Stevo Petkovic Immigration
18020 96 Ave NW T5T 3N2 Edmonton, AB, Canada

Ottawa plans to welcome between 280,000 and 305,000 permanent residents by the end of 2016. Indeed, it is the highest number of projected immigrant admissions put forth by the Government of Canada in modern times, he said. see full article http://www.ctvnews.ca//canada-plans-to-welcome-300-000-new

Soon no more 2 year conditional spousal Permanent Residency Immigration Minister John McCallum is planning on introducing changes in the next couple of months that will grant permanent resident status to the sponsored spouses of Canadians, immediately, upon arriving in Canada. When spouses come in now, they don’t immediately become permanent residents; there’s a two-year period where they are not yet permanent residents, Mr. McCallum (Markham-Thornhill, Ont.) said in a...n interview with The Hill Times. We said in our platform that we will end that so that they will become permanent residents on arrival. Currently, sponsored spouses of Canadians receive conditional permanent residency upon arrival in Canada and have to wait for two years to obtain permanent-resident status. If the relationship breaks down, the sponsored spouse’s permanent residency can be revoked. Spouses holding conditional permanent resident status enjoy the same rights and benefits as any other permanent resident. see full story http://www.hilltimes.com//spouses-of-canadians-to-g/45453 See more

Minister McCallum to repeal parts of C-24 February 25, 2016 Ottawa, ON Today, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister John McCallum introduced legislation to amend the Citizenship Act, providing greater flexibility for applicants trying to meet the requirements for citizenship and help immigrants obtain citizenship faster. "The Government is keeping its commitment to repeal certain provisions of the Citizenship Act, including those that led to different treatment f...or dual citizens. Canadian citizens are equal under the law. Whether they were born in Canada or were naturalized in Canada or hold a dual citizenship," said Minister McCallum. Among the changes, the Bill: An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act, would repeal provisions that allow citizenship to be revoked from dual citizens who engage in certain acts against the national interest. All Canadians who commit crimes should face the consequences of their actions through the Canadian justice system. The Bill also proposes to reduce the time permanent residents must be physically present in Canada before qualifying for citizenship by a full year. Recognizing that immigrants often build an attachment to Canada before becoming permanent residents, the proposed legislation would credit applicants for the time spent in Canada as temporary residents or protected persons. The age range to meet French or English language requirements and pass a knowledge test to qualify for citizenship, would change to 18-54 from 14-64. The changes support our goal of removing barriers for immigrants to build successful lives in Canada. ( source Citizenship and Immigration Canada)

AINP news January 27, 2016 "Effective immediately, the temporary pause on application intake has ended and the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) is now accepting new applications under all AINP streams and categories. During the pause, the AINP was successful in reducing the application queue by almost half, with fewer than 5,000 applications remaining to be processed.... Current applicants to the AINP with existing applications will remain in the queue awaiting assessment. Please visit the AINP processing and inventory page for regular updates on application processing and inventory status. In order to manage the volume of applications going forward, we may stop accepting new applications in the future if the program is oversubscribed. We will monitor the program closely and look for opportunities to improve the program as necessary in the future. Any updates to the program will be posted on this website. Applications postmarked before January 27, 2016 will be returned." http://www.albertacanada.com/opp/immigrating/ainp-news.aspx If you need help with your application please contact me at [email protected]

Canada 'is making history' with airlift of Syrian refugees, says minister As several countries across Europe look to cut the number of Syrian refugees flowing across their borders, Canada is ramping up its response to the crisis, pushing ahead with plans to airlift more than 13,000 refugees into the country in the next six weeks. It is an unprecedented operation for Canada, said John McCallum, the country’s immigration, refugees and citizenship minister. Canada has many tim...es in the past decades accepted significant waves of refugees, he told the Guardian in an interview at his constituency office. But I think this is making history in Canada in the sense that we’ve never done it so fast. The ambitious undertaking expected to cost the Canadian government about C$680m ($472m/335) has become one of the most prominent policies of the country’s new government. The Liberal party, led by Justin Trudeau, won a landslide victory in October with a manifesto of bold campaign promises, including bringing 25,000 government-assisted refugees to the country by the end of 2015. full story http://www.theguardian.com//canada-syrian-refugee-airlift-