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Category Archives: International Students

Can X Immigration  /  International Students
20 Sep 2021
Students in Canada

Canada: An Educational Hotspot for students

Categories immigration news, Abroad Study, Blog, canada, immigration, International Students, IRCC, Permanent Immigration, PR Applicants, Student Permit, students, Study Permit

In our life, the drive to experience new things makes us step out of our comfort zones. One such experience is to study in a foreign country. Studying abroad has become increasingly popular among students around the world, and the reasons range from better education, job opportunities or experiencing a different culture.

Few countries like the USA, Australia and the UK are popular amongst students, but it should come as no surprise that Canada is becoming increasingly popular especially amongst the students from Asia.

According to a research conducted by Financial services provider Remitly using Google search data, Canada is the most desirable place to live on Earth. People from 29 countries wish to immigrate to the true North, due to friendly locals, beautiful scenery, safety, low unemployment, and high immigration options. Despite travel restrictions causing severe disruption in international mobility, hopeful immigrants do not seem to be reconsidering their immigration plans and timelines.

The influx of students into Canada has tripled in the last 10 years and currently there are 642,000 individuals on study permits in Canada ranking it 3rd in the world, after the USA and Australia in terms of foreign student population.

The students who choose Canada receive world-class education, tremendous growth and career opportunities and a shot to settle in a developed country, but what does Canada receive in return? Students pay hefty fees to come and study in Canada directly benefiting the colleges/ universities. These international students contribute approximately $22 billion into the Canadian economy by paying taxes, fees and fill about 170,000 part-time and full-time positions.

Source: IRCC, Government of Canada

Students from around the globe choose Canada as their preferred destination but Canada is particularly popular amongst the students from India and China, and the principal cause is the large middle-class population in these countries. Studies show that 2 out of 5 students coming to Canada are Indians. In 2019 an all-time high of around 175,000 study permit applications were received form India, while in the first half of 2021 around 90,000 applications have already been received and it is expected to rise as the world adapts to the new normal after COVID-19.

Closed biometric and VFS centers made it difficult for international students to begin or continue their study abroad journeys in 2020 and early 2021. However, as travel restrictions eased and government offices reopened in mid-2021, study permit processing times continued to improve. We expect the prolonged processing delays to become less common, barring any significant difficulties due to COVID-19 variant outbreaks.

Tips to follow for Shorter Processing Times

  • Take assistance from licensed RCIC consultants to ensure letters of acceptance and other documents can be collected quickly.
  • Make sure that all necessary documents are included with the study permit application at time of submission.
  • Look for current study permit processing times and gain a better understanding of processing delays.
  • Check your email for any communication from the IRCC about missing or additionally required documents.

Canada needs international students as their impact on the Canadian economy is profound; they support the economy and meet the necessary labor market needs in terms of workforce availability. With latest policies like TR to PR pathway, it is clear that Immigrant-focused financial recovery plan is at the forefront of Canada’s post-pandemic goals.

At Can X we assist our clients throughout their immigration journey starting from obtaining a study permit to settling in Canada. If you want professional help from licensed RCIC consultant, contact us.

26 Aug 2021

How to sponsor your spouse to Canada

Categories immigration news, Blog, canada, immigration, International Students, IRCC, Open work permit, Permanent Immigration, PR Applicants, Skilled Worker, spousal sponsorship, Spouse

Family reunification is of utmost importance to the Canadian government. IRCC offers various pathways to sponsor your loved ones for immigration to Canada. If you are a Canadian Citizen or Permanent resident, you can apply for a Spousal Sponsorship application. If you are an international student or temporary foreign worker, you can opt for Spousal open work permit application.

Under Canadian Immigration Levels Plan 2021-2023, IRCC aims to roll mats for over 80,000 new immigrants per year through its Spousal, Partner, and Children category. Most of these immigrants will arrive as the spouses or partners of Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

The first step to sponsoring your spouse for Canadian immigration is to check your eligibility, and to make sure you can provide financially for your spouse, any dependent children, and yourself.

Here is information on how you can sponsor your loved one for immigration to Canada. 

Spouses or common-law partners of Canadian citizen or permanent resident

If you are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada, you may sponsor your spouse to become permanent residents of Canada with Spousal sponsorship Application. As a Canadian PR your spouse, common law or conjugal can live, study and work in Canada. When your partner comes to Canada as a permanent resident, you are responsible for financially supporting them when they arrive.

