The newly re-elected Conservative Government has announced that it will lower the quota on applications for permanent residency for the coming year, starting this month.
Last July, the Citizenship and Immigration Canada reduced the number of applications under the skilled worker category to 20,000 and allowed applications only from those whose experience falls under one of 29 occupations listed as being in most demand. This strategy was part of their continued efforts to decrease the massive backlog that has some individuals waiting upwards of eight years for assessment.
The list of 29 occupations remains unchanged for the coming year. However, instead of accepting 1,000 applications for each, CIC will only accept 500 for processing and has lowered the overall quota to 10,000. These quotas apply only to individuals who do not have a valid offer of employment in Canada.
“Canada continues to welcome historically high numbers of new immigrants each year, but the Government continues to receive applications that far exceed this number,” said Immigration Minister Jason Kenney upon announcing the plan. “If we don’t keep putting reasonable limits on new applications, backlogs and wait times will grow.”
Indeed, the strategy appears to be working, as the number of applications waiting in the “backlog” – those filed before November of 2008 – has been reduced by about half, according to the latest government estimates.
Minister Kenney also announced that the number of applications for federal investor category will be capped at 700, while the federal entrepreneur applications stream is now under a “temporary moratorium” until policymakers meet in the coming month to review strategy.
Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada