Career Plus Immigration Consultants Inc
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Passengers arriving in Canada will require COVID-19 test results Passengers arriving in Canada are required to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result before travelling, the Canadian government said in a press conference on 30 December. Passengers must undergo a negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test within 72 hours before the flight, and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominique LeBlanc told this requirement to be implemented quickly. A specific date is yet to be confirmed. At the same time, the new requirement does not replace the mandatory 14-day self-isolation. According to the Public Safety Minister Bill Blair, it is going to be an extra layer of COVID-19 measures. This is an extra layer," said Bill Blair, head of the Washington bureau of The Christian Science Monitor.

Biometrics centres for In-Canada applicants are RE-OPENING for collections on November 30, 2020.

IRCC has opened two temporary VACs in the United States On November 23, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced the opening of the two temporary Visa Application Centre (VAC) in the United States. The VACs in Seattle, Washington and San Francisco, California are aimed at offering more opportunities for applicants to provide their biometrics. The work of those VACs will be limited to biometric collection services only. IRCC explained that it opened two more facilities in response to the COVID-19 for a period of one year. Once foreign nationals received their Biometric Instruction Letter, they can book appointments in Seattle or San Francisco as well as at any other location offering such services in the US.

The border with the United States will not reopen in 2020 The border closure with the United States to be extended until at least December 21, 2020. Given the upcoming winter holidays, we can expect the border will not reopen in 2020. The official information about these travel restrictions is expected in the coming days. The US-Canada border has been closed since March 19 in response to the outbreak of the COVID-19. The pandemic situation in both countries remains critical so we can expect the continuation of the travel restrictions during the winter.

New Brunswick again updated the Skilled Worker Stream Guide On November 4, 2020, the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP) released an updated official guide to the Skilled Worker Stream. The new guide includes some minor updates. In general, the guide repeats the same specific eligibility requirements for Transport Truck Drivers (NOC 7511) as the previous version of the guide.

Alberta starts two programs for business-immigrants On October 26, 2020, the Government of Alberta has officially announced the new streams to immigrate to Alberta under the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP). Both programs will target foreign entrepreneurs in order to create new high-wage positions for residents of Albertans and help diversify the provincial economy. Beginning October 26, 2020, Alberta will accept Expressions of Interest in the International Graduate E...ntrepreneur Immigration Stream (IGEIS). This stream allows recent international graduates from the provincial universities and colleges who have launched a business or a start-up to get a nomination of Alberta. In January 2021, AINP will also start the Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa Stream. This program will target talented international graduates from top United States universities and colleges to launch businesses in Alberta. The details on this stream will be available at a later date. See more

Submit your interest for PGP 2020 Program

10,000 parents to be sponsored in 2020. Parents and Grandparents Program reopening announced On October 5, 2020, the Federal Immigration Department (IRCC) finally announced the reopening of the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP). This year, Canadians will be allocated only 10,000 spots, while for the next year, Canada plans to allow 30,000 applications. The major change in the program is a return to the random lottery system among all interested to sponsor their parents o...r grandparents. This signalizes about the failure of the first-come, first-served approach introduced in 2019. On the other hand, IRCC eases the financial requirement for sponsors and reducing the income requirement to the minimum necessary income, instead of the minimum necessary income plus 30%. All candidates will have a window from October 13, 2020, to November 3, 2020, to submit an Interest to Sponsor (IOS). Once the registration is over, IRCC will randomly select candidates and distribute invitations to apply to potential sponsors. Once invited, sponsors will have sixty days to submit a complete application with all supporting documentation. See more

Canada to allow some additional categories of foreign nationals to travel to Canada On October 2, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) released a new update regarding travel restrictions and exemptions amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The government will allow some extended family members of Canadians (including permanent residents) to come to Canada. These relatives are spouses, dependent children, adult children, siblings, and grandparents. Some foreign na...tionals can also come to Canada on the ground of a compassionate reason in specific circumstances such as a funeral, illness, or death. In addition, on October 20, IRCC will allow international students, whose college or university has a COVID19 readiness plan in place to travel to Canada. All personal self-isolation measures to all travellers also remain in place. On October 8, IRCC will release more details on how to obtain a written travelling authorization. See more

