Canada Sets New Benchmark for Immigration Applications

In recent years, Canada’s immigration system hit historic processing milestones and significantly reduced its backlog. Highlights include:

• Massive processing surge: By November 2022, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) had processed approximately 4.8 million applications, nearly double the 2.5 million processed in the same period the year.
• Backlog reduction: IRCC reduced pandemic-related application backlogs by almost 500,000 cases in just four months.
• Permit improvements:
  • Study permits: Over 670,000 processed—up from 500,000 the previous year—now generally completed within a 60-day service standard.
  • Work permits: Nearly 700,000 processed by November 2022, a stark rise from the ~223,000 in the same pre-pandemic period.
  • Visitor visas: Processing surpassed pre-pandemic levels, with over 260,000 issued in just November—compared to a 2019 average of 180,000 per month.
• Permanent residents & citizenship:
  • Canada welcomed a record 405,000 new permanent residents in 2021, surpassing the previous high from 1913.
  • IRCC aimed for over 431,000 PR admissions in 2022.
  • All new spousal sponsorships are now processed within 12 months and Express Entry applications within 6 months.
  • Permanent Resident (PR) card renewal backlogs were reduced by 99%.
• Citizenship: From April to November 2022, Canada welcomed around 251,000 new citizens, achieving one of the highest naturalization rates globally