Frequently asked questions: Ministerial instructions and reducing the backlog

On the ministerial instructions

What are the instructions?

The instructions outline a set of eligibility criteria that apply to all new federal skilled worker applications received on or after February 27, 2008. All applications made before February 27, 2008, will be processed according to the rules that were in effect at that time.

According to the instructions, applications are eligible for processing if they:

• include an offer of arranged employment, or
• are from a foreign national living legally in Canada for one year as a temporary foreign worker or an international student, or
• are from a skilled worker who has at least one year of experience under one or more of the occupations listed here. The occupations fall into high-demand areas such as health, skilled trades, finance and resource extraction sectors.

These instructions apply only to new federal skilled worker applicants and will not affect Canada’s family reunification or refugee protection goals.

How did the instructions come about?

On June 18, 2008, Parliament approved changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to remove the obligation to process all applications CIC receives and authorize the Minister to issue instructions to immigration officers as to which applications are eligible for processing, based on the Government of Canada’s goals for immigration.

To help develop the instructions, CIC consulted with Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC), Health Canada, provinces and territories, over 150 stakeholder organizations and 500 others who gave input online. From these consultations, we found the most common and acute labour market pressures across the country.

Why are the instructions necessary?

With a backlog of over 900,000 people, two-thirds of them federal skilled worker applicants, wait times can be as long as six years. The instructions make the system more efficient and competitive. They let us keep the federal skilled worker backlog from growing, reduce wait times and assess new applications according to Canada's needs.

The instructions also help make sure the immigrants we welcome in the federal skilled worker category respond to Canada’s economic needs.

How often will instructions be issued?

Instructions can be issued as necessary to remain responsive to the changing labour market. We will continue to monitor economic and labour market needs in collaboration with our partners at HRSDC and our colleagues in the provinces and territories.

When do the instructions take effect?

The instructions take effect on the date of publication in the Canada Gazette (November 28, 2008), but they apply to federal skilled worker applications received on or after February 27, 2008.

Do the instructions affect immigration categories other than the economic class? 

People applying to join their families in Canada are not affected. Neither are refugees, protected persons or people applying for humanitarian or compassionate consideration from within Canada.

The instructions confirm existing processing priorities. For example, applications for sponsored spouses, partners and dependent children will continue to be placed into processing immediately upon receipt.

Our annual levels plan will continue to establish clear targets for the number of immigrants we intend to welcome every year. For example, in 2009, Canada plans to accept between 240,000 and 265,000 new permanent residents, including approximately 70,000 in the family class, some 26,000 protected persons, and at least 20,000 provincial nominees to help provinces meet the demand for workers, many of whom are lower-skilled.

How will the instructions affect people requesting humanitarian and compassionate consideration?

The instructions don’t affect people in Canada seeking humanitarian and compassionate consideration. Since 90% of humanitarian and compassionate requests are made from within Canada, most people applying in this category are not affected.

Overseas requests for humanitarian and compassionate consideration that accompany a federal skilled worker application not identified for processing under the instructions will not be processed. We will continue to review applications for humanitarian and compassionate consideration from abroad that involve family reunification.

The intent of the law is to keep people who are not eligible to immigrate under the instructions from applying for humanitarian and compassionate consideration to get around the instructions.

Does this close the door to immigrants?

No. We’re still planning to welcome between 240,000 and 265,000 permanent residents in 2009, according to the annual immigration plan.

The instructions allow CIC to be more selective—to take applicants with the skills we need quickly and return other applications. Eligible candidates should still apply. In fact, under the old system, many well-qualified skilled workers did not apply because they had to wait so long.

There are also many other ways to immigrate to Canada. People who are not successful through the Federal Skilled Worker Program may qualify under another category. Please click here for more information on all the immigration options available.

Immigration is important in meeting Canada’s social, cultural and economic needs. In the past couple of years, Canada accepted a record number of permanent and temporary residents.

Don’t the instructions give the Minister too much power? 

No. There are controls in place to make sure of this:

• The Minister’s instructions are based on input from provinces, territories and stakeholders.
• Every action taken by the government, including immigration, must comply with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which protects against discrimination.
• The instructions must be consistent with the overall objectives of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, which are to support Canada’s economy and competitiveness, reunite families and provide protection to those who need it.
• The annual levels plan will continue to establish clear target ranges for the number of immigrants we intend to accept in each class. The changes don’t affect that.
• The decisions on individual applications will continue to be made by CIC immigration officers. The Minister cannot reverse these decisions.

On reducing the backlog

How did the backlog happen?

There are several factors.

First, unlike most countries, Canada does not restrict the number of people who can apply. So each year, far more people apply than can be processed and admitted into the country.

Second, the old law required CIC to process every single application to a decision, regardless of how many applied or how many could be welcomed in any given year.

Third, just before the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was put in place in 2002, there was a flood of applications from people who wanted to apply before the new law took effect.

What are you doing to reduce the backlog?

The amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act prevent the federal skilled worker backlog from getting any bigger. And with additional resources from the 2008 budget, CIC is:

• hiring and training more visa officers to speed up processing in parts of the world where wait times are the longest;
• introducing administrative improvements to free up resources in missions abroad for processing. For example, a centralized intake office is being piloted in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, whose functions include taking over some of the data entry, initial assessment and fee processing functions that used to be done by our missions abroad;
• referring applications of interest to the provinces and territories for processing under the Provincial Nominee Program; and
• asking people who have been waiting the longest if they prefer to continue to wait or if they wish to withdraw their applications.

Taken together, these measures will ensure that applications in the backlog are processed as quickly as possible.

How long will it take to eliminate the backlog?

The ministerial instructions and the recent amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act prevent the backlog from