A-Z Canada Consult Inc.

Canada immigration changes finally announced - Outlook for 2009

Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Canada (CIMC) Minister Jason Kenney recently announced the details of the Canadian Government's new Action Plan for Faster Immigration, which sets new regulations for the Federal Skilled Worker program of Canadian immigration.

"We expect new federal skilled worker applicants, including those with arranged employment, to receive a decision within six to twelve months compared with up to six years under the old system," said Minister Kenney.

New instructions for Canadian immigration Federal Skilled Worker applications

On November 28, 2008, Citizenship, Immigration, and Multiculturalism Canada Minister Jason Kenney announced the new instructions for the processing of all Federal Skilled Worker applications received since February 27, 2008.

The Action Plan for Faster Immigration seeks to shrink immigration application processing times to 6 to 12 months.

Under the Immigration Minister's new instructions, Canadian Immigration Visa Officers reviewing Federal Skilled Worker applications will process those from candidates who:

• Have at least one year of continuous full-time or equivalent paid work experience in the past 10 years in one of the 38 qualifying occupations; or
• Have been living in Canada with legal status as a Temporary Foreign Worker or an international student for at least one year; or
• Qualify for Arranged Employment with a full-time permanent job offer from a Canadian employer.

The list of 38 qualifying occupations was compiled based on consultations with provincial and territorial business and labour stakeholders. They have been identified as the most in-demand occupations in Canada.

·         0111 Financial Managers

·         0213 Computer and Information Systems Managers

·         0311 Managers in Health Care

·         0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers

·         0632 Accommodation Service Managers

·         0711 Construction Managers

·         1111 Financial Auditors and Accountants

·         2113 Geologists, Geochemists and Geophysicists

·         2143 Mining Engineers

·         2144 Geological Engineers

·         2145 Petroleum Engineers

·         3111 Specialist Physicians

·         3112 General Practitioners and Family Physicians

·         3141 Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists

·         3143 Occupational Therapists

·         3142 Physiotherapists

·         3151 Head Nurses and Supervisors

·         3152 Registered Nurses

·         3215 Medical Radiation Technologists

·         3233 Licensed Practical Nurses

·         4121 University Professors

·         4131 College and Other Vocational Instructors

·         6241 Chefs

·         6242 Cooks

·         7213 Contractors and Supervisors, Pipe fitting Trades

·         7215 Contractors and Supervisors, Carpentry Trades

·         7217 Contractors and Supervisors, Heavy Construction Equipment Crews

·         7241 Electricians (Except Industrial and Power System)

·         7242 Industrial Electricians

·         7251 Plumbers

·         7252 Steamfitters, Pipe fitters and Sprinkler System Installers

·         7265 Welders and Related Machine Operators

·         7312 Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics

·         7371 Crane Operators

·         7372 Drillers and Blasters - Surface Mining, Quarrying and Construction

·         8221 Supervisors, Mining and Quarrying

·         8222 Supervisors, Oil and Gas Drilling and Service

·         9212 Supervisors, Petroleum, Gas and Chemical Processing and Utilities

Those Federal Skilled Worker applicants (submitted on or after February 27, 2008) do not have experience in a listed occupation, will have their applications returned and their processing fees refunded. Federal Skilled Worker applications submitted before February 27, 2008 will be processed based on previous assessment criteria and processing times.

The changes to the Federal Skilled Worker category will not affect any other classes of Canadian immigration.