All-program Express Entry draws were paused for 18 months between January 2021 and July 2022 due to border closures and restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. After July, all 2022 draws were all-program.

Since the beginning of 2023, IRCC has only held two all-program draws, which means that candidates from all three Express Entry managed programs have been invited based on their minimum CRS score. These draws, which were held one week apart on January 11 and 18, each invited 5,000 candidates.

After that, IRCC had to wait two weeks for the next draw, which was the first PNP-only draw since June 2022. The next day, IRCC held another draw, inviting 3,300 candidates from only the federal government. Program for skilled workers (FSWP). IRCC held an FSWP-only draw for the first time since Express Entry began in 2015. The FSWP is a well-known Express Entry program that is open to candidates from all over the world who meet the work experience, language, and educational experience requirements.

Express Entry draws are totally at the discretion of the immigration minister and IRCC. The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act contains no provisions dictating when draws will take place, the number of candidates, or the minimum CRS cut-off score.

The IRCC has launched an application tracking system for Express Entry programs.
Candidates in the Federal Skilled Workers Program (FSWP), the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP) will now be able to track their applications online, according to an announcement made by IRCC on February 8. Candidates in provincial nominee programs will also be affected (PNPs).

Clients will be able to monitor their applications and stay up-to-date on any updates regarding actions that may be required to keep their files moving with the help of these status trackers. January figures show 47,868 applicants for Express Entry programs waiting in the queue and 66,214 for PNPs.

These trackers were introduced by IRCC in order to increase transparency and improve access to information. An identical system was implemented last year for family class permanent residence applicants, sponsors, and their representatives.

What exactly is Express Entry?
The Express Entry application management system includes three Canadian immigration training programs: the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP). Candidates for the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) in the Express Entry pool are already eligible for at least one of these programs.

Candidates’ profiles are ranked for Express Entry programs using the points-based Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS). Candidates with the highest scores will receive an invitation to apply (ITA) and can then apply for permanent residency.

The Canadian citizenship oath could be just a mouse click away.
Proposed amendments will allow citizens to take the oath of office available on the internet without having to attend a ceremony led by an authorized individual.

Swearing an oath has been a legal requirement for becoming a Canadian citizen since 1947. Swearing an oath is a solemn pledge made by citizenship applicants to follow Canadian laws and fulfill their responsibilities as citizens. In most cases, new citizens must swear or affirm the oath in front of a citizenship judge during virtual or in-person ceremonies.

These ceremonies are usually held during the week and during working hours. According to the immigration department, many new citizens must take time off work to attend citizenship ceremonies, and this time is not always reimbursed by employers.

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have announced that amendments to the Citizenship Regulations are being proposed, which would allow for greater flexibility with the citizenship oath. Future Canadian citizens may be able to take the oath without the presence of a citizenship judge as early as June 2023.

The Immigration Minister would have broad discretion under the proposed Regulations to allow citizens to take the oath in other ways than in front of an authorised person. Clients would be able to take the oath via a secure online solution. This “self-administration” of oath-taking would enable citizens to sign a written attestation online without the presence of a witness.

This flexibility, according to IRCC, would improve client service. The proposed change, most notably, is an attempt to reduce application backlogs and processing times. According to IRCC, the change could save up to three months of processing time, bringing the current citizenship processing time of 24 months down to 21 months.

Backlogs in current processing
Thousands of people apply for Canadian citizenship each year. Due to increased demand and factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, application processing times have exceeded the service standard of 12 months.

Nonetheless, Canada is expected to welcome 500,000 new permanent residents by 2025. According to the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement for the proposed amendment, the current inventory of citizenship applications is 358,000. This is expected to increase as more permanent residents arrive, and processing times will most likely be affected.

This isn’t the first time IRCC has turned to technology to help with long processing times. In the last year, numerous initiatives to modernize the citizenship program have yielded results. These initiatives include electronic submission and processing of citizenship applications, online citizenship tests, and virtual citizenship ceremonies.

As a result of these initiatives, IRCC is on track to process a record 300,000 new citizenship applications during the fiscal year 2022-2023, up from 34% in the fiscal year 2021-2022.

The public has 30 days to comment on the proposed regulatory change and provide feedback.

Criteria for obtaining citizenship
To be eligible for Canadian citizenship, you must first:You must be a permanent resident.
Fill out your tax forms (if necessary)
Pass a citizenship test in Canada (if you are between the ages of 18 and 54)
Demonstrate your language abilities (if you are between the ages of 18 and 54)
Meet the physical presence requirements of Canada
Before applying for Canadian citizenship, you must have lived in Canada for at least three years, or 1,095 days out of the previous five years.\

If you were a temporary resident or a protected person in Canada before becoming a permanent resident, you can apply some of that time towards your physical presence requirement. Each day spent in Canada as a temporary resident or protected person in the five years prior to your application would count as a half day, but you can only use a maximum of one year, or 365 days, towards the requirement.

Will the IRCC waive the application fee for citizenship?
Shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian government announced that fees for new Canadian citizenship applicants would be waived.

In his mandate letter, Canada’s immigration minister, Sean Fraser, outlined the fee waiver. The mandate letter is a critical immigration policy document that outlines the administration’s priorities, which the minister is expected to pursue during his time in power.

In an interview with CIC News in 2022, Fraser stated that no date has been set for IRCC to waive citizenship application fees. The date has not been set because the decision to waive citizenship fees is not within IRCC’s authority. Rather, the authority rests with the federal budgetary process, and no decisions for the next federal fiscal year have been made.

March is IRCC Fraud Prevention Month. During the month of March, the IRCC raises awareness about immigration fraud and scams targeting newcomers.

Every year in March, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) participate in the Canadian government’s Fraud Protection Month to raise awareness about the fraud that newcomers to Canada face and how they can protect themselves.

The immigration process in Canada can be complicated and intimidating. Many prospective immigrants seek the assistance of a professional throughout the process. Unfortunately, there are ill-intentioned individuals and unlicensed consultants who profit from foreigners’ inexperience.

Following successful immigration to Canada, newcomers may fall prey to scammers or dishonest people during their job or housing search. Advertisements promising high-paying jobs or scholarships to study at Canadian universities or colleges may appear. Many of these offers are fraudulent, so newcomers should be cautious.

Being informed and prepared is the best way to protect yourself from immigration fraud. A newcomer will be able to recognize, avoid, and report fraud once they have been educated on the warning signs of a scam or fraudulent communication.

The IRCC website has information on some common scams targeting newcomers to Canada:

People impersonating Government of Canada employees will contact you and attempt to scare or threaten you into paying fees in order to keep your immigration status.
Fake emails attempting to persuade you to invest money or provide personal information about your bank accounts.
Fake emails or phone calls claiming your computer has been infected with a virus and requesting computer passwords and personal information in order to remove the e-virus. virus for you

Advice to help protect yourself from immigration fraud