Alberta introduced major changes to the AINP On October 1, 2020, the government of Alberta introduced major changes to the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP). Beginning today, AINP will use a new online portal that will serve all economic streams (the Alberta Opportunity Stream and the Alberta Express Entry Stream) except Self-Employed Farmer Stream. Express Entry candidates will require to be authorized by the AINP to enter the system. AINP also notes that the system w...ill provide an initial eligibility assessment upon registration. Alberta also introduced the application fee of $500 to the AINP. However, candidates in all streams who submitted their applications before October 1, 2020, are exempt from paying the fees. Requests for services, reconsideration, nomination extensions and nominee requests for Letters of Support, are now subject to a $100 service fee. All application updates will now be submitted by email. #Alberta, #AINP, #EOI, #PNP, #Nomination_certificate, #PR

British Columbia conducted the largest draw in 2020 On September 29, 2020, British Columbia conducted the largest draw in 2020 in the Skills Immigration (SI) and Express Entry British Columbia (EEBC) categories of the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP). BC invited 450 candidates to apply for a nomination of the province. The previous biggest draw held on August 7. The lowest scores in this round dropped in four out of five categories: Skills Immigration - Ski...lled Worker 93 (-1 point) Skills Immigration - International Graduate 94 (-1 point) Skills Immigration - Entry Level and Semi-Skilled 75 Express Entry British Columbia - Skilled Worker 93 (-1 point) Express Entry British Columbia - International Graduate 94 (-4 points) BC again excluded the following 31 NOCs from participation in the BCPNP draws (0621, 0631, 0632, 0651, 3236, 6211, 6311, 6313, 6321, 6322, 6341, 6421, 6511, 6512, 6513, 6521, 6522, 6523, 6524, 6525, 6531, 6532, 6533, 6562, 6564, 6611, 6621, 6711, 6721, 6722, and 6731.). In 2020, British Columbia invited 7,000 individuals under all streams of BCPNP. See more

Canada extended travel restrictions until October 31 Unfortunately for many immigrants, foreign workers and international students, on September 28, 2020, the Federal government extended the Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in Canada Order (Prohibition of Entry into Canada from any Country Other than the United States) until October 31, 2020. Canada introduced travel restrictions on March 18. Since then, the government keeps extending the border closure on monthly ...basis. The land border closure with the United States was also extended until October 21. Earlier, the Prime-Minister Justin Trudeau declared the second wave of the COVID-19 in Canada. Therefore, until the improvement of the pandemic conditions, the travel restrictions will be enforced. All exemptions to those restrictions, regarding essential workers and family members of Canadians, remain in place. See more

IRCC speeding up processing for spousal applications https://zcu.io/qfKj

BCPNP invited 407 foreigners to apply for a nomination On September 16, 2020, British Columbia released the results of the September 15 draw in the Skills Immigration (SI) and Express Entry British Columbia (EEBC) categories of the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP). The province invited 409 candidates to apply for a nomination. The lowest scores in this round somewhat dropped for International Graduate candidates in SI and EEBC streams, as well as for Entry ...Level and Semi-Skilled Workers: Skills Immigration - Skilled Worker 94 Skills Immigration - International Graduate 95 (-3 points) Skills Immigration - Entry Level and Semi-Skilled 75 (-1 point) Express Entry British Columbia - Skilled Worker 94 Express Entry British Columbia - International Graduate 98 (-3 points) As was announced earlier, BC keeps excluding the following 31 NOCs from participation in the BCPNP draws (0621, 0631, 0632, 0651, 3236, 6211, 6311, 6313, 6321, 6322, 6341, 6421, 6511, 6512, 6513, 6521, 6522, 6523, 6524, 6525, 6531, 6532, 6533, 6562, 6564, 6611, 6621, 6711, 6721, 6722, and 6731.). In total, BC issued 6,476 invitations in 2020 under all streams of BCPNP.

