ARCHIVED – Notice – Canada's Federal Skilled Worker Cap Reached

May 8, 2012 — Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has reached its cap of 10,000 applicants in the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) for July 1, 2011, to June 30, 2012. CIC will not be accepting any new FSW applications unless they are accompanied by qualifying job offers or are submitted under the PhD eligibility stream.

The FSWP cap of 10,000 limited the number of new applications to be processed in order to reduce wait times and make progress on the existing inventory. Application volumes were further managed with subcaps for each of the 29 designated occupations that are in high demand in the Canadian labour market. Subcaps of 500 applications each were put into place so that the program would not be dominated by a handful of professions. Of the 29 occupations, 14 reached their subcaps. These include family and specialist physicians, pharmacists, dentists, registered and licensed practical nurses, social workers and architects.

Including spouses and dependants, the 10,000 FSW applications will represent about 25,000 individuals. Depending on when these applicants arrive in Canada, they would comprise part of the estimated 55,000 to 57,000 people to be admitted under the FSW category, as set out in the 2012 Immigration Levels Plan. Other FSW admissions this year would come from existing applications that are already in process. The FSWP remains the largest portion (approximately 36 percent) of the overall Economic Immigration Class, which includes federal business programs, the Provincial Nominee Program and Quebec-selected economic immigrants, among others.

Although the FSWP cap has now been reached, CIC is still accepting applications under the program from those who have a qualifying job offer from a Canadian employer. Candidates who are pursuing or have recently completed doctoral studies in Canada may be eligible if they meet FSWP criteria. Applicants may also wish to check their eligibility for other immigration programs such as the Canadian Experience Class.

CIC will begin a new FSW cap-counting period on July 1, 2012. Details will be released closer to the date.

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