November 12th, 2024 at 05:38 am

Canada’s Visa Backlog Surges to 1.1 Million: Extended Delays for Citizenship and Residency Processing

With over 1.1 million applications surpassing the service requirements established by Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Canada is now dealing with an expanding immigration backlog. In the categories of citizenship, permanent residency, and temporary residency, the delays are most noticeable.

A large backlog in Canada’s immigration system is causing processing timeframes for applications for citizenship, permanent residency (PR), and temporary residency (TR) to be prolonged. As of September 30, more than 2.45 million applications are being processed, with 1.1 million of those applications taking longer than anticipated to process, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

People and businesses that depend on immigration have been hurt by this backlog of visas and immigration, with Indian nationals being particularly hard hit.

Backlog Processing for All Categories

According to the IRCC webpage, backlogged applications increased by 1.73% in August alone as of November 6. The delay is dispersed throughout several categories, each of which is under particular strain because of the high demand. This is a summary:

Citizenship Applications

• Pending: 38,100 applications
• Change: Declined slightly by 1.29% since August

Permanent Residency Applications

• Pending: 305,200 applications
• Change: Increased by 1.46%

Temporary Residency Applications

• Pending: 753,700 applications
• Change: Rose by 2%, marking a 13.44% surge since July

The Increase in Applications for Temporary Residency

With a 13.44% increase since July, temporary residency has seen the biggest increase. The main cause of this increase is the rise in the number of temporary workers and international students requesting permits. Consequently, in terms of the volume of applications, temporary residency is now the category under the most strain.

Processing by standards

A sizable percentage of applications are nonetheless handled by IRCC service standards despite the difficulties. By the 30th of September:

• Citizenship: processing 184,800 applications, a 3.04% decrease from August
• 510,800 applications for permanent residency were processed, representing a 1.19% increase.
• 658,000 applications were processed for temporary residency, an increase of 1.68%.

Even though these numbers are positive, the backlog is still increasing, particularly in areas like temporary residency.

Effects of Prolonged Wait Times

Families, businesses, and individual applicants are all being severely disrupted by the growing backlog. Let’s examine the implications in more detail:

• Effect on Labor Markets: As a result of postponed work permits, sectors like technology and healthcare are facing acute labor shortages. Productivity in critical industries is hampered by skilled workers’ inability to join the Canadian workforce on time.
• Family Reunification Delays: Families trying to get back together with loved ones are feeling stressed out by lengthy wait times. With unclear reunification timetables, many applications are kept in limbo.
• Financial and Emotional Stress: While they wait for processing decisions, applicants must deal with financial uncertainties. Many people feel stuck as a result of the lengthy wait durations, which make it difficult to plan financially and integrate into Canadian society.

Forecasted Patterns in the Backlog

According to the IRCC’s backlog forecasts, the future will look like this:

• Citizenship: By the end of November, it is anticipated to drop to 16%.
• By October, Express Entry is expected to increase to 20%.
• Program for Provincial Nominees (PNP): anticipated to stay constant at 20%
• Spousal Support: Consistent at 15%
• By November, it is anticipated that the percentage of temporary resident visas (TRVs) will drop from 72% to 59%.
• By the end of November, study permits are predicted to drop to 37%.
• By November, work permits are expected to drop from the current 47% to 44%.

The IRCC wants to handle 80% of applications within service standards, and these statistics show that meeting processing targets continues to be difficult.

Trends in the Annual Backlog

Over the past year, there have been notable changes in Canada’s immigration backlog. This is an example of the data:

• 2,450,600 applications are being processed as of September 30, 2024, with 1,097,000 in backlog—a 1.73% increase.
• August 31, 2024: 2,420,800 applications were being processed, a 7.57% increase from 1,078,300 applications in backlog.
• July 31, 2024: 2,364,700 applications are being processed out of 1,002,400 applications in backlog, representing a 7.02% increase.

Despite IRCC’s efforts to stabilize the system, this chart shows an increasing tendency in application volumes.

Canada’s Immigration Goals

By early 2025, the Canadian government hopes to resolve the backlog in visa processing and bring wait times for all categories under control. However, the IRCC will continue to face difficulties in achieving these objectives because immigration demand is predicted to remain strong.

Conclusion

The backlog of immigrants in Canada continues to be a difficult problem, with effects on industrial growth, worker availability, and education. Applicants, particularly those from India, are advised to anticipate lengthy delays while the IRCC attempts to shorten wait periods.