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IMPACT – MEDIUM
What is the change? Canada conducted its 23rd Express Entry draw today accepting a lowest qualifying score of 460 and issuing 1,503 invitations to apply.
What does the change mean? The lowest minimum score remains below 600, indicating that some candidates were invited to apply for permanent residence without an LMIA-supported job offer or provincial nomination.
Background: Introduced in January, the Express Entry system ranks candidates on a 1,200-point scale based on various factors including education, skills and language ability. Candidates earn 600 points if they have an LMIA-based job offer or provincial nomination. While the early draws required a minimum score in the high 800s, the minimum qualifying score dropped sharply in March and hit a low of 450 in September. Since June, all draws have recorded minimum scores below 600. To date, 31,063 invitations to apply have been issued.
BAL Analysis: Citizenship and Immigration Canada continues to clear its backlog of pre-Express Entry cases from 2014. Officials have recently projected that in 2016 they expect the number of invitations to apply to increase and the minimum qualifying scores to drop.
This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group and our network provider located in Canada. For additional information, please contact your BAL attorney.
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What is the change? A pilot program to provide open work permits to spouses and common-law partners of Canadian citizens and permanent residents while their applications for permanent residence are pending has been extended by one year.
What does the change mean? Spouses or common-law partners with pending permanent residence applications in the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada (SCLPC) class may apply for open work permits through Dec. 22, 2016.
Background: Canada launched the program to provide spouses and common-law partners open work permits in December 2014. Before the program, spouses and common-law partners had to wait as long as 16 months for approval in principle of their residency applications before they could apply for work permits. The program allows spouses and common-law partners to begin working much sooner because wait times for open work permits are significantly shorter. CIC announced on Dec. 11 that the program would be extended for a year. In order to be eligible, applicants must be a spouse or common-law partner who is being sponsored under the SCLPC class. The applicant must have a valid temporary status as a visitor, student or worker and must live at the same address in Canada as their sponsor.
BAL Analysis: The extension of the program benefits spouses and common-law partners who want to work in Canada while their permanent residence applications are pending. The shorter waiting periods may make it easier for Canadian employers to retain highly skilled employees.
What is the change? Citizenship and Immigration Canada continues to experience problems with its online immigration systems, including the Employer Portal that was launched in October to improve application processes for LMIA-exempt work permits.
What does the change mean? CIC’s immigration systems have experienced offline periods and other technical glitches. Last week, the Employer Portal was down for two days. Applicants should take note of the ongoing problems and prepare for the possibility of processing delays.
Background: CIC launched the Employer Portal in October, and BAL reported in November that it was experiencing technical problems. The problems have persisted and, at times, have affected all of CIC’s online immigration systems. The portal is operating again after two days offline, but applicants are still advised to prepare their applications well ahead of any deadlines they may have.
BAL Analysis: The portal was designed to improve application processes for LMIA-exempt work permits filed through the International Mobility program, including application processes for intracompany transfers and free-trade agreement (e.g., NAFTA) work permits. The rollout has been plagued by ongoing technical problems, however. Applicants should plan ahead and anticipate delays. In some cases, “workarounds” may be available for permits that cannot be processed due to technical problems. Contact your BAL attorney to discuss case-specific options.
What is the change? Canada has overhauled its International Experience Canada program so that candidates will be invited to apply for a limited number of spots rather than be awarded them on a first-come, first-served basis.
What does the change mean? The change will apply to all three IEC streams: Working Holiday, Young Professionals and International Co-op. The overhaul is designed to make the program fairer by awarding work permit applications on a random basis (Working Holiday) or based on the quality of the application (Young Professionals and International Co-op), rather than based on which applicants applied first.
Background: The IEC program is available to Canadian citizens who want to travel and work abroad and to foreign nationals who want to travel and work in Canada. The program stems from bilateral agreements between Canada and other countries and is generally (though not always) available to applicants between the ages of 18 and 35. Work permits issued through the program are valid for up to two years.
Spots are limited, however, and, particularly in the Working Holiday stream, quotas often would be reached within minutes of opening.
Under the new system, applicants complete an online profile and are placed into any of the three pools for which they are eligible. Canada then issues invitations to apply, whereupon candidates have 10 days to decide whether they want to accept the invitation. If they accept, they have 20 days to complete and submit an online work permit application.
BAL Analysis: The changes may have the most impact on sectors such as tourism and hospitality. Businesses that hire foreign nationals who come to Canada through the program should evaluate whether they need to change recruiting or hiring practices in light of the changes.
What is the change? Canada conducted its 22nd Express Entry draw today, accepting a lowest qualifying score of 461 and issuing 1,451 invitations to apply.