Saskatchewan invited 621 candidates in the SINP On September 15, 2020, Saskatchewan held a new round of invitations in the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP). In the Express Entry category, SINP issued 455 invitations to apply. In the Occupations In-Demand category, Saskatchewan invited 166 candidates. The lowest score in both categories was 68 points, similar to the previous round. All invited candidates had Educational Credential Assessments. In this draw, Saskat...chewan invited candidates in 3 following NOCs: 2173 Software engineers and designers, 2174 Computer programmers and interactive media developers, and 2175 Web designers and developers. Additionally, SINP noted that candidates who scored 68 points in this round had connections to Saskatchewan or had 10 years of work experience and a language level of CLB 8 or higher. In total, Saskatchewan invited 4,562 candidates to apply for a provincial nomination in 2020. See more

Canada issued 25,575 work permits for Humanitarian and Compassionate purposes in 2020 In six months of 2020, Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued 25,575 work permits for Humanitarian and Compassionate (H&C) purposes. These work permits allow several categories of foreign nationals to legally work in Canada. These categories include foreign nationals who have applied for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds and whose application has been approved in principle, holders of the Temporary Resident Permit (TRP), and some categories refugees whose claims are being processed and who got permission to work to support themselves by the Immigration and Refugee Board. Last year, Canada issued 63,100 worker permits under H&C.

Many people have misunderstood the job offer Recently, the Canadian government announced a new policy that allows visitors who came to Canada before August 24, 2020, and have a qualifying job offer to apply for a work permit. However, many people have misunderstood the job offer. Some visitors think if a Canadian employer has extended a job offer on a simple piece of paper, it will make them qualify to apply for a work permit. They must note that they are required to have an LMIA based job offer, not just a simple job offer. They must also have valid status in Canada as a visitor on August 24, 2020, to apply for a work permit without leaving Canada.

What provinces benefited the most from Express Entry in 2020? The main beneficiary of Express Entry in 2020 is Ontario. In the first half of 2020, it welcomed almost 60% of all Express Entry immigrants. The only two other provinces which may be regarded as the beneficiaries of Express Entry are British Columbia and Alberta, which attracted 21.6% and 10%, respectively. All other provinces combined accepted less than 9% of Express Entry immigrants. Nunavut is the only Canadian ...territory with no new Express Entry immigrants. Alberta - 4,490 (10.38%) British Columbia - 9,345 (21.61%) Manitoba - 965 (2.23%) New Brunswick - 440 (1.02%) Newfoundland and Labrador - 115 (0.27%) Northwest Territories - 25 (0.06%) Nova Scotia - 1,020 (2.36%) Ontario - 25,765 (59.59%) Prince Edward Island - 360 (0.83%) Saskatchewan - 700 (1.62%) Yukon - 20 (0.05%) Canada welcomed 43,240 foreign nationals who immigrated to Canada via Express Entry between January 1 and June 30, 2020.

Express Entry PR admissions in the first half of 2020 According to the recent figures by IRCC, for the first time in the history of Express Entry, the number of permanent residents in the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) overcame the number of immigrants in the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSW). In the first half of 2020, Canada welcomed 43,240 immigrants through the Express Entry. 41.3% of them or 17,840 were CEC immigrants while 37.1% or 16,030 FSW immigrants. Another 2...0.5% or 8,875 newcomers got their PR through the Express Entry-aligned streams of the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). Finally, 1.1% or 495 immigrants were processed through the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST). Having in mind the trends of invitations rounds caused by the COVID-19, we can assume that CEC immigrants will outnumber by far all other programs this year. See more

British Columbia will keep excluding 31 NOCs from BCPNP draws On August 31, 2020, the government of the province announced that it will keep the temporary policy of exclusion of 31 NOCs from participation in the BCPNP draws. Beginning March 30, the following 31 NOCs were banned from BCPNP: 0621, 0631, 0632, 0651, 3236, 6211, 6311, 6313, 6321, 6322, 6341, 6421, 6511, 6512, 6513, 6521, 6522, 6523, 6524, 6525, 6531, 6532, 6533, 6562, 6564, 6611, 6621, 6711, 6721, 6722, and 6731.... According to the officials, all those NOCs are in tourism, hospitality, retail and personal services occupations, the spheres where BC anticipates higher unemployment caused by the COVID-19. In the long term, BC expects shortages in these professional areas, however, in 2020, it is expected almost a 70% drop in jobs in these sectors. So far, BC invited 5,491 candidates to apply for a nomination in 2020. See more

