E-Paper
Canada to digitise application process for those seeking permanent residency
According to the 2021 Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration, Indians accounted for 42,876 permanent residents admitted in 2020, making for nearly a quarter of the total 184,606 in Canada
TORONTO: As processing backlogs continue to bedevil the Canadian system, the country’s immigration department has announced that it will move to a fully digital application process for the majority of those seeking permanent residency.
IRCC has also proposed exempting from a mandatory medical examination for applicants already in Canada. This will apply to applicants for either permanent or temporary residence, if they meet certain criteria.
A release from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on Thursday stated that “access to the online application portal for clients has now been expanded to the majority of permanent residence applicants. IRCC will begin transitioning to 100% digital applications for most of our permanent residence programmes on September 23, with alternative formats available for people who require accommodations”.
It also said that simplifying the medical examination requirement for those present in the country will impact about 180,000 applicants by “helping them save time and money on the medical examination process and reducing wait times on their applications”.
Both these measures are likely to benefit immigrants from India, as they comprise the largest source country for permanent residency.
According to the 2021 Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration, Indians accounted for 42,876 permanent residents admitted in 2020, making for nearly a quarter of the total 184,606. The second largest source country was China, with 16,535.
Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser said, “As we look to strengthen our immigration system by updating our technology, people - our clients - must be at the centre of all that we do. By adding resources where they are needed, and leveraging technology to make processing faster and applying easier for our clients, we can give newcomers and new citizens the welcoming experience they deserve.”
Beginning in autumn, IRCC will also publish “forward-looking estimates of how long it will take to process an application, increasing predictability for applicants”.
The release further noted that IRCC is “striving towards a modernised and digitalised immigration system to further expedite processing and give newcomers the experience they expect and deserve”.
