CIMM – Opening Remarks for the Hon. Sean Fraser Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship - Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) Application Backlogs and Processing Times – May 12, 2022

May 12, 2022 – 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

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Thank you, Chair.

I’d like to now address the issue of application backlogs and processing times.

We know that immigration supports the vitality of our communities and is a contributing factor to the health of our economy.

We’ve also seen newcomers play an essential role in addressing some of our most severe labour shortages throughout the pandemic.

The past 2 years have posed challenges that would have been beyond imagining just a few years ago. Immigration systems around the world have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and lengthy border closures and travel restrictions meant that people were unable to come, or chose not to come to Canada.

Yet at the same time we continued to receive applications, leading to frustrating delays and substantial file backlogs. My department is working hard to resolve these issues.

We have made great efforts to mitigate the effects of these difficulties, partly through digital solutions and program innovations.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has modernized its processes by increasing the digitization of files, offering online intake for many lines of business and allowing for greater remote processing of applications despite office closures that forced staff to work remotely.

As a result, and in spite of the global pandemic, IRCC made over half a million decisions and welcomed over 405,000 new permanent residents in 2021—the greatest number of newcomers in a year in our history.

This was possible in part because we established a pathway to permanent residency for people who were here in Canada on a temporary status, including temporary foreign workers, students and others making a positive contribution to Canada’s economy.

Additionally, in the midst of COVID-19, we stepped up on the world stage to commit to accept at least 40,000 Afghans, as well as tens of thousands of Ukrainians. In spite of this increasingly large and complex workload, we are reaching important goals.

Already, IRCC has surpassed its goal to make 147,000 permanent residence final decisions in the first quarter of 2022—doubling the number of final decisions in the same time period in 2021.

From January 1, 2022, to March 31, 2022, we made over 156,000 final decisions on permanent residence applications.

We also had the highest number of new citizens in March 2022, with 39,000. This is an incredible number, considering that the second-highest number in history was 34,000 in March 2014.

We recognize that border restrictions and other pandemic-related factors have led to increased processing times for many applicants, particularly for overseas clients who could not travel during global border restrictions. We know these need to be addressed.

In addition to these inventories, there is growing demand in all categories as pandemic restrictions begin to abate. Our focus is on building capacity to address applications already in the system and new applications as well.

To respond to the pressures resulting from the global pandemic and to support Canada’s post-pandemic economic recovery, the government has committed to provide $85 million in 2022 to 2023 to IRCC and partners to reduce application inventories accumulated during the pandemic.

This includes applications from international students, workers and visitors, as well as for permanent resident card renewals and citizenship ceremonies.

On April 22nd, I announced that, beginning in mid-June, Canada will extend post-graduation work permits for recent international graduates. Those whose permits have already expired or will expire this year will be eligible for an additional open work permit of 18 months.

As well, in July 2022, we will end the temporary pause on Express Entry draws and resume inviting qualified candidates to apply for permanent residence.

We also continue to collaborate with the Government of Quebec and support their efforts to employ immigration to address the province’s labour market needs, particularly as we all seek to recover from the economic and social impacts of COVID-19.

During the pandemic, the department prioritized applications from candidates who were in Canada, including those under the Quebec skilled worker class.

The department is now working with Quebec on innovative ways to address Quebec’s labour shortages and maintain Quebec’s demographic importance in the country.

Across Canada, processing continues for all of our programs, with 100% of IRCC offices and service providers open. Capacity limits continue to require the majority of staff to work remotely. This may be impacting in-person services, but it is not stopping processing or our ability to address the backlog.

Of our missions overseas, 98% are open. As well, 97% of our visa application centres are open and offering biometrics collection, and 98% of our panel physicians’ clinics are open and offering immigration medical exams.

Despite these challenges, IRCC continues to make great strides overall, thanks to a combination of remote and on-site innovations.

But clearly, there is a lot more work to do. Addressing a backlog of applications is not simply a numbers or a resources challenge—it is a human challenge.

Every application represents a person whose life is, in some ways, on hold or impacted. I know that, and my department is also very aware of the real-life impact on people.

We have a duty to resolve these challenges for the sake of those whose hopes of making a new life in Canada hang in the balance, and whom we need to help continue to build our great country. We are committed to continue to resolve these challenges.

Thank you for this time. With that, we would be pleased to answer the Committee’s questions.