The border will remain closed until September 30 On August 28, 2020, the government extended travel restrictions to Canada until September 30, 2020. This was announced by Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair on Tweeter. Canada has imposed travel restrictions on March 18. Initially, it was expected that the restrictions would be in effect until June 30, but then, Canada extended them three more times. Border closures and quarantine measures have helped Canada flatten its infection curve, according to government statements. The land border with the United States also remains closed. The opening of the border has been postponed until at least September 21. The decision to extend or remove restrictions will be made in mid-September.

No need to leave Canada to apply for a work permit On August 24, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) published a news release regarding the new temporary policy for work permit applications. IRCC has temporarily allowed foreign nationals with a valid job offer supported by the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to apply for a work permit without having to leave Canada. This step is aimed to help Canadian employers to recover from the COVID-19 crisis. The policy also applies to eligible applicants who had a valid work permit in the past 12 months to begin working for their new employer before their work permit application has been fully approved.

IRCC introduced further temporary measures for PGWP eligibility On August 26, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) introduced three new measures on Post-Graduate Work Permit eligibility for international students. Those foreign students whose programs starts from May to September 2020 with the duration of 8-12 month can complete their study online without losing eligibility for PGWP. Students whose program starts from May to September 2020 and will study remotely by April 30, 2021, and who studied in an eligible program before are allowed to combine the length of their study for PGWP eligibility but not more than 50% of the total studies online. Study permit applications must be submitted before the program start (including programs that begin in Winter 2021 term) to be eligible for those temporary measures.

Nation-wide protests demanding immigration status for temporary foreign workers The Migrant Rights Network simultaneously held protests in ten cities including Toronto and Vancouver across the country to demand that the federal government take immediate action to expand the scope of immigration to resolve the immigration status of temporary foreign workers who have been stranded in Canada due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Syed Hussan, the organizer of the protests, said that at p...resent, there are 1.6 million temporary foreign workers in Canada who do not have Canadian permanent residency status. These temporary foreign workers, on the one hand, have been making contributions to Canada's development and society, but on the other hand, they have been excluded from Canada's health insurance programs and COVID-19 related emergency response benefits, so they are living in poverty and are facing the risk of being deported. See more

IRCC has confirmed the processing of the paper-based PR applications On August 23, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has confirmed that the department keeps processing paper-based permanent residence applications to the extent possible on its official Twitter account. IRCC also tweeted that applicants couldn't re-submit a paper-based PR application online. IRCC also stated they are unable to provide accurate processing timelines for various applications. It is worth noting, that many provincial governments postponed the processing of paper-based application as a part of measures to reduce the risks of the COVID-19 infection. At the same time, the federal government will not process paper applications for visitor visas, study and work permits until further notice.

Canada issued 3,300 ITAs in the Express Entry for CEC candidates On August 20, 2020, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) conducted a new Express Entry draw. In the program-specific draw #161, Canada issued 3,343 Invitations to Apply for permanent residence in Canada in the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) Program. The lowest score was 454 points, nine points higher than in the previous CEC-specific round. The tie-breaking rule for this round was July 27, 2020 at 17:05:11 UTC. In 2020, Canada issued 65,750 invitations to apply in twenty-eight draws of Express Entry. In the ten CEC-specific rounds, IRCC invited 34,215 candidates this year. The majority of CEC candidates temporarily reside in Canada international graduates and foreign workers.

