Canada’s Citizenship Fee Raised

The year 2015 is going to be more expensive for anyone applying for Canadian citizenship. The government of Canada has increased the application fee for the second time in a year, increasing it from $300 to $530. In addition to the revised fee of $530, an applicant also needs to pay an additional $100 as
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The Procedures Applicable for Issuing Refunds for Applications Submitted Under the First Set of Ministerial Instructions (MI-1) to Applicants in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)

Operational Bulletin 376 – January 19, 2012 The Procedures Applicable for Issuing Refunds for Applications Submitted Under the First Set of Ministerial Instructions (MI-1) to Applicants in the Global Case Management System (GCMS) Issue On occasions, officers might need to issue refunds of the cost recovery fee payment for Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) applications. This
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Canada Increases Economic Class Immigration Levels in 2015 (Audio)

The Government of Canada will increase immigration levels significantly in 2015. Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander announced that Canada aims to welcome as many as 285,000 new permanent residents this year. This represents an increase in levels from previous years by about 20,000.  It is expected that the majority of economic class admissions to
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How Successful has Canada’s Startup Visa Program Been?

Canada’s Startup Visa Program was launched with much fanfare on April 1, 2013, by Jason Kenney, the former Citizenship and Immigration Minister. The program was started to attract top entrepreneurs from all over the world to Canada to start their own companies. To be eligible for startup visas, entrepreneurs are required to acquire financial backing
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Canada Ranked 4th Best Country in the World for Senior Citizens

The Global AgeWatch Index released last week lists Canada as the fourth best nation when it comes to the economic and physical well-being of senior citizens. Calculated by London based non-profit organization HelpAge International, the Index rates 96 countries across the world, covering nine out of ten people or 91% of the world’s population above
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Absorbing More Immigrants May Benefit Rich Countries

Population economics has been a greatly ignored field of study, especially when it comes to deriving solutions for an economic crisis, which many countries have been fighting against since the recent recession. Most of the focus has traditionally been on making strategies around financial regulation, unemployment and monetary policy, even though population can easily prove
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Number of Quebecers Moving Out-of-Province at 15-Year High

2013 saw Quebec’s population rising by about 63,000, but it also saw the total growth rate for the province decreasing for the fourth consecutive year. This week the annual report on population statistics as released by the Institut de la statistique du Québec, found that the slowdown was not due to a declining number of births
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The Expansion of the China Transit Trial – Modified

Operational Bulletin 223-B – February 01, 2012 The Expansion of the China Transit Trial – Modified Summary This Operational Bulletin (OB) advises officers about the changes made to the China Transit Trial (CTT) pilot program. The China Transit Trial (CTT) pilot program commenced on February 01, 2012. Issue The authorities have expanded the one-year China
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The Instructions to Create a Global Case Management System (GCMS) Application for the Sponsorship of Unnamed Children for Adoption and Sibling Adoption Applications

Operational Bulletin 385 – February 13, 2012 The Instructions to Create a Global Case Management System (GCMS) Application for the Sponsorship of Unnamed Children for Adoption and Sibling Adoption Applications Summary This Operational Bulletin (OB) provides various instructions to officers. It instructs them on the process for creating a file in the Global Case Management
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Cutting Social Assistance for Canada’s Newcomers Can be Detrimental

Canada’s success with immigration is now prompting other nations to sit up and take note. European nations, most notably, are struggling to cope with immigration, with heated debates on the subject making regular headlines there. So it is no surprise that they wonder how Canada, with its relatively liberal immigration policies, has managed to navigate
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