Hi everyone,
With all the changes going on with Canadian immigration recently, we thought we’d reach out and update you on what has changed and why.
WTF is going on with Canadian Immigration?Immigration Canada recently published their 2025-2027 Immigration Levels Plan. The Government will reduce the number of new Permanent Residents by 21% and reduce the number of temporary workers and students by 5%.
Why? In the last 3-4 years the government opened its doors (too wide) to newcomers and caused a nation-wide housing crisis. So now the government is trying to reduce the number of temporary foreign workers/students in Canada by 2 million over the next 3 years. The changes that have been made recently, and changes that are coming, reflect this specific goal. There are other reasons for the changes, but this is the main issue.
The raw truth…..immigration is different now. Not everyone is going to be eligible for a new work permit or study permit. And not everyone is going to be eligible for Permanent Residency. To get PR, you’re going to have to work harder, be prepared for the journey to PR to take longer, consider significantly improving your language skills or learning a new language, consider studying in Canada, and/or consider leaving Canada and returning in the future.
So what exactly has changed or will change?
Changes already made:
EXPRESS ENTRY: Continuing from 2024, Express Entry will focus on inviting both Canadian Experience Class applicants and applicants in targeted occupations categories. The current categories are:
French-language proficiency
Healthcare occupations
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) occupations
Trade occupations
Transport occupations
Agriculture and agri-food occupations
IN-CANADA FOCUS: Express entry draws still require high points, but the government has said that they are going to focus on applicants who are ‘In-Canada’ (so you won’t be competing with anyone who currently resides outside Canada). And don’t forget, having a Provincial Nomination gives you an extra 600 points! Speaking French also gives you extra points! Graduating from a public school in Canada gives you extra points!
POST GRAD WORK PERMITS: If you applied to study in Canada before November 1, 2024, there are no changes. You can apply for a PGWP as normal. If you applied to study in Canada after November 1, 2024, you can only get a PGWP if you graduate from a Bachelors, Masters or PhD program (with a CLB Level 7), or a 1-2 year program in an eligible field.
LABOUR MARKET IMPACT ASSESSMENTS (LMIA): LMIAs for the low-wage stream will no longer be processed in Census Metropolitan Areas (example: Vancouver) with unemployment rates of 6% or higher (the unemployment rate is updated every 3 months). Also, the minimum required wage to apply for an LMIA under the high-wage stream increased to $34.62 (20% increase).
Changes in 2025 and beyond:
BC PROVINCIAL NOMINEE PROGRAM: they have replaced the International Graduate Stream with 3 new streams: Bachelor Stream, Masters Stream and Doctorate Stream. Each degree level will have its competitive pool, for example, Bachelor’s degree holders will compete only with other bachelor’s candidates, Master’s degree holders will be evaluated against other master’s candidates and Doctorate stream applicants will have a separate direct application process. Also, The minimum language proficiency level will be increased program-wide. More details will be released this week or next.
NO MORE EXPRESS ENTRY POINTS FOR ARRANGED EMPLOYMENT: Sometime in Spring 2025, as part of ongoing efforts to prevent and reduce fraud, Express Entry candidates will no longer receive additional points for having a valid job offer. (hint: this will be a good thing for those who don’t currently have these points. It means everyone who currently has these points will lose 50 points, and that may put you ahead of them in points!) As of today, the extra points still apply.
