By CIC News |
Today, May 26th 2023, Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, made an announcement about improvements to strengthen family class immigration in Canada.
The new measures include:
- Faster temporary resident visa (TRV) processing times for spousal applicants
- New and dedicated processing tools for spousal TRV applicants
- A new open work permit for spousal and family class applicants
- Open work permit extensions for open work permit holders expiring between August 1st and the end of 2023
Fraser began the announcement by explaining that family members from visa required countries who have submitted family class permanent residency (PR) applications can apply for Temporary Resident Visas (TRV) to join their sponsor in Canada.
He said that far too many are refused on the basis that they are unlikely to return home, despite the fact that an overwhelming majority are approved for permanent residency when their application is finally processed.
Fraser continued by saying that IRCC has successfully eliminated the backlog of TRV applications for family members who already have a permanent residency application being processed. IRCC’s new approach towards spousal TRV applications has approved more than 98% of applications for spouses and their kids, so that they can be with their families while they await the processing of their PR applications.