P IRCC may automatize residence period calculation for PR status renewals and citizenship applications Immigration applicants applying for Canadian citizenship and replacement of permanent residency cards may no longer need to fill in the period of residence in Canada. According to the latest update, the Canadian government will now be able to obtain immigration information for all foreigners within five years. This means that when permanent residents apply for citizenship af...ter five years or extend their permanent residency status, they will no longer need to fill out the period of stay in Canada. In 2018, the Canadian government passed Bill C-21 and revised the Customs Act, allowing the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) to start collecting entry and exit border information of travellers. CBSA has begun documenting travellers coming into and leaving Canada by ground since June 2019. The same applied to travellers coming and departing from Canada through air travel in June 2020. For the longest time, the CBSA only collected data on travellers entering the country. But now Bill C-21 requires the CBSA to collect information on travellers entering and exiting Canada. See more

Canada and the US extended the border closure until September 21 The government of the USA and Canada decided to extend leave the border closure for another month. This was announced by the Minister of Public Safety of Canada Bill Blair on Tweeter on Friday, August 14, 2020. This means the US-Canada border will be closed for non-essential travellers until September 21, 2020. Both governments applied the travel restrictions in March and then have been extending them every month. As for other international travel restrictions, they will remain in place until at least August 31, 2020. The new update on travel restrictions to Canada is expected in the last week of the month.

Manitoba held the MPNP draw #96 On August 13, 2020, Manitoba held a new invitation round in the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP). In round #96, Manitoba issued 197 Letters of Advice to Apply (LAA) in the Skilled Workers in Manitoba stream. The lowest score in this category was 485 points, 10 higher compared to draw #95. In the Skilled Workers Overseas stream, Manitoba issued 33 LAAs. The lowest score in the SWO category was 672, 92 points less than in the previous round. MPNP also invited 23 candidates in the International Education Category. In total, Manitoba issued 253 LAAs in this draw and 23 of them were issued to the Express Entry candidates. Manitoba sent LAAs to 3,086 candidates in 2020. In total, in the first half of the year, Manitoba admitted 4,485 immigrants and 2,990 of them passed through the MPNP.

Top-10 countries of the total PR admissions in the first half of 2020 IRCC has released new official data on the permanent resident admissions in 2020. In the first half of the year, Canada admitted 103,420 newcomers. A quarter of them originated from India 26,610 (25.7% of the total). China is the second-largest country of origin of immigrants 10,150 (9.8%). The third place is taken by the Philippines 6,930 (6.7%). The other top ten countries of origin are: the USA 3,870 immigrants (3.7%), Nigeria 3,350 (3.2%), Pakistan 3,305 (3.2%), Brazil 2,255 (2.2%), France 2,240 (2.2%), Syria 2,145 (2.1%), and United Kingdom 2,140 (2.1%).

Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program inventory has been updated On August 11, 2020, Alberta released a new update of the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) inventory. As of August 4, the Alberta received 1,150 applications waiting for the eligibility assessment under the Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS). All applications were received by the province before April 20, 2020. In the pool of the Alberta Express Entry Stream, there are 275 Expressions of Interest. In total, Alberta invited 1,933 candidates to apply for a provincial nomination in the Alberta Express Entry in 2020. According to IRCC, in the first half of 2020, Alberta admitted 12,795 immigrants and 4,475 of them were nominated by the AINP.

Canada welcomed 103,420 newcomers in the first half of 2020 Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has released the new figures about immigration to Canada. In the first half of the year, the country admitted 103,420 immigrants. According to the 2020-2022 Immigration Levels Plan, Canada was supposed to admit about 170,500 by June 30. Unfortunately, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic ruined those plans. Almost 63.7% of all immigrants were admitted through econo...mic immigration programs. Among them, about 21,8% were nominated by the provinces. Business immigrants were less than 1% in 2020. As for the family class, 24% of immigrants were sponsored by their relatives: 17.6% were spouses of Canadians and 5% were parents or grandparents. Finally, 10.8% of the newcomers were refugees and protected persons. Skilled Workers 42,360 (40.96%) PNP 22,505 (21.76%) Business - 955 (0.92%) Sponsored spouses 18,155 (17.55%) Sponsored parents and grandparents - 5310 (5.13%) Sponsored children 1,200 - (1.16%) Refugees and protected persons 11,170 (10.80%) Total - 103,420

