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IRCC TO RESUME EXPRESS ENTRY DRAW UNDER FSWP AND CEC AND CLEAR THE BACKLOG

Immigration Minister Sean Fraser updated in  recent interview advised that the immigration department will resume Express Entry draws for skilled workers in 2022 on  Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Canadian Experience Class (CEC)  and also Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP).

Minister Fraser advised in a virtual interview on issues relating to international students, as one of the mandates to create pathways to permanent residency for international students and temporary foreign workers in Canada.

Also, the Minister stated in the interview that the Express Entry draws for Federal High Skilled candidates would resume soon. The Federal High Skilled category covers applicants who are eligible for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), as well as the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP), which will be processed soon. 

There has been a pause by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and they have not selected / invited from the Express Entry draws for FSWP applicants since December 2020, and CEC draws have been paused since September 2021. Without these draws, Express Entry applicants who could be eligible for immigration could not apply under FSW or CSE.

We expect in the near future that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is looking at  resuming FSWP draws in the coming months.

The Minister also stated that applicants, who are working in Canada on a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP), which could be on the threshold of expiring, without an Invitation to Apply (ITA), PGWP holders cannot apply for immigration and become eligible for a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP), this would allow the applicants to stay and work legally beyond the validity of their PGWP.

Also, it’s advisable that Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) cannot be renewed or extended. This means that  at the end of their validity, PGWP holders need to get a different work permit, quit their jobs, or even leave the country.

The Minister also advised  “We’re looking at different options right now to make sure we don’t lose out on talent,” and  we will have much more to say on this in the weeks and months ahead.”

FSW DRAWS REASON FOR PAUSE:

• It was also advised that FSWP draws have been paused since March 2020 after pandemic, FSWP applicants were invited to apply for permanent residence more than any other Express Entry-managed program, due to their high numbers in the Express Entry pool.
• The reason for the pause in FSWP draws goes back to the onset of the global pandemic.  Also, Canada closed its borders to international travel, with some exemptions. 
• Immigration applicants who were approved from any country outside of Canada and the U.S., and who were not otherwise exempt, were not allowed to complete their permanent residency landing.
• As FSWP applicants are oftentimes overseas, approving them for permanent residence would make a situation where applicants would not be able to complete their landing. Their Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) validity would expire, and they would not be able to become a permanent resident with an expired document. This measure was in place until the period of  June 2021.

TARGET TO CLEAR THE BACKLOG:

• In order to meet its immigration targets among these travel restrictions, IRCC focused its immigration exertions on acknowledging as many applicants as possible who were already in Canada. 
• To do this, the department held large Express Entry invitation rounds for Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates and created the Temporary Residence to Permanent Residence (TR to PR) pathway.
• Though, this plan led to a backlog in immigration applications. The number of FSWP and CEC applications in IRCC’s inventory grew so much that there was no way for the department to meet the processing standard of six months. 
• As per recent IRCC records, the FSWP processing time is expected to rise to 36 months in 2022. 
• Also, the government website does not reflect this reality, however, the Minister r before said the government webpage issue should be fixed in the coming months so that it will be able to process more FSW applicationst.
• IRCC invited record numbers of CEC candidates at a time in 2021. That February, IRCC invited every single CEC candidate in the Express Entry pool, a total of 27,332 invitations.
• The lowest-scoring candidate invited had a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 75. In the following months, about 6,000 CEC candidates were invited about every two weeks.
• Similar to what happened to FSWP candidates, the inventory of CEC candidates grew to the point that IRCC could not meet the processing standard. Officials decided to pause application intake for the program to allow time for officers to process the applications that were already in the inventory.
• The processing time for CEC is about seven months, according to both internal records and the government website.

THE CURRENT STATE OF EXPRESS ENTRY BACKLOG:

• We see that  Canada has been holding Express Entry draws for Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) candidates every two weeks. These applicants were eligible for one of the Federal High Skilled programs, then received a provincial nomination. 
• With the nomination in hand, the applications were awarded 600 additional CRS points and the fortunate to be invited in a PNP-specific round of invitations.
• Core documents suggest these invitation rounds will continue while IRCC reports the backlog in other programs.
• The most recent draws show that between 28th February and 15th March, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) processed 4,000 FSWP applicants, which is more than were handled in a seven-month period in 2021. 
• Canada has already acknowledged more FSWP immigrants in 2022 than it did in all of last year.
• THERE ARE 10,400 CEC APPLICANTS LEFT TO BE PROCESSED, AS OF 15TH MARCH. 
• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) was able to process 4,751 CEC applicants in about 42 days. 
• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) at this rate could reduce the current backlog that has been created  by June 2022.

FSWP WILL RESUME IN 2022:

• “Applicants in the pool, counting those whose work permits are owing to expire, will remain to face indecision with respect to receiving their invitation to apply in the short term. 
• Once invite to apply rounds restart later in 2022, applicants would check their CRS score in contradiction of the least CRS score that was necessary to obtain an invitation to apply in those rounds.”
• Although the note is seriously redacted, it clarifies Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) position in respect to restarting Express Entry rounds for FSWP and CEC applicants. 
• Through the continuing the pause until at least 31st March, it will allow Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to additional address its record backlogs. 
• The full length of the gap will need to be resolute by IRCC’s evolving priorities.

IRCC TO MEET TARGETS FOR 2022-2023: 

• In order for IRCC to achieve the 2023 Express Entry admissions targets in the 2022-2024 Immigration Levels Plan, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) needs to issue ITAs in 2022. 
• It takes Express Entry candidates about a year to submit an application for permanent residency. 
• They have 60 days to apply once they get an ITA, then it takes at least six months for the application to go through. After approval, they have a certain amount of time to land.
• Another reason Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will likely hold an FSWP or CEC draw in the coming months is to address the uncertainty of workers losing status in Canada, Minister advised in his interview.
• Also added  “I don’t want to see people—who have a job, who are making a contribution, who want to stay—to leave at the same time that I’m trying to cure the labour shortage by embracing immigration.”

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