Canada Immigration News

A strike by Canadian visa and immigration staff has continued into its fourth month; there is currently no sign of the dispute being resolved. Some overseas students at Canadian universities are facing disruption to their academic studies because of the delays in obtaining visas. This is a particularly bad time for this to happen as the new academic year will start soon.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada has announced that the first new permanent resident visas have been issued under the new Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP). Two successful applicants were welcomed at ceremonies in Toronto and Calgary by the new immigration minister Chris Alexander and the former immigration minister Jason Kenney.

The FSTP opened in January 2013. It was designed as an immigration route for skilled tradespeople. Up to 3,000 permanent resident visas can be issued in the first year.

The new Quebec Skilled Worker Program has been modified to make it easier for nurses to qualify because of a shortage of skilled nurses in the province.

Applicants under the Quebec Skilled Worker Program are assessed according to a 'points grid' which awards points for various skills, qualifications and attributes. Single applicants must score 49 points to be successful and those with partners (whether of the same or the opposite sex) must score 57 points.

Canada has introduced changes to the country's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). The changes came into force on 31st July 2013. The main change is the introduction of a $275 processing fee for each application for a 'Labour Market Opinion' (LMO) made by a Canadian employer.

If a Canadian employer wishes to employ a foreign worker, it must first obtain a 'positive LMO' which will show that there are no Canadians available who could do the job and that a foreign worker is therefore required to do it.

Jason Kenney, for five years Canada's minister for immigration and multiculturalism, has moved on. He is now the minister for employment and social development after Prime Minister Stephen Harper reshuffled his cabinet on 15th July 2013. Mr Kenney will retain control of the multiculturalism brief.

Mr Kenney was a divisive figure. He became a popular figure with first generation Canadians and was dubbed 'the minister for curry in a hurry' by some commentators because he so frequently attended functions among minority ethnic communities.

The Dean of Students at Canada's prestigious McGill University says that the strike by Canadian immigration officers posted overseas may prevent some students from successfully enrolling before the start of the academic year in September.