Many Canadian universities have announced their quarantine plans for the fall semester The University of Toronto formulated a detailed plan on how to retain international students. International students who arrive in Canada will be placed in school dorms and hundreds of hotel rooms to quarantine for 14 days. Also, staff will conduct health checks for students and provide special quarantine kits. The University of Calgary announced details of its dorm settlement plan. Susan B...arker, the University of Calgary's vice-provost, said that considering how the pandemic is more serious in some countries and how travel restrictions may prevent students from coming, many international students have been placed in school dorms where they will spend the entire summer. In the upcoming fall semester, new international students will be quarantined in the school dorm for 14 days, and other students who aren't able to take care of themselves will be placed in local hotels. With the new September semester approaching, many international students who are going back to their home countries need to come up with a reasonable plan - should they stay in their home countries and take online classes, or should they return to Canada for their studies? If they want to enter Canada, then they must come up with a practical quarantine plan and communicate with their schools in time! See more

Immigration via the programs for caregivers Under the new caregiver program, foreign nationals who have passed grade 12 and completed one year of post-secondary education can be eligible to apply as a caregiver. However, they would be required to have at least 5 bands in IELTS and meet other eligibility criteria. The spouse and children of the applicant can be eligible to get work and study permits respectively. Canadian employers can hire a nanny/caregiver from abroad if they have small children or elderly people or people with special needs. However, they need to meet the income eligibility criteria. Foreign caregivers can apply for permanent residency after working for two years for their employer. In the first five months of 2020, 1,865 foreign nationals were granted PR status in Canada. Last year, their number was about 9,800.

Canadian universities will not provide discounts on tuition fees for online study Most Canadian universities already announced they will deliver classes online in the fall semester. Given the continuation of the COVID-19 crisis, education institutions will continue remote learning until the authorities declare it safe to return to campus. Therefore, students at popular universities can expect most of their courses to remain online. Some students will still be able to gather i...n smaller groups or attend lab sessions. In this case, international students who are already in Canada will attend online classes. So, the student unions are calling for tuition fees to be reduced in the fall because they do not have access to the type of learning and resources they were being charged for. International students at McGill pay anywhere between $18,000 to $48,000 in tuition every year, depending on their program. Unfortunately, McGill principal Suzanne Fortier has cleared the air about this issue, saying that tuition fees will remain the same. See more

Canada extended travel restrictions until August 31 On July 31, 2020, Canada extended travel restrictions until August 31. Thus, the restrictive measures were extended for one more month. The terms of the new extension were published in a new federal government Order in Council that regulates the entry of foreign nationals into Canada from the US and overseas. The new document also states that all travel ban exceptions remain in effect until further notice. This allows immed...iate family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents, as well as some new immigrants, foreign workers and international students, to be able to come to Canada. Canada imposed travel restrictions on March 18. Initially, the restrictions were in effect until June 30, but then the government extended them until July 31. According to the government, border closures and general quarantines have allowed Canada to flatten the curve, thus the travel restrictions are justified. Recall that the land border with the United States will remain closed until August 21. The decision to extend or remove restrictions will be made in mid-August. See more

British Columbia sent invitations to 34 Tech Pilot candidates On July 28, 2020, British Columbia invited 34 candidates in a new draw of the Tech Pilot of the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP). The province issued invitations to apply for the provincial nomination in four categories: Skills Immigration - Skilled Worker, Skills Immigration - International Graduate, Express Entry British Columbia - Skilled Worker, and Express Entry British Columbia - International Graduate. All invited candidates got a score of 80 points or higher. As of today, British Columbia sent invitations to 1,381 Tech Pilot candidates in 2020. This is almost 29.3% of the total 4,700 foreign nationals invited by the BCPNP this year.

Spousal open work permit pilot to become permanent https://zcu.io/3SUT

Canada - Biometrics Exemptions

Alberta updated the AINP inventory On July 23, 2020, Alberta published a new update of the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) inventory. According to data accurate on July 21, the province has 1,150 applications waiting for the eligibility assessment under the Alberta Opportunity Stream (AOS). Those applications were received before April 16, 2020. Additionally, there are about 300 Expressions of Interest in the Alberta Express Entry pool. So far, Alberta invited 1,933 candidates to apply for a nomination of the province in the Alberta Express Entry in 2020. According to IRCC, in total, 10,605 foreigners immigrated to Alberta this year and 3,435 of them were nominated by the province.

