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Immigration Minister Sean Fraser Tables a plan for expanding pathways to Canada permanent residence for temporary foreign workers and international students.

Thu Sep 29, 2022

Immigration Minister Sean Fraser Tables a plan for expanding pathways to Canada permanent residence for temporary foreign workers and international students.

In what can be seen as great news for international students and temporary foreign workers, the Canada Immigration Minister Sean Fraser, has recently tabled a detailed plan suggesting expanding pathways for temporary foreign workers and international students towards permanent residence.

Amid the routine proceedings, on September 20, Mr. Fraser submitted a strategy that would see the pathways for permanent residence expanded for global students and foreign workers with considerable professional experience in sectors that experience acute labor and skills shortages.

The official website of the government published the documents later that day for the public.

The document underlines a 5-pillar approach that IRCC will assume to help those temporary residents in the country attain permanent Canadian resident status.

The move has been touted by the industry to create a sense of confidence in the industry sectors that are reeling from skill shortages.

The news has already been welcomed by most temporary residents of the country across diverse provinces.

Pillar #1

The official release underlines that the government will still use the current targets for immigration according to the Immigration Levels Plan (2022-2024). This year, the country looks to welcome 431,645 newcomers, which is a record number. As such, the Minister has to submit a new Immigration Levels Plan (2023-2025)

Pillar #2

In order to allow the IRCC to invite foreign candidates according to an economic goal, the government is going to reform the entire system of Express Entry. It was reported earlier that the draws for Express Entry were to begin in 2023.

Pillar #3

The National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021 is going to be adopted by the IRCC on November 16, 2022. This new system will make 16 more new occupations eligible for Express Entry. At the same time, three old occupations will be removed permanently from the list. In a move to improve the availability of the information to the newcomers to make sure that they have adequate qualifications and link them to the territorial and provincial immigration programs; remove the hindrances for physicians and other means to change laborers in high demand, and bolster the pilot programs that support the PR pathways for agri-food workers and caregivers.

Pillar #4

The IRCC is also working on improving French immigration outside of Quebec and adding a new program—Municipal Nominee Program. The government is continuing with efforts for permanent residence on pathways such as the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) with Canadian employers, territories, and provinces.

Pillar #5

In order to constantly improve the processing capacity, client experience, and immigration system by adopting better technologies. The move is touted as the honest efforts of the government to improve the time of processing and help newcomers become Canadians as quickly as possible.

The Minister was not required to respond to the motion as it was given as a private member’s motion. Motion 44 called for “a comprehensive plan to expand the economic immigration stream”.