Immigration News
Canada introduces start-up visa category to lure foreign entrepreneurs
Canada started accepting applications from April 1 under its new Start-up Visa progamme which aims to attract what immigration minister Jason Kenney calls “the best and brightest entrepreneurs from around the world, with ideas for new business ventures.”
In its first year, 2,750 Start-up visas will be issued to entrepreneurs and their families.
The new Start-up Visa programme, which was unveiled in January this year, will link immigrant entrepreneurs with private sector organizations in Canada that have experience working with start-ups and who can provide essential resources.
“Canada is open for business to the world’s start-up entrepreneurs. Innovation and entrepreneurship are essential drivers of the Canadian economy. That is why we are actively recruiting foreign entrepreneurs – those who can build companies here in Canada that will create new jobs, spur economic growth and compete on a global scale – with our new start-up visa,” the immigration minister said on Friday, announcing the start of the new visa programme.
Under the Start-up Visa programme, entrepreneurs are given permanent residency and connected with business partners.
Canada’s Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) and the National Angel Capital Organization (NACO) will work with Citizenship and Immigration Canada to identify which members of their associations will be eligible to participate in the Programme.
Canadian News
Canada’s Immigration Minister Says Commitments To Reuniting Spouses Quicker Have Been Met
The Sponsorship process improvements have led to backlog reduction and shorter processing times which had built up under the previous Conservative government which made spousal reunification a lengthy affair.
MISSISSAUGA – Over the past year, the Government of Canada has made significant improvements to the spousal sponsorship process, making it faster and easier for Canadians and permanent residents to reunite with their spouses.
The Sponsorship process improvements have led to backlog reduction and shorter processing times which had built up under the previous Conservative government which made spousal reunification a lengthy affair.
In December 2016, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced that it would reduce the backlog of spousal applicants by 80% and shorten processing times to 12 months. It also announced improvements to the spousal sponsorship application process to make it more efficient and easier to navigate.
Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced that the government has successfully met these commitments.
“The Government of Canada is committed to family reunification. We understand how important it is to reunite couples. It also makes for a stronger Canada. Canadians who marry someone from abroad shouldn’t have to wait for years to have them immigrate or be left with uncertainty in terms of their ability to stay,” Hussen said.
- More than 80% of those who were in the global spousal sponsorship backlog on December 7, 2016, have now received final decisions for their applications. We reduced the spousal inventory from 75,000 applications to 15,000 as of December 31, 2017.
- As of December 31, 2017, we met our commitment to process 80% of spousal applications that were received in December 2016.
In addition, after introducing a new spousal sponsorship application package in December 2016, IRCC continued to respond to client and stakeholder feedback to further improve the application process, and make it simpler and easier for sponsors and applicants to understand and navigate. As a result, we made a number of improvements to the application package in June 2017. And today, we introduced further updates to the application kit and process to improve the client experience and make sure we can process applications as quickly as possible.
- To bring families together, IRCC plans to welcome 66,000 spouses and dependants in 2018, well above the average over the past decade of about 47,000.
Featured
New Immigration program allows applicants to be process under six months
Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander confirmed it’s one month and counting until Express Entry launches a new phase of active immigration recruitment to meet economic and labour market needs. Potential candidates can create their profile on January 1st, 2015, with the first Invitations to Apply issued within weeks.
Express Entry will help select skilled immigrants based on their skills and experience. Those with valid job offers or provincial/territorial nominations will be picked first. Details published in the Canada Gazette explain how candidates will be ranked and selected, based on these factors that research shows are linked to success in the Canadian economy. Minister Alexander also highlighted that additional information was published on the CIC website to help potential immigrants and employers understand the new system, and to promote Canada as a destination of choice based on a strong economy, low taxes and job opportunities.
Express Entry will result in faster processing and will allow the Government of Canada to be more flexible and respond better to Canada’s changing labour market needs.
Express Entry will manage applications for three federal economic immigration programs: the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program and the Canadian Experience Class.
Provinces and Territories will be able to use the Express Entry system to select a portion of candidates for their Provincial Nominee Programs.
Express Entry will launch at 12 noon EST January 1st, 2015. The first draw for an invitation to apply is scheduled for the last week of January.
Once candidates have been selected from the pool they will need to complete the immigration process, which includes health and security checks. Applications will be processed in six months or less.
“With the launch of Express Entry in January, our Government will build on our strong and proven record of helping immigrants succeed, and helping Canada’s economy thrive. Starting January 1st, we will be able to select the top economic immigrants who will contribute to our economy, labour market and communities.”