Eligibility Requirements to be a sponsor:

  • Must Be at least 18 years of age.
  • Must be a Canadian permanent resident living in Canada or a Canadian citizen.
  • You and your spouse, common law or conjugal partner must sign a sponsorship agreement that commits you to provide financial support to your family member, if necessary.
  • You must provide financial support to a spouse for three years from the date you become a permanent resident.
  • You must provide financial support to your dependent child(ren) for 10 years, or until they turn 25, whichever comes first.

Eligibility Requirements to be sponsored:

  • Be at least 18 years old
  • Be legally married or in common law relationship (living together at least 12 consecutive months)

At Can X, we know how important it is for families to be together. For this reason, we consider applications for spousal sponsorship a top priority. We can help you reach across distance and unite with your spouse.

Spouses or common-law partners of full-time students [C42]

If you are an international student studying full-time with a valid student permit, you can apply for Spousal open work permit application. This permit will allow your partner to work full time while you are studying in Canada. In general, this “open work permit” will have the same duration as the Study Permit issued to the sponsor. If you have a dependent child, you can apply for a temporary resident visa (study /visitor) for your child. This will allow you to unite with your child.

Eligibility Requirements to be a sponsor:

  • Must Be at least 18 years of age.
  • Must be a must be a full-time student
  • Public post-secondary school, such as a college or university, or CEGEP in Quebec.
  • Private university level school in Quebec
  • Canadian private school that can legally grant bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degrees.

Spouses or common-law partners of skilled workers [C41]

Spouses or common-law partners of skilled workers coming to Canada may apply for a Spousal open work permit without having an offer of employment. A dependent spouse or common-law partner is eligible to apply for an open work permit under Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemption code C41 if the principal foreign worker.

Eligibility Requirements to be a sponsor:

  • Must Be at least 18 years of age, and physically resides or plans to physically reside in Canada while working.
  • Must hold a work permit that is valid for a period of at least 6 months.
  • Must be employed in an occupation that falls within National Occupational Classification (NOC) skill type 0, A or B.

In recent days, applications for spousal sponsorship have been delayed due to the global pandemic. However, the new measures announced by IRCC regarding acceleration of processing should help avoid further delays

If you are considering submitting a spousal sponsorship application, or spousal open work permit application, we recommend that you seek advice from a certified immigration consultant to help you in your immigration journey.

We hope this information about ways to reunite with your spouse has been helpful! If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us, we will help you find the right immigration solution for you!

22 Jan 2021
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The Impact of Processing Delays on Canadian Businesses

Categories News, canada, Coronavirus, COVID-19, express entry, immigration, immigration news, International Students, IRCC, Permanent Immigration, Permanent Residence, Semi Skilled Worker, Skilled Worker, Spouse, Study Permit, Work Permit

Canada is facing a growing skilled labor crunch and industries are struggling to find qualified workers. The increased processing times of immigration pathways is a problem that is closing doors to new growth and leaving employers open to risk.

According to a survey conducted by The Canadian Employee Relocation Council (CERC), “Unless addressed, increasing processing times are likely to have a negative impact on business operations within the next year.”

A total of 26 organizations that rely on access to international talent to meet talent needs and fill skills gaps were surveyed. Participating organizations were from technology, manufacturing, government /health care/ education, natural resources, and construction/engineering services. 44 % of participating organizations report using economic immigration programs to access temporary residence workers.

Primarily, 74% of participating companies used Express Entry and CUSMA professional pathways to hire foreign nationals while 67% used PNP immigration pathways. All participating organizations agreed to the importance of international talent to their businesses, while 70% strongly agreed to their contributions.

In the survey, as an impact of processing impediments 83 % of organizations stated that canceled and or delayed projects are the most common consequence of the delays, almost two-thirds expect the delays to result in lost revenues and 30% stated they had to face penalties for not meeting contractual obligations. The unprecedented labor shortage is forcing organizations to hire ill-suited candidates, resulting in foregone opportunities that impede businesses’ ability to compete.

This lack of skilled labor and halt in the international mobility of temporary foreign workers is increasing the labor market gap, businesses are facing a labor shortage and the demand for skills across many sectors is on the rise. The survey sheds light on global talent access via immigration and international mobility programs, the top three skills accessed are 93% of skilled workers, 85 % executive management, and 67 % engineering staff. Nonetheless, the demand for non-degreed professionals and technical staff is growing, though the lack of education makes it difficult to access their talent.

The survey also highlighted that apart from ongoing challenges faced by IRCC, the continued closure of Consulates, High Commissions and VAC abroad has had a great impact as temporary foreign workers cannot complete biometrics in their home country.

