Kenney said. ''We have more than enough applications on hand now to fill many of our needs, and we want to be fair to those people who have been waiting the longest.'' Effective immediately, to be eligible to apply as a federal skilled worker, applicants must either have a job offer, or they must have experience in one of 29 in-demand occupations. These occupations were identified through analysis of updated labour market information and consultations with provinces, territories, stakeholders and the public. For those applying under the occupation list, the government will limit the number of applications considered for processing to 20,000 per year as a way to better manage the supply of applications with labour market demand. Within the 20,000 limit, a maximum of ,000 applications per occupation will be considered. The limit does not apply to applicants with a job offer. Other than the language test result requirement, these changes apply only to the federal skilled worker immigration category. The authority for the changes, known as ministerial instructions, comes from amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act approved by Parliament in 2008 as part of the Action Plan for Faster Immigration. The instructions are meant as a flexible tool to allow the government to keep the intake of applications for economic immigration in line with the number and types of jobs available in Canada, as well as reduce application backlogs and processing times. Since the first instructions were issued in November 2008, the backlog of federal skilled worker applicants in process prior to the legislation has dropped from 640,000 to 380,000. The majority of decisions on new applications are being made in six to 12 months, compared with up to six years prior to the changes. But in the first quarter of 2010, the number of new applications rose significantly beyond the department’s ability to process them in a timely way, leading to the recognition that a more refined approach is necessary. ''These changes bring Canada in line with the practices of the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, our main competitors for skilled immigrants,'' said Minister Kenney. ''They help match the supply of applicants to our processing capacity and today’s post-recession job market needs. This is the only responsible way to manage our immigration system.'' The Government is also proposing new eligibility criteria for the immigrant investor program so it makes an even greater contribution to the Canadian economy. Proposed regulatory changes will require new investors to have a personal net worth of $1.6M, up from $800,000, and make an investment of $800,000, up from $400,000. These proposals were pre-published today in the Canada Gazette for a 30-day public comment period. Canada’s current criteria for investors are the lowest in the world, and have not been changed since 1999. As a result the program draws a larger number of applicants than can be admitted every year under the immigration plan, and processing times are increasing. Until the changes are finalized, the Government will stop accepting new investor applications to prevent a flood of applications before the new criteria take effect, which would stretch processing times even further. When the new criteria are in place, new applications will be processed alongside the old ones. In this way, Canada can begin to realize the benefits of the changes immediately. ''Canada needs investor immigrants,'' said Minister Kenney. ''These changes are necessary to keep Canada’s program competitive with that of other countries, and keep pace with the changing economy.'' |
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Supporting Canada’s economy, Government of Canada maintains historically high rate of immigration in 2009 May 13, 2010 - Canada welcomed more than 500,000 permanent and temporary residents in 2009, according to preliminary data released by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) today. "Momentum toward a full economic recovery continued throughout 2009, and immigration will continue to support that momentum," said Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism. "The Government of Canada is maintaining immigration levels to meet Canada's short-, medium- and long-term economic needs, help offset our aging population and low birthrate, and sustain our workforce." Canada admitted 252,124 permanent residents in 2009, well within the government's planned range of 240,000 to 265,000 new permanent residents for the year. This number is about 30,000 higher than the average annual intake of permanent residents in the 1990s. About 60 percent of those admitted were economic migrants. An additional 178,640 temporary foreign workers and 85,131 foreign students came to Canada in 2009. Many temporary foreign workers, as well as foreign students who graduate in Canada, may apply to stay in the country permanently through the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). CIC accepted 2,544 CEC applicants in 2009. Many temporary foreign workers are also selected to remain in Canada permanently through provincial nominee programs. "The number of foreign students who came to Canada grew by seven percent last year, resulting in the highest number of foreign students ever admitted to Canada," said Minister Kenney. "To be a more innovative society able to compete and prosper in a global, knowledge-based economy, Canada needs people with an international outlook, skills and experience. Attracting more international students is a priority for our government." Last year, Canada also welcomed 22,844 refugees. This included resettling 7,425 government-assisted refugees and 5,036 privately sponsored refugees. The government also landed 10,383 refugees in Canada who had made successful asylum claims, and their dependants. Proposed refugee reforms will, if adopted, see the number of government-assisted and privately sponsored refugees resettled in Canada increase by 20 percent. View the complete set of preliminary data released by the Department. Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, http://www.cic.gc.ca |