IRCC updated instructions of finalization of PR applications On July 22, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) released a new program delivery instruction on for finalization of permanent residence applications from inside and outside Canada. IRCC confirmed it continues the intake of applications. All incomplete applications with missing documents will be retained in the system for 90 days. After 90 days, IRCC will request the missing documents with anothe...r 90-days deadline. Applicants with approved Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) and Permanent Resident Visa (PRV) must inform the IRCC if they are unable to travel before the expiry date. Expired COPR and PRV may be reopened for review in 90 days. Approved applications can be re-opened in GCMS by cancelling the COPR and PRV and removing the final decision. Once the travel limitations ended, applicants can inform the IRCC and the re-opened application may be re-approved. See more

The OINP Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker Stream has been closed within hours On July 21, 2020, Ontario held a registration session for candidates in the Employer Job Offer: Foreign Worker Stream of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP). The registration was closed in less than two hours once the system has reached its intake limit. Many candidates complained online about the problems with the registration. At the moment, OINP has not published the results of this session. In the previous round on March 4, OINP received 1322 registrations in the Employer Job Offer streams, including the Foreign Worker Stream. In 2019, Ontario nominated 1,195 foreigners through this immigration stream.

Canadian universities consider the use of chartered flights to get students to Canada Canadian universities scramble to maintain the flow of international students and the revenue they bring by considering a variety of services, from chauffeur service to a quarantined room, catered meals, daily health check, and the possibility of having chartered flights to get students to Canada. As a result of the travel restrictions, quarantine rules and the move to online learning due to the pandemic this year, many international students still haven't decided whether to continue their programs in the fall. Many schools have been speaking to federal and provincial governments about securing additional funding proposing they could share the added costs of quarantine for incoming students.

174 candidates got invitations in the MPNP’s draw #94 On July 16, 2020, the government of Manitoba held the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) draw #94. In this round, the province distributed 134 Letters of Advice to Apply (LAA) in the Skilled Workers in Manitoba stream. The minimum score in this category was 430 points, 45 fewer than in the previous draw. In the Skilled Workers Overseas stream, Manitoba issued 11 LAAs. The minimum score in the SWO category was 811, five points less than in round #93. Finally, in the International Education Category, MPNP invited 29 candidates. In total, Manitoba issued 174 invitations in this draw and 18 of them to the candidates from the Express Entry pool. In total, Manitoba issued 2,634 LAAs in the MPNP in 2020.

In response to the COVID-19, IRCC eased the visa extension rules On July 14, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced that temporary residents can restore their visas until December 31, 2020. Earlier, international students, foreign workers and visitors had 90 days after their status expired to apply for a status restoration. Since many applicants who try to maintain a legal status cannot submit full applications, the IRCC allowed all TRV holders whose status expired after January 30, 2020, to apply for the restoration. This temporary policy is also aimed at former work-permit holders to work for their employer before the decision is made, provided they have an LMIA supported or LMIA-exempt job offer. Such workers still are required to notify IRCC about their conditions.

Extension for temporary residents applying to restore their status - Canada.ca - https://www.canada.ca///notices/restoration-extension.html

Express Entry PR admissions in 2020 According to the official data by IRCC, 31,010 immigrants received permanent residence via Express Entry in from January to May 2020. The highest number of PR admissions in the EE happened in February (9,185 immigrants), while during the COVID-19, their number had fallen to the lowest in April (2,075 immigrants). In May 2020, there were 4,420 PR admissions. 13,840 Express Entry immigrants were processed in the Federal Skilled Worker Program... (FSW), 10,995 immigrated via the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), 5,690 got their status in the Express Entry-aligned streams of the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), and, finally, only 480 under the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FST). Last year, 109,595 applications for permanent residence were issued through Express Entry and 53,1% of them in the FSW, 27.6% in the CEC, 18.2% in the PNP, and finally 1.1% in the FST. See more

Ontario opened the Regional Immigration Pilot On July 9, 2020, the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program has opened the intake of the applications under the new OINP Regional Immigration Pilot (OINP RIP). This provincial immigration pathway enables local employers from the designated communities to hire foreign workers to cover the labour shortages. Currently, three communities of Chatham-Kent, Cornwall, and Quinte West/Belleville participate in the pilot. The application to the OINP RIP is available by email. So far, Ontario allocated 150 spots for the pilot.