Background: Introduced in January, the Express Entry system ranks candidates on a 1,200-point scale based on various factors including education, skills and language ability. Candidates earn 600 points if they have an LMIA-based job offer or provincial nomination. The early draws required a minimum score in the high 800s. Since June, all draws have recorded minimum scores below 600. To date, 29,560 invitations to apply have been issued.
BAL Analysis: While Canada has issued very few invitations to apply in 2015 compared to projections, the number of invitations should increase in 2016 as most foreign job candidates will be required to use the Express Entry system as the main route to permanent residency.
What is the change? Canada plans to expand its electronic Travel Authorization program to “low-risk” nationals of Brazil, Bulgaria, Mexico and Romania once the program is fully implemented in March.
What does the change mean? Nationals of Brazil, Bulgaria, Mexico and Romania will be able to enter Canada with an eTA provided they have held a Canadian visa in the last 10 years or hold a valid non-immigration U.S. visa.
Background: Canada’s eTA program will be fully implemented March 15. The program requires visa-waived nationals, with the exception of U.S. nationals, to complete an online eTA before traveling to Canada. Approved eTAs can be issued within minutes.Currently, all nationals of Brazil, Bulgaria, Mexico and Romania require visas to travel to Canada.
BAL Analysis: The CIC has touted the expansion of its eTA program as a way to ease travel for visa-required nationals, while promoting public safety by allowing the government to focus on higher-risk travelers. Other countries may be added to the eTA program if the initial program is considered successful.
What is the change? Canada conducted its 21st Express Entry draw Friday. The lowest qualifying score was 472 and 1,559 new invitations to apply were issued.
What does the change mean? The minimum qualifying score remained below 600 points, indicating that some candidates were able to obtain an invitation to apply for permanent residency without an LMIA-supported job offer or provincial nomination.
Background: The Express Entry system ranks candidates on a 1,200-point scale based on education, skills and language ability. Candidates earn 600 points if they have an LMIA-based job offer or provincial nomination. The early draws required a minimum score in the high 800s. Since June, all draws have recorded minimum scores below 600. To date, 28,109 invitations to apply have been issued.
BAL Analysis: The minimum qualifying score is expected to remain low in upcoming draws as the inventory of applications is cleared, which in turn will cause the number of invitations to apply to increase. The relatively low total number of invitations to apply in 2015 should also increase in 2016, as more candidates switch to the Express Entry system as the main channel to permanent residency.
What is the change? The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program announced Monday that its 2015 base stream quota of 2,500 nominations has been exhausted.
What does the change mean? OINP will not issue any additional nominations under its base stream until Jan. 4, 2016; pending applications will not be finalized until 2016. Prescreened employer applications in the Foreign Worker and International Student with a Job Offer streams will continue to be accepted.
Background: Citizenship and Immigration Canada sets annual provincial nomination targets, and placed Ontario’s quota for its base stream at 2,500 for 2015. That quota has been hit and Ontario will not issue further nominations in this stream until the new year. Prescreened employer applications in the Foreign Worker and International Student with a Job Offer streams will continue to be accepted, but applications that have not already been prescreened will be turned away.
BAL Analysis: This week’s announcement highlights the high level of demand OINP is facing. Nominations in the OINP’s base stream will come to a halt until 2016, and employers may need to adjust plans accordingly.
What is the change? Canada conducted its 20th Express Entry draw Friday, inviting 1,506 people to apply for permanent residence.
What does the change mean? The minimum score among invitees was 484 points, not much of a change from the Oct. 23 draw where the minimum score was 489. The latest draw is a further indication that minimum scores are trending upward after hitting a low of 450 points in the Sept. 18 and Oct. 2 draws.
Background: In recent draws, Canada has consistently issued roughly 1,500 invitations to apply. Minimum scores reached a low of 450 before increasing in the past two draws.
Draws are typically conducted every two to three weeks, with some variance. To date, Canada has issued 26,550 invitations to apply for permanent residence in the Express Entry program’s first year.
BAL Analysis: While minimum scores have risen in the most recent draws, it is likely that the number of invitations to apply will increase and minimum scores will drop in upcoming draws as the inventory of old cases is finalized. Whether minimum scores drop or not, however, there will still be a significant advantage to candidates who have an LMIA-based job offer or provincial nomination, either of which ensures a score of at least 600 on Express Entry’s 1,200-point scale.
What is the change? Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s new web portal for employers to submit job offers is experiencing technical difficulties that are slowing down the application process for LMIA-exempt foreign workers.
What does the change mean? Employers should expect delays both in registering for the portal and in the processing of work permit applications.
Background: CIC launched the portal last month, requiring that employers or their legal representatives use it to submit job offers directly to the agency.
BAL Analysis: BAL is working with employers to register for the portal so we may submit job offers and the required government compliance fee on their behalves. We will follow up with clients regarding the technical difficulties as more information becomes available.