Processing time and Inventory of Permanent Residence Applicants
In January 2022, Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, announced major updates to IRCC’s online processing times tool. Moreover, the Minister said he was looking to give clients more up-to-date information by publishing, not just accurate service standards, but also status updates on the actual processing time.
This article will explore processing times for:
- PR, citizenship, family sponsorships and temporary resident visas, also
- applications under Economic Immigration, humanitarian, refugees and caregivers visa category, and
- IRCC Backlog
Processing times for PR, citizenship, family sponsorships and temporary resident visas
As of May 6, processing times were the following:
1. Permanent resident (PR) cards
- Renewing or replacing a PR card: 70 days
- Waiting for first card: 99 days
2. Citizenship
- Citizenship grant: 27 months, also Certificate/Proof of citizenship: 17 months
- Resumption of citizenship: 23 months
- Renunciation of citizenship: 15 months
- Search of citizenship record: 15 months
- Citizenship for adopted persons – Part 1: 12 months, Part 2: Varies by complexity
3. Family Sponsorship
- Spouse or common-law partner living inside Canada: 15 months
- Spouse or common-law partner living outside Canada: 22 months
- Dependent child: depends on where the child lives
- Parents or grandparents: 33 months
- Adopted child/relative: depends where the adopted child/relative lives
4. Temporary residence application
- Visitor visa outside Canada: Varies by country
– inside Canada: 16 days online and 27 days by paper, also
– extension: 214 days online and 216 days by paper - Parents or grandparents Super Visa: Varies by country
- Study permit outside Canada: 11 weeks
– inside Canada: 3 weeks
– extension: 60 days online and 219 days by paper - Work permit outside Canada: Varies by country
– Work permit inside Canada (initial application or extension): 137 days online and 164 days by paper - International Experience Canada: Varies by country
- Electronic Travel Authorization: 5 minutes
Please be aware that this data was retrieved from the Government of Canada, on May 6, 2022. This is subject to change on the website due to fresh updates.
Processing times for applications under Economic Immigration, humanitarian, refugees and caregivers visa category
The processing times for applications under Economic Immigration, humanitarian, refugees and caregivers, were the following:
- Canadian Experience Class (CEC): 9 months
- Caregivers: No processing time available
- Provincial Nominee Program (PNP): 22 months (online via Express Entry)
- Self-employed persons (Federal): 41 months
- Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP): 27 months
- Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP): 41 months
- Start-up visa: 31 months
- Humanitarian & Compassionate: 19 months, also
- Refugees: depends where you are applying from
IRCC Backlog
According to data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) published by CIC News, the backlogs have increased to more than 2 million applications across all categories in April, compared to 1.8 million in March.
| Line of Business | Persons as of Apr. 11- Apr. 12 | Persons as of Apr. 30 – May 2 |
| PR | 529,631 | 530,269 |
| TR | 1,102,375 | 1,200,791 |
| Citizenship | 399,583 | 399,325 |
| TOTAL | 2,031,589 | 2,130,385 |
The inventory for temporary resident visas and work permits has increased significantly. This could be due to the introduction of the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET), which is a temporary residency pathway to Canada. It is not a refugee program.
Relevant articles:
- Canadian Immigration Processing Times: Seven Factors,
- Check Your Application Status Canada,
- IRCC Online Profile for Immigration, Visa, or Permit to Canada
Let us help!
If you have general immigration questions, you may fill out the following form. Of course, if you have specific questions, please book an appointment. You can also fill out our assessment form.
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