The following is a list of Eligible Occupations under the National Occupational Classification:
| Senior managers – financial, communications and other business services | 17 | |
| 0015 | Senior managers – trade, broadcasting and other services, n.e.c. | 53 |
| 0111 | Financial managers | 306 |
| 0112 | Human resources managers | 201 |
| 0113 | Purchasing managers | 168 |
| 0121 | Insurance, real estate and financial brokerage managers | 84 |
| 0311 | Managers in health care | 46 |
| 0711 | Construction managers | 50 |
| 0712 | Home building and renovation managers | 10 |
| 0811 | Managers in natural resources production and fishing | |
| 0911 | Manufacturing managers | 158 |
| 1111 | Financial auditors and accountants | 450 |
| 1112 | Financial and investment analysts | 1,000 |
| 1113 | Securities agents, investment dealers and brokers | – |
| 1114 | Other financial officers | 133 |
| 1123 | Professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relations | 385 |
| 1212 | Supervisors, finance and insurance office workers | 164 |
| 1224 | Property administrators | 18 |
| 2113 | Geoscientists and oceanographers | 45 |
| 2131 | Civil engineers | |
| 2132 | Mechanical engineers | 624 |
| 2133 | Electrical and electronics engineers | 452 |
| 2145 | Petroleum engineers | 35 |
| 2171 | Information systems analysts and consultants | 1,000 |
| 2172 | Database analysts and data administrators | 172 |
| 2173 | Software engineers and designers | 1,000 |
| 2174 | Computer programmers and interactive media developers | 1,000 |
| 2232 | Mechanical engineering technologists and technicians | 25 |
| 2234 | Construction estimators | 16 |
| 2241 | Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians | |
| 2243 | Industrial instrument technicians and mechanics | 40 |
| 2263 | Inspectors in public and environmental health and occupational health and safety | 147 |
| 2281 | Computer network technicians | 430 |
| 3011 | Nursing co-ordinators and supervisors | 14 |
| 3012 | Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses | 613 |
| 3111 | Specialist physicians | 22 |
| 3112 | General practitioners and family physicians | 42 |
| 3132 | Dietitians and nutritionists | 15 |
| 3141 | Audiologists and speech-language pathologists | 6 |
| 3142 | Physiotherapists | |
| 3143 | Occupational Therapists | 6 |
| 3214 | Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists | 6 |
| 3215 | Medical Radiation Technologists | 10 |
| 3216 | Medical Sonographers | 15 |
| 3233 | Licensed practical nurses | 44 |
| 3234 | Paramedical occupations | 7 |
| 4011 | University professors and lecturers | 357 |
| 4151 | Psychologists | 15 |
| 4214 | Early childhood educators and assistants | 57 |
| 5125 | Translators, terminologists and interpreters | |
Featured
Residents urged to apply for Canadian citizenship to avoid hurdles
Some measures — raising residence requirement to four years and age exemption of the citizenship test to 65 — won’t come into force for another year.
Residents in a working-class Rexdale neighbourhood slowly stream into a community centre, many with English-speaking teenage children in tow, or baby strollers. Each of these future-but-not-yet citizens looks anxious and confused.
“How many of you have heard of Bill C-24, the new Citizenship Act?” asks community legal worker Aytaj Aliyeva, drawing blank looks and silence as a settlement worker translates the question into Arabic amid whispers in other languages.
“We are here to talk about the changes that are about to take effect. We are advising you to file your application as soon as possible if you are already eligible.”
This free citizenship workshop, offered by the Rexdale Community Legal Clinic, is one of many being presented by legal clinics in the GTA to explain to immigrants what recent changes to the citizenship law mean to them.
When Ottawa enacted the new law in June, many, including frontline immigrant settlement workers, assumed it would take effect immediately and that little could be done to beat its more restrictive criteria.
In fact, some of the most controversial changes — requiring citizenship applicants to be present in Canada for four years out of six (rather than three years out of four), and raising the age of exemption from language and citizenship tests to 65, from 55 — won’t come into force until next June, immigration officials confirmed to the Star.
“We want to tell people it’s not too late, and they should take advantage of the old rules,” said Ann McRae, executive director of the Rexdale legal clinic, a member of the Inter-Clinic Immigration Working Group.
At the South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario, staff have reached out to community groups to deliver workshops and help clients file citizenship applications.
“All the changes were rushed through so quickly that people are confused,” said clinic lawyer Karin Baqi. “Those who are eligible today may not be eligible tomorrow. We have to get the word out.”
Remon Kirkor came here from Iraq with his wife and three daughters in 2007. The family met the three-year residence requirement in 2010. Yet, Kirkor, 44, hasn’t applied for citizenship, because he knows that as a high school dropout he would have a tough time passing the language test or the citizenship knowledge exam offered only in English and French.
“I work 20 hours a day to support my family. By day, I am a window installer. At night, I work as a dishwasher,” Kirkor, a former truck driver for UNICEF, said through his daughter, Mariam. “I have no time to sleep. I have no time to study English.”
Immigrants and refugees without a lot of education or language proficiency are most likely to be disenfranchised by the new law, said Avvy Go of the Metro Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic. The clinic runs an ongoing citizenship clinic and has had more than 70 clients since the end of June.
“Many people have lived here for a long time. They have jobs, families and are well-integrated in the community but must wait till they turn 55 to apply for citizenship because they know their English is not good enough to pass the test,” said Go.
“Starting in June, they will have to wait another 10 years before they can become full citizens without having to take the exam. If they came as refugees, that means they can’t get a passport and travel. So many things could happen and people could lose their permanent resident status while waiting.”
Chinese immigrant Xiao Gang Yin, who turns 55 in August, has lived in Toronto since 1999 and said he had planned to wait a few more years before applying.
“I work in construction and I don’t have time to take English lessons or citizenship classes. As soon as I heard they were going to change the age requirement to 65, I decided to apply right away before they’d change the law again,” he said.
Imed Iziz, an auto mechanic from Iraq who turns 55 in January, said he felt like he’d won the lottery when he learned from Aliyeva he still has time to qualify for the citizenship test exemption under the old rules.
“All these changes worry me. Who knows when they would change everything again?” Iziz, who came here in May 2011, said through a translator. “It is really important for me to get my Canadian citizenship. This is my home now. My life is here.”
Citizenship by the numbers
2009201020112012 2013
Applications232,960208,800223,040317,440 333,860
New citizens156,356143,680181,421113,148 128,996
Backlog259,709290,854280,233367,372 396,227
Source: Government of Canada
~ by Nicholas Keung Immigration reporter
