Hundreds of thousands of people are migrating into Canada every year. Understandably, immigration is one of the major contributors to Canadian economic growth. The growing economy of Canada relies heavily upon the much-needed professionals migrating into the country. Many industries are suffering from labor shortages due to the pandemic.
But, the government has taken initiatives to add one million more by 2021. which shows the commitment of Canada to Migration. The government has made some immigration laws changes and updated the permanent residency application process in 2019 and 2020.
Here are some essential changes to be remembered while going through the immigration process.
Recent Canadian Immigration Law Changes
Biometric Data
There are different types od visas-visitor visa, work permit, study permit (except US citizens), permanent residency, refugee status, or extension. Wherever the types are, you must submit your biometric data besides a recently taken photo. It has to be provided once in a decade, and if you have submitted it within the last ten year, you won’t have to submit it.
Changes in Service and Fees
The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has made some services and fees at visa application centers VACs in Europe, Middle East, and Africa. These VACs will charge separate fees for paper application submission, transferring documents to and from the visa office, and collecting biometrics.
Updated international adoptions and permanent resident sponsorship process
These changes are made to make a smooth process for the potential clients. It also reduces the incomplete and erroneous applications. Applicants who are applying by electronic machines should only use the systems provided by the IRCC.
Asylum
A new ground of ineligibility of protection has been added to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act; who has already asked for asylum in United States, United Kingdom, Australia, or New Zealand will not be acceptable. According to Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Bill Blair, this new ground will prevent people from asylum shopping.
Two new initiatives
Foreign nationals living in Canada with protected person status and willing to apply for migration for their family members living abroad will benefit from this immigration law change. It is hard to help a protected person to reunify with his family who still lives abroad in dangerous circumstances. These new IRCC initiatives will alleviate the burden of processing during immigration.
A centralized intake will handle all the permanent resident applications of the protected persons. Their dependent family members living abroad and dependent family members will be allowed to submit their applications simultaneously at a single location – the IRCC Case Processing Centre in Mississauga.
Family members must be residing in a country within the areas of responsibility for the migration offices that are participating in the pilot: Bogota, Colombia; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Kingston, Jamaica; Lima, Peru; Nairobi, Kenya; Mexico City, Mexico; Port of Spain, Trinidad; and Sao Paulo, Brazil.
New VACs
There will be new VACs to be opened very soon in the following cities: Manama, Bahrain; Helsinki, Finland; Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan; The Hague, Netherlands; and Novosibirsk, Rostov-on-Don, and Yekaterinburg in Russia.
It was predictable that there will be some changes in Canadian immigration law given the country’s circumstances. The threat of this pandemic is yet to perish. Immigrants may think that COVID-19 makes immigration law changes drastically. They may not have an excellent chance to come to Canada until this pandemic is entirely over.
Processing time might be affected by this global crisis but understanding the changes is always helpful. You may find it a lot easier than you think.
