Canada's immigration backlog jumps to 2.4 million people

Posted June 16, 2022 6:26 a.m. EDT
Updated June 17, 2022 10:51 a.m. EDT

IRCC’s backlog has grown to 2.4 million people.

The backlog has increased by 257,499 people over the past month, mainly due to a significant increase in temporary resident applications.

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The citizenship the inventory stands at 394,664 candidates on June 1, against 399,325 on May 2.

The permanent residence the inventory stands at 522,047 people as of June 6.

The inventory of temporary residences rose to 1,471,173 people, also as of June 6.

CIC News submitted a request for this updated data to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on May 31. He received the data on June 15.

The backlog has evolved as follows since last summer:

June 1-6, 2022: 2,387,884 people
April 30-May 2, 2022: 2,130,385 people
April 11-12, 2022: 2,031,589 people
March 15 and 17, 2022: 1,844,424 people
February 1, 2022: 1,815,628 people
December 15, 2021: 1,813,144 people
October 27, 2021: 1,792,404 people
July 6, 2021: 1,447,474 people

Express Entry backlog continues to improve

The inventory of the three Express entry programs has improved over the past month. It stands at 31,603 people against 40,889 at the end of April.

The Canadian Experience Class (CEC) is 6,088 people, compared to 7,522 people on April 29.

The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) is 25,081 people versus 32,883 people.

The Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) is 434 people against 484 people at the end of April.

IRCC implemented a draw pause for FSWP and FSTP applicants in December 2020 amid the pandemic, and did the same for CEC applicants in September 2021. Over the past few months, it has prioritized the finalization of Express Entry applications in order to be able to resume invitations to candidates from the three programs. beginning of July. Once those draws resume, IRCC has pledged to return to its pre-pandemic service standard of processing most Express Entry applications within six months.

Quebec Skilled Worker and PNP Inventory Also Improving

The inventory of Quebec Skilled Workers fell to 27,146 people from 32,130 at the end of April.

The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) also decreased to 68,221 people from 72,194 people.

On the other hand, the inventory of the Temporary Residence to Permanent Residence (TR2PR) program continues to increase and has 49,447 people compared to 44,449 people. IRCC operated the TR2PR program between May and November 2021 to enable some 90,000 applicants in Canada to apply for permanent residence.

Family class inventory is on the rise

The overall inventory of family class applicants is 112,837 people against 108,863 people.

The Spouses, partners and children program is up slightly compared to the end of April. It amounts to 67,929 people against 67,102 people.

The Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) increased again and now stands at 41,802 from 38,478. IRCC has yet to announce details of its plans for PGP 2022. It recently announced that effective July 4, it is implementing reforms that will allow some parents and grandparents to remain in Canada until to seven years by entry under the SuperVisa.

Temporary residence card for more than 200,000 people

The temporary residence backlog is 1,471,173 people, an increase of 216,382 people compared to April 29 (it was then 1,200,791 people).

Growth in the temporary residence stock at this time of year is normal to some extent. There is a significant seasonal component to temporary resident applications, primarily due to certain segments seeking to come to Canada between spring and fall. For example, most international students submit their study permit applications at this time of year so that they can begin their studies in Canada before the start of the academic year in late August and early September. As another example, it is also common for more people to submit more temporary residence visa (VRT) at this time of year as they plan to visit Canada during the warmer months between spring and fall.

The main exception is the Canada Ukraine Authorization for emergency travel (CUAET), which has been accessible since March to Ukrainians wishing to move to Canada. IRCC website reports that 296,163 CUAET requests were received between March 17 and June 8.

Thus, the overall inventory of TRVs increased to 771,482 people against 621,451 on April 29.

During this time, the study permit the backlog is 173,353 people against 132,280 people.

The working license the inventory is 236,735 people against 189,061 people.

The inventory of work permit extensions also increased to 171,998 people from 144,842 people.

What the Canadian government is doing

In late January, IRCC provided an update to the public on its efforts to manage its inventory, further meet its application processing standards, and modernize the immigration system. This means investing more in technology and hiring more staff.