With a dearth of new talent pools and retiring workforce, Canada should take actions to expedite processing of applications. The survey questioned respondents if they would pay an additional fee for expedited processing of applications and 89% of respondents said they would be willing to pay between 10% and 25% above current processing fees for expedited processing as for Skilled labor shortage has become the most pressing need of their organizations.

19 Nov 2020
Coming Soon: More Permanent Residency Pathways For Temporary Residents In Canada

Coming Soon: More permanent residency pathways for temporary residents in Canada

Categories canada, Canadian Experience, Coronavirus, COVID-19, immigration, immigration news, International Students, News, Permanent Immigration, Permanent Residence, Skilled Worker, Student Permit, students, Work Permit

Canada may offer more permanent residence pathways to temporary residents (e.g. international students, temporary foreign workers, and asylum seekers) who are currently in the country.

In 2020, COVID-19 pandemic has turned the tables around the world, may it be developed, developing or underdeveloped economies. Every country is having a hard time keeping their economies afloat, given travel restrictions and disruption in supply chains globally.

The Coronavirus pandemic is affecting birth rates worldwide and high-income countries like Canada are expected to see declining fertility rates, resulting in a smaller population size and rapidly increased greying of Canada. Canada has been feasting on immigrants for years as they compensate for the negative economic and fiscal impact created by the aging population and decline in birth rates. This will have a strong impact on the labor market and to ensure long-term economic recovery, the federal and provincial governments need to keep immigration ️as a priority to support this decline.

COVID-19 has impacted pre-determined immigration level targets of Canada, both permanent and temporary residents have dropped significantly, along with this unemployment is prevalent and the economy is falling. To support the economy and to meet the necessary labor market needs in terms of workforce availability, Canada needs immigrants as their impact on Canadian economy is profound.

Helping temporary residents become permanent residents will address Canada’s needs to respond to COVID-19 and will benefit Canada in the long term because candidates who already have Canadian experience tend to have strong labor market outcomes. Temporary residents like international students and temporary foreign workers already possess Canadian work experience, have already settled in, and have high English or French language ability, which leads to quicker labor market integration, solving economic and labor market needs.

Canada reaffirms their ongoing commitment towards immigration especially international students and global talent as Canada continues to count online study at DLI towards eligibility for PGWP between May 2020 to April 2021. During the tenure of post-graduation work permit, international students gain necessary Canadian work experience to qualify for permanent residency through economic immigration programs.

Immigrant-focused financial recovery plans should be at the forefront of Canada’s post-pandemic goals to offset the temporary decline in immigration and to ensure long term recovery.

06 Nov 2020
IRCC implements Changes in Extensions and Implied Status

IRCC implements Changes in Extensions and Implied Status

Categories canada, COVID-19, immigration, immigration news, International Students, IRCC, News, PGWP, Skilled Worker, Student Permit, students, Work Permit

COVID-19 pandemic has been impacting Canadian immigration and, IRCC understands that delay in processing time has adversely affected Temporary residents. In the light of issues faced by temporary residents on implied status, Canada has implemented changes in the processing of work permit extensions on October 20, 2020.

If a worker, visitor, or student applies to extend his or her status in Canada before that status expires, he or she may legally remain in Canada until a decision is made on the application. In such a scenario, the person has implied status. The implied status remains until the Government decides on the applicant’s new work/study permit application.

If the applicant applied for a work/study permit extension before their work/study permit expired, they can not only keep working/studying but also avail government benefits, services and other privileges until a decision is made. Applicants must stay in Canada and meet the conditions of their original work/study permit. For instance, if an applicant has an employer-specific work permit, they must still work for the employer named on that permit.

However, availing these services, sometimes becomes difficult for the applicant as they have no written proof of their application being processed by the Canadian Government. The only document they have is the receipt of fee payment and copies of their application which is generally not considered an official document to prove applicant’s status. To avoid this distress and to provide clarity, IRCC has changed the phrasing of their communication to the applicant.

As of October 20, 2020, temporary residents who submit their extension application online through IRCC portal, will receive an auto-generated Acknowledgement of Receipt Letter confirming their existing authority to work/study/stay has been officially extended to a specific date. This letter can act as a proof of authorization and can be attached to applicant’s expired work permit as a verification of their continued legal status in Canada.

It is paramount for the temporary resident to apply before expiry of their status and, applicant should remain physically in Canada during their implied status period, for receiving this Acknowledgement of Receipt Letter.

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