Residence pathways, work permits to be made available for certain foreign nationals

IMPACT – MEDIUM

The Canadian government has announced that it will resume draws for Express Entry and provide additional work permit options for Post Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) holders and those with spouses abroad under the Temporary Resident (TR) to Permanent Resident (PR) pathway.

Key Points:

• Express Entry. Foreign nationals will begin receiving invitations to apply permanent residence through Express Entry in July. At this time, it is unclear if initial draws will be program-specific or what score will be required to qualify for an invitation.
  • Individuals who are the highest scoring candidates in the Express Entry pool may receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence earlier than expected.
• PGWP holders. Those who hold PGWPs that expired/will expire between January and Dec. 31, 2022, will be able to apply for a subsequent open work permit valid for up to 18 months.
  • Details regarding the application process for the new open work permit will be published in the coming weeks.
• TR to PR pathway. TR to PR pathway applicants who currently live outside of Canada and are being processing as dependents will be eligible for open work permits in the coming months.
  • Applicants will no longer be required to remain in Canada while their application is being processed.
  • Applicants who are currently in Canada and are waiting for their permanent residence application to be finalized will be able to apply for a work permit until the end of 2024.
  • Immediate family members who are outside of Canada will be eligible to apply for an open work permit.

Additional Information: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) took in a record number of applications in 2021 and, as a result, were unable to process the applications within the six-month standard. Draws were paused to meet the six-month target for processing goals. More information on Canada’s announcement regarding the resumption of draws for  Express Entry and new open work permit options for certain foreign nationals is available here.

BAL Analysis: The Canadian government announced the new measures with intent to help temporary residents and foreign nationals who were negatively affected by COVID-19’s impact on immigration. BAL will proved more information as it becomes available.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group. For additional information, please contact berryapplemanleiden@bal.com.

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