Monthly Newsletter - May 2023

Happy May, everyone!

It is finally the time of year when the birds are singing, the flowers are blooming, and we can bask in the sunshine! Here are some of the important updates for this month to keep you all up to date with the world of immigration and our firm’s activities:

Federal Worker Strike

As you may know, on April 19, 2023 the federal employees of Service Canada, IRCC, and the CBSA who are all members of the largest workers union in Canada went on a strike that lasted about two weeks. During the strike, IRCC advised that delays were expected in several areas including the processing of applications, the ability to contact IRCC via email or phone and the collection of biometrics etc. Service Canada, which is responsible for reviewing Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) also advised of disruptions to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). On May 1, 2023, Immigration Minister, Sean Fraser, reported that almost 100,000 applications did not get processed during the strike but expects that in the coming months, IRCC will return to a pre-pandemic service standard. The bottom-line of the story is that, MORE delays should be expected from IRCC in processing the applications that are filed from inside Canada!

Web Summit Rio

Last week, we completed three days of full-time attendance at the Web Summit Rio in Brazil with one of our esteemed partners, Latam Startups. We had an incredible time networking with several qualified startups and building long-lasting relationships with partners, colleagues, and industry role players! We are also grateful to have had the opportunity to meet the Canadian Chief Trade Commissioner, Ms. Sara Wilshaw, and her team and to share some of the insights into and concerns that we are facing with the immigration programs, especially the startup visa program.

2023 Ontario Budget

The Government of Ontario recently released its 2023 budget and one of notable measures is its considerable investment of $25 million into the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) over the next three years, on top of the $15 million that was announced in its 2022 budget, to double its skilled immigrant intake. The investment is supposed to help address the province’s current labour shortages and promote economic growth by speeding up processing times as well as enhancing security and other IT updates to ensure that the system can handle increased demand now and in the future. The government has also pledged to invest in skills training, transform the apprenticeship and skilled trades system, and help newcomers put their skills to use!

I hope you all have an a-May-zing month ahead and be sure to follow me on LinkedIn for all the latest immigration updates. I am always happy to hear from you and answer any of your immigration-related questions and concerns.

Warm Regards,

Sonia.