IRCC finally invited FSW candidates in the Express Entry! On July 4, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) finally held the full Express Entry invitation round. In round #155, Canada issued 3,900 Invitations to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence to candidates in all three federal programs and nominees of the Express Entry aligned provincial programs. As predicted, the Comprehensive Ranking System cut-off score in this draw has significantly increased to 4...78 points, 57 points more than in round #154. The tie-breaking rule for this round was February 11, 2020 at 03:17:13 UTC. As of July 6, 2020, there are 143,268 profiles registered in the pool, 632 more compared to the previous round. The number of candidates in the pool started to grow after three months of reduction. In total, Canada issued ITAs to 53,800 candidates in 22 Express Entry draws in 2020. See more

CUSMA has officially replaced NAFTA On July 1, 2020, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been superseded by the CanadaUnited StatesMexico Agreement (CUSMA). Following that, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have updated the instructions of the new agreement. The regulations for the free entry of citizens of the three countries remain almost unchanged from the original NAFTA agreement. This means the business people can continue to enter, live and work in Canada under the same rules.

Canada resumes processing of the visitor visas and eTAs On June 30, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced that it finally resumes processing the applications for visitor visas and electronic travel authorizations beginning July 1. At the same time, travel restrictions implemented to combat the spread of the COVID-19 remain in place. Immigration Canada will also continue processing online applications for work and study permits as well as applications for permanent residence. All paper applications will not be processed until the end of the pandemic.

Happy Canada Day!

Ontario pauses the application intake in the In-Demand Skills stream On June 29, 2020, the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) released a notice that starting 5 PM June 30, 2020, and until 9 AM July 6, it pauses the application intake in the Employer Job Offer: In-Demand Skills Stream. In this time frame, candidates will not be able to apply for a provincial nomination. In 2019, OINP issued nominations to 19 candidates in this stream.

IRCC published Express Entry Year-End Report 2019 On June 26, 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has released Express Entry Year-End Report 2019. This report summarizes all the immigration statistics in the Express Entry for the last year. In total, there were 332,331 profiles submitted to Express Entry in 2019. This is 53,730 profiles more than in 2018 and 82,144 more than in 2017. In 2019, IRCC held 26 ITA rounds and issued 85,300 invitations in 2019.... This is one round less than a year ago and 4,500 fewer candidates invited to apply for a PR. About 43% of the total invitations issued in 2019 were in the Federal Skilled Workers Program, 37% in the Canadian Experience Class, 18% were invited in the Provincial Nominee Program and about 2% in the Federal Skilled Trades Program. The CRS cut-off score in 2019 ranged from 438 to 475. A grand total of 109,595 applications for permanent residence were sourced through Express Entry in 2019. This number includes principal applicants and their accompanying family members. See more

British Columbia invited 87 Tech Pilot candidates On June 23, 2020, British Columbia held a new draw in the Tech Pilot of the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP). This time, the province distributed 87 invitations in four categories: Skills Immigration - Skilled Worker, Skills Immigration - International Graduate, Express Entry British Columbia - Skilled Worker, and Express Entry British Columbia - International Graduate. The lowest score in all categories has dropped by from 82 points to 80 points. In total, British Columbia invited 1,228 Tech Pilot candidates to apply for a provincial nomination which is almost 31.5% of the total 3,901 invitations issued by BC PNP in 2020.

Online education does not affect the recruitment of international students Despite the worst forecasts, the Ontario universities and colleges report that admission offers to new students remain at the same rate as before the COVID-19 crisis. This also means that the shift to online education did not reduce the number of students. In total, 103,426 offers of admission have been confirmed, both for domestic and international students. Last year, this number was 102,289. Many of Ontario education institutions focused on domestic high school graduates. Nevertheless, travel restriction did not affect the level of international students' interest to study in Canada. For instance, at the University of Toronto, confirmations from Ontario high-school students are down about 9%, but its international student numbers increased by nearly 20%.