Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) workers are back to work today after a 12-day strike ended. IRCC also announced new measures to clear the backlog of applications. Applicants can now apply for permanent residency with IELTS test scores up to two years old. The change is expected to help reduce processing times and allow more people to access the system.
The government is working to reduce the number of immigration applications it has in backlog. The new level plan includes increased funding for the department to hire more staff and improve technology to speed up processing times. This will help reduce the backlog by as much as half. It will also allow the department to focus more on complex cases, such as asylum seekers and those claiming refugee status.
In addition, the IRCC is increasing the IELTS requirement for permanent residency to a minimum of 6.0 in each of the four skill areas. This change will affect all applicants who choose the IELTS Academic version of the test, regardless of their country of origin or destination for residency in Canada. The IELTS is the world’s most recognized and reliable English language testing system. It uses human testing staff and is backed up by advanced digital technology.
IRCC Hires New Staff
IRCC recently introduced new pathways for essential workers, and the minister says the system will help meet employers’ recruitment needs. The minister added that the changes will also benefit the economy by bringing skilled workers to Canada. But critics say the changes aren’t going far enough.
In a new initiative, IRCC is allowing spouses of newcomers to work while they wait for their permanent residency status. This is the first time a Canadian government has done this. It is expected to improve the ability of newcomers to support their families. The new initiative will apply to all IRCC-sponsored spouses and dependent children.
Despite the recent immigration controversies, IRCC remains focused on improving service delivery to its clients. It has hired more than 1,300 staff members and reduced processing times by as much as 50 percent in some areas. It has also increased the number of services offered, including medical and psychiatric assessments.
This week, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada conducted its latest Express Entry draw. The minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score remains at 490. The number of invitations to apply for Canadian permanent residence was 7,000, which is up from 5,500 in the previous draw.
IRCC 2023 Targets
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has set a new record-high immigration target for 2023. This is despite the fact that it still has a large backlog of applications to process, but also because of improved processing capacity following investments of millions of dollars.
The new targets are based on the assumption that IRCC can manage the backlog while welcoming a high number of people into the country, including those who apply through the regular pathways and the Family Reunification Program. The department will also continue to prioritize refugees, other vulnerable populations, and those with in-demand skills.
However, IRCC will not be able to achieve these targets without a significant increase in its workforce, and the new targets are likely to be revised at some point during 2023. Currently, the immigration system has around 11,000 employees. However, this is not enough to ensure that all applications are processed quickly and efficiently. The department is therefore looking to hire thousands of new workers in 2023.
IRCC will be working to make its systems more efficient, including streamlining the application process and improving digitisation. IRCC will also focus on expanding its Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot to welcome more skilled refugees into the country. This will help address labour shortages in the Canadian economy and give refugees access to a permanent home.
Another important development is the approval of a new language testing framework. This will allow more testing bodies to get designated and provide quality language assessment services for people applying for Canada PR. It will also make it easier for people with limited English to qualify for a visa. IRCC will use this new framework to align the CLB and NCLC benchmarks for both English and French.