February 11, 2022

【Modernizing Canada’s immigration system to support economic recovery and improve client experience】(Updated February 11, 2022)

Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced measures to improve client experiences by modernizing the immigration system for Canadians and future Canadians on January 31, 2022.

Return to service standards by the end of the year for Study Permits, Work Permits, and Permanent Residence card renewals

IRCC is focusing on reducing processing times for applicants.  The Government of Canada proposed $85 million to support additional staff to return to processing service standards in various programs.  They are also introducing AI to process applications to speed up, however, the final decision will be made by officers.

Expand online applications for Permanent Residence applications.

There will be more online applications available for Permanent Residence applications.  IRCC is making efforts to date have allowed average processing times for spousal sponsorship applicants to return to the service standard of 12 months for new applications.

Create a permanent resident tracker for spousal sponsorship applications.

They launched a new digital Permanent Residence Application Tracker, so that the applicants can keep track on their application process.  For the initial launch, the tracker is available for Permanent Residence applicants in the spouse, partner and dependent child categories.

Update IRCC’s online processing times tool in the coming months to give up-to-date estimates of how long it will take to process applications

IRCC is working on providing new tools to additional applicant groups for applicants enable to keep track of their applications and any needed actions required to keep it moving as quickly as possible.

Related Article

Video of Sean Fraser’s speech

Federal Minister Announces Measures to Modernize Immigration System