Since July Canada has witnessed growth in the backlog of nearly 350,000 applications from across the globe. Which has made the IRCC backlog stand at almost 1.8 million immigration applications. As per the data received from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to CIC news, the number of applications in IRCC’s inventory as of October 27, 2021, has reached are as follows (figures are rounded)
- Permanent residence applications (family, refugee, economic, and humanitarian class applicants)- 548,000
- Temporary residence applications (applications for visitor extension, temporary resident visa, study permits, and work permits) – 776,000
- Canadian Citizen applications ( as of October 26, 2021) – 468,000
- Total applications in inventory- 1,792,000
In August 2021, as per the reports by Nicholas Keung of the Toronto Star, the backlog status stood as of July 6, 2021 in the following application numbers
- Permanent residence application – 375,000
- Temporary residence application- 703,000
- Canadian citizen application- 370,000 (The Star have reported that this figure has not included the Canadian citizen application sitting in IRCC’s mailrooms that are yet to be processed)
- Total applications in Inventory- 1,448,000
The IRCC has also shared data on the number of applications that have been processed during the global pandemic:
- Permanent Residence applications were processed between January and September 2021- 337,000 applications.
- Temporary residence applications- 1,500, 000 (Compared to 2020 the application reached nearly to 1,700,000)
- Canadian citizenship applications processed between January and September 2021- 337, 000 applications (In 2020 about 80,000 applications were processed)
How has Backlog changed the process of Canadian permanent residence applications?
The backlog has created a long pause in the process and acceptance of Federal Skilled Worker applications and Immigrant investor applications. However, this backlog has also given rise to the SuperVisa applications for parents and grandparents over the family sponsorship for permanent residency. In the past year, the pandemic has taken a toll on the working capacity of Canadian Immigration offices. The pandemic is also responsible for bringing a number of different changes to Canada’s immigration system. Therefore, it has become more important than ever to hire services from Immigration lawyers in Toronto in order to get a better understanding and knowledge about the immigration process. Immigration lawyers can help you overcome most immigration-related issues in no time.
Source: CIC News
How will IRCC tackle backlogs?
In order to manage the application for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) the IRCC has been operating the Express Entry System. Express Entry is one of the primary ways of IRCC welcoming economic class immigrants to Canada.
Eligible candidates for any of the above three programs can create a profile on the IRCC website to receive a comprehensive ranking. This comprehensive ranking score system is based on a candidate’s individual characteristics such as education, age, language skills, and work experience. Earlier, IRCC used to hold Express Entry draws after every two weeks to invite the highest-scoring candidates to apply for permanent residence. However, the pandemic has changed many aspects in this process.
This year the IRCC has only invited Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) and CEC candidates to apply for permanent residence, irrespective of the scoring of most candidates in the express entry pool. The IRCC is more focused on only inviting CEC and PNP candidates to achieve the goal of landing 401,000 new permanent residence applications in 2021 as a set-out plan for its immigration level plans 2021-2023.
If you are looking for more information or are facing immigration-related issues you can contact our highly experienced team members today or visit our website to book your appointment. Lawyers at Chaudhary Law ensure to understand your needs first in order to provide quality and top-notch legal services to all our clients with utmost professionalism and diligence.