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Young Newcomers Internship Program to be expanded April 27, 2010 - The Young Newcomers Internship Program (YNIP) will be expanded to other government departments and agencies so that more immigrants can benefit from it, Citizenship Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today. "When newcomers succeed, we all succeed," said Minister Kenney. "The Young Newcomers Internship Program is an excellent example of how we can help refugees and newcomers overcome one of the key barriers to integration by offering them vital Canadian work experience." In YNIP's first year, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) offered 12 individuals an initial four-month internship and, where possible, a second four-month internship to maximize their learning opportunity. Twenty interns from countries such as Afghanistan and Ethiopia participated in YNIP's second year, with placements in Ottawa, Gatineau and other regions across Canada. "The Immigrant Internship Pilot project (IIPP) is another great example of how we can attract and retain internationally-trained workers and help them contribute to Canada’s long-term economic success," said Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development. At Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, 24 interns, newcomers in mid-career, participated in the IIPP. This program offers work placement opportunities to foreign-trained professionals in fields related to their international training to help them gain Canadian work experience and support their integration into the Canadian labour market. Discussion on the expansion of internship opportunities to other federal departments and agencies is under way. Included in these talks will be partnerships with the World University Service of Canada and other immigrant-serving agencies, such as LASI World Skills and Hire Immigrants Ottawa. Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, http://www.cic.gc.ca |
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Government of Canada introduces new program for business people from Mexico April 9, 2010 - Canada's visa office in Mexico City has established a special visa application program for Mexican business travellers, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today. "Canada welcomes travellers from Mexico and has been looking at ways to provide enhanced services to applicants. The Business Express Program is another example of our commitment to making service improvements where we can," said Minister Kenney. "Canada and Mexico are among each other's largest trading partners," said Peter Van Loan, Minister of International Trade. "This program will help Canadian and Mexican companies do business together and continue to fuel our economic recovery." The new Business Express Program was created to provide qualified businesses and their employees with a number of service advantages, including less paperwork, priority processing of visa applications, and a dedicated service to respond to the needs of those within the program. Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is working closely with Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada and visa application centres in Mexico on this initiative. The Business Express Program is modeled on a similar successful program introduced in New Delhi, India, in June 2008. The program in Mexico is targeted at people employed by companies in Mexico who have a proven need for frequent travel to Canada. Participation in the program is by invitation only. Businesses with key connections to Canada are identified by the visa or trade sections of the Embassy of Canada in Mexico City, or Export Development Canada. Businesses that have good immigration track records, meaning those with employees who were admissible, who previously travelled to Canada and adhered to Canada's immigration laws, and who have a significant number of business visitors destined to Canada are then invited by the Embassy of Canada to register for the program. Only businesses that are registered can submit visa applications through the facilitated process. So far, the embassy has invited 113 companies to enrol in the program. Twelve businesses have registered. "Mexico is an important strategic partner. The Government of Canada continues, as a priority, to extend and improve services that will facilitate official, trade and educational travel from Mexico to Canada," said Minister Kenney. Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, http://www.cic.gc.ca |
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Government of Canada consults Canadians on economic immigration priorities March 16, 2010 - As the economic recovery gains momentum, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney today launched consultations to identify Canada's new and emerging labour market needs and how immigration can best respond to them. The Government of Canada is seeking the views of Canadians on how to help lead Canada to full economic recovery from the global recession. These consultations will look at worker shortages in trades and professions across Canada as well as the factors that affect an immigrant’s ability to succeed in Canada’s work force. The consultations will help develop instructions to immigration officers on which economic immigration applications are eligible for processing. As part of the Action Plan for Faster Immigration, the first set of instructions was issued in November 2008 as a tool to keep the backlog of applications from growing, to reduce wait times for new applications and to better match new economic applicants to Canada’s labour market needs. "The Action Plan for Faster Immigration is designed to make immigration more responsive to Canada's economic conditions. When these conditions change, the instructions are meant to change too," said Minister Kenney. ''The first set of instructions has had a significant impact, but our research shows it is time to revise them to make sure they continue to meet their goals." Before the Action Plan for Faster Immigration was introduced, the backlog in the federal skilled worker category stood at more than 600,000 applicants, and that number has gone down by almost 40 per cent. People applying now to the federal skilled worker program can expect to receive a decision within one year compared to six years under the old system. Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, http://www.cic.gc.ca |
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