Canadian Immigration Measures Will Address Labor Shortage

On April 22, Canadian Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Sean Fraser announced new measures to address the country’s labor shortage.

Specifically, the government will resume applications for high-skill workers, including the Canadian experience class, federal skilled worker class, and federal skilled trades class, which were curbed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Invitations to apply will resume in early July, and the vast majority of new applications will be processed within six months.

The government also will implement a new temporary policy that will give recent international graduates with expiring temporary status the opportunity to stay in Canada longer to gain work experience and have a better chance at qualifying for permanent residency.

The Canadian government also has:

• Doubled to 156,000 the number of permanent residence decisions made in the first quarter of 2022, compared to the same time period in 2021;
• Processed more than 100,000 work permit applications in the first quarter of 2022, nearly doubling the number processed over the same time period in 2021; and
• Allowed foreign nationals in Canada as visitors to apply for an employer-specific work permit without having to leave Canada.

Finally, to help temporary residents transition to permanent resident status, this summer the government will:

• Not require applicants to remain in Canada while their application is processed;
• Allow applicants who apply for an open work permit while waiting for their permanent residence application to be finalized to get work permits through the end of 2024;
• Allow immediate family members who are outside Canada and who are included in a principal applicant’s permanent residence application to be eligible for their own open work permit.

Read more about these policy changes here.