IRCC aims to resume FSWP and CEC invitations

Sean Fraser, the immigration minister of Canada, has announced that Express Entry draws will be resumed in the spring for skilled workers. The minister has also said that pathways will be created to provide permanent residence to temporary foreign workers and international students. Highlights

• FSWP and CEC draws will resume
• Draws for Federal High Skilled candidates will resume

Sean Fraser has also stated that Express Entry draw for Federal High Skilled category will resume. This category will include the candidates who are eligible for Federal Skilled Worker Program, CEC, and Federal Skilled Trades Program. No Express Entry draws for FSWP candidates have been conducted since December 2020, and CEC draw has been stopped since September 2021. Because of this, immigrants were not able to apply for immigration through these programs. Fraser also took into account about the people who are working PGWP, and their permit will expire very soon. PGWP holders do not have the right to apply for immigration unless they get an Invitation to Apply. These candidates have to become eligible for Bridging Open Work Permit. PGWP cannot be extended or renewed, and PGWP holders have to apply for a different work permit, quit the job, or leave the country. *Check your eligibility for migration to Canada through Canada Immigration Points Calculator. Reasons behind pausing FSWP draws FSWP candidates were able to apply for permanent residence because of the high numbers in the Express Entry pool. FSWP was paused in March 2020 because the borders of Canada were closed due to the pandemic. As FSWP candidates belong to other countries, there are chances that they may not be able to land if their applications are approved. In such a case, their validity of Confirmation of Permanent Residence will become invalid, and expired documents will not help them to become a permanent resident. This situation occurred till June 2021. Now immigration targets have to be met, so IRCC tried to make the applicants as permanent residents who are already living in Canada. In order to do this, Express Entry rounds for CEC were held. Besides this, a pathway called Temporary Residence to Permanent Residence pathway was created. Now the government may start FSWP draws in spring. Reasons behind pausing CEC draws In 2021, IRCC invited many immigrants through CEC in 2021. IRCC invited 27,332, and the CRS score was kept at 75 points. Later 6,000 invitations were sent every two weeks, and this increased the backlog. Because of this, CEC invitations were paused. The CEC applications take seven months to get processed. Express Entry current state Canada issues Express Entry draws for Provincial Nominee Program every two weeks. These candidates should be eligible for Federal High Skilled programs, and then only they can get provincial nominations. After getting the nominations, the applicants also receive 600 CRS points. IRCC backlog progress signs According to the IRCC inventory data, processing of 4,000 FSWP applications have been done between February 28 and March 15. Many FSWP immigrants were admitted in 2022. Around 4,751 CEC applications have also been processed, and 10,400 CEC applications are left to be processed. It has been expected that the backlog will be reduced till spring. FSWP draw may resume in 2022 Many candidates in Canada are facing the problem of expiry of their work permit as they are not getting Invitations to Apply. It has been expected that invitations to apply will resume in 2022, and candidates have to check their CRS score to get invitations. Planning to Migrate to Canada from Australia? Get in touch with Y-Axis Australia, the most leading migration consultancy in Australia. If you found this blog engaging, you may also like … British Columbia issued 204 invitations under Skills and Entrepreneur immigration streams