On June 7, 2022, enhancements to Canada’s super visa program were announced by the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship. These enhancements will make it easier for Canadians to reunite with their parents and grandparents in Canada and will allow super visa holders to stay for a longer period of time. These changes, which come into force on July 4, 2022, will increase the length of stay for super visa holders to 5 years per entry into Canada and people who have a super visa also have the option to request to extend their stay by up to 2 years at a time while in Canada. The enhancements will also allow the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship to designate international medical insurance companies to provide coverage to super visa applicants in the future. Currently, only Canadian insurance providers can provide the necessary medical coverage that super visa applicants are required to have. Information about any designated medical insurance companies located outside of Canada will be communicated on IRCC’s website at a later date. Read the full announcement here.
Articles from 2022
Good News for EE candidates, international students and TR to PR applicants still waiting for decision.
April 22, 2022—Several measures were announced today by the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.
- Express Entry draws will soon resume and that invitations for candidates to apply for permanent residence will begin in early July, and the vast majority of new applications will be processed within the 6-month service standard.
- A new temporary policy will give recent international graduates with expiring temporary status an opportunity to stay in Canada longer so that they can continue to gain work experience and have a better chance at qualifying for permanent residency. Starting in the summer of 2022, former international students who are in Canada and have a post-graduation work permit expiring between January and December 2022 will qualify for an additional open work permit of up to 18 months.
- The temporary public policy implemented in August 2020, allows foreign nationals in Canada as visitors to apply for an employer-specific work permit without having to leave Canada and this temporary public policy has been extended to February 28, 2023.
- Those who applied for permanent residence through the temporary resident to permanent resident pathway last year and are still being processed as of this summer no longer be required to remain in Canada while their application is being processed and applicants who apply for an open work permit while waiting for their permanent residence application to be finalized will be able to get work permits valid until the end of 2024. To support family reunification, immediate family members who are outside Canada and who were included in a principal applicant’s permanent residence application will be eligible for their own open work permit.
Changes BC Provincial Nominee Program
On March 10, 2022, many changes to the BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) were announced. All changes can be found in the new version of the BC PNP Skills Immigration Program Guide that is now available.
Key changes, effective March 10, 2022, include:
- Targeted invitations to apply will give priority access to select occupations in the care economy, specifically registrants whose occupation is on a pre-determined list of in-demand health occupations as well as early childhood educators.
- Healthcare assistants and dental assistants have been added to the Entry Level and Semi-Skilled category as eligible occupations.
- Targeted invitations to apply (priority access) replaces the registration points awarded for high demand occupations in the Labour Market Outlook.
- Periodic general draws will be conducted for other skilled and semi-skilled workers who meet program criteria.
- Invitations to apply can be based on various factors that support B.C. government priorities.
- The Healthcare Professional category has been replaced with the Health Authority category and is open to all occupations employed by a health authority.
- An overview of Strategic Priorities & Initiatives has been added to the website. There are no changes to BC PNP Tech.
- Workers in management occupations (grouped under Skill Type 0 in the NOC) may only register/apply under Skilled Worker categories; management occupations are not eligible under the International Graduates categories.
- The requirement of two years directly related experience under the Skilled Worker category is replaced with two years of skilled experience. NOTE: Points are rewarded for directly related work experience.
- Employer requirements are updated with new or clarified conditions.
- Other changes to the Skills Immigration categories include clarifying or adjusting criteria, and updating definitions.
Public policy allowing certain visitors in Canada to apply for a work permit
The temporary public policy that allows certain temporary residents in Canada with visitor status to apply for a work permit from within Canada has been extended until February 29, 2023. While all visitors in Canada can apply for an employer-specific work permit under this public policy, only those who held a work permit in the last 12 months may request interim authorization to work.
The public policy came into effect on August 24, 2020, and the eligibility criteria were expanded to allow all visitors who are in Canada with valid temporary resident status to apply inland for an employer-specific work permit, regardless of when they arrived in Canada. The public policy is being extended until February 28, 2023.
More information on the website of IRCC is here.
