RELO NEWS
The Canadian government is taking special measures until August 3, 2016 to assist foreign nationals affected by the wildfires in Alberta.
Applicants who submitted a Canadian travel document application and are expecting to receive it by mail should call 1-800-567-6868 to confirm the pick-up location or to provide an alternate mail location.
Due to a relaxation of the deadline to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), visa-exempt nationals who plan to enter or exit and re-enter Canada by air will be able to board their flight and enter Canada as long as they have appropriate travel documents, such as a valid passport, until September 29, 2016.
Several planned changes were announced for the Express Entry and International Mobility programs at the annual Canadian Bar Association Immigration Section Conference in Vancouver, held last week. Fragomen Canada’s attendance at the Canadian Bar Association conference allowed Fragomen to voice client opinions and concerns about future immigration policies. Key changes and findings are discussed below.
The Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has announced the projections for permanent residents in various categories in 2016. The projection includes an overall number of between 280,000 and 305,000 (target 300,000) new permanent residents in 2016, as opposed to the projected number for 2015, which was between 260,000 and 285,000 new permanent residents.
On or after February 17, 2016, foreign nationals in the television and film industry will be eligible for an exemption from the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) requirement under the International Mobility Program.
The exemption will apply to essential television and film production workers regardless of whether the production is foreign or Canadian and whether it is filmed entirely or in part in Canada.
The provincial governments of Alberta and British Colombia have re-opened the nomination streams and categories under the Alberta Immigrant Nominee (AINP) and British Columbia Nominee Programs (BC PNP), respectively, after the programs’ quotas were reached for 2015.
The programs offer foreign nationals and their spouses or common law partners and dependent children permanent residence.
On or after February 1, 2016, employers will not be able to advertise new jobs in job bank accounts created before February 24, 2015, and instead will have to open a new job bank account on the new Job Bank website. To open a new job bank account, employers must have a Canadian social insurance number.
Jobs advertised prior to January 31 using the old employer accounts system will continue to be advertised until the postings expire.
Employers should create an account on the new Job Bank website to post job listings on or after February 1, 2016.
Employers without a Canadian social insurance number may designate a Canadian citizen or permanent resident as a third-party representative to manage the employer account.
The quota for the regular stream of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) (which includes applicants with Master’s degrees and PhDs) has been exhausted for 2015, after Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) received 2,500 nominations. New applications and employer pre-screen applications under this stream will not be accepted until January 1, 2016.
On October 26, 2015, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) introduced a new electronic system for employers to submit Offers of Employment for Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)-exempt foreign workers (including intracompany transferees, professionals under the North American Free Trade Agreement, and International Experience Canada participants), called the Employer Portal. Official guidance suggests that employers should begin using the Employer Portal.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will now accept inland work permit, study permit and visitor record extension applications more than 90 days from expiration. This is due to swift and significant increases in the typical processing time for extension applications.
CIC’s informal policy in the past has been to advise against foreign nationals filing inland extension applications outside of 90 days from the date of expiry. However, CIC has confirmed to Fragomen that it now has no objection to inland extension applications being submitted earlier to account for the current processing times.
The processing time for an extension application filed online at CIC’s Case Processing Centre in Vegreville, Alberta (CPC-V) is currently 114 days – more than double the processing time in April of this year.
What this means for Foreign Nationals
Employers and foreign nationals should begin reaching out to their immigration professionals to begin extension cases at least 180 days prior to the expiration of current work permits or other temporary resident status documents, particularly those who have work permits based on Labour Market Impact Assessments.
The Quebec Immigrant Investor Program (QIIP) – which qualifies investors who make an investment in Quebec through an authorized financial intermediary for permanent residence - is now accepting applications. Most applications are due January 29, 2016.
Qualification Criteria
In order to be eligible for the program, applicants must:
Application assessment will also include factors such as age, professional background and language skills. Applicants who demonstrate intermediate language skills in French are eligible for priority processing and can apply until March 31, 2016.
While in previous years preliminary applications were accepted for consideration, this year, only completed applications will be considered.
Program Cap
The program will accept 1,750 applicants. No more than 1,200 applicants will be accepted from any single country. Applicants with French language skills are not subject to program caps.
What This Means for Foreign Nationals
Eligible foreign investors should benefit from the possibility of permanent residence that is offered by the new program. As preparing an application can be a lengthy process, interested foreign workers should contact their immigration professional to begin work on the applicationwell in advance of the cut-off date of January 29, 2016.
Due to a large volume of pending applications, effective immediately, the Alberta Immigration Nominee Program (AINP) will not accept applications until January 27, 2016, and the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) will not accept applications for a majority of the Skills Immigration and Express Entry British Columbia categories until early 2016. Pending applications will continue to be assessed.
The BC PNP will only accept applications under the Health Care Professional category and the Northeast Pilot Project. The Skills Immigration and Express Entry British Colombia categories are expected to reopen in early 2016 with a new points-based system to ensure high-impact applicants are prioritized and occupations and skills are aligned with labor market needs.
What This Means for Foreign Nationals
Until these programs reopen, foreign nationals with pending applications under these categories should see reduced wait times and other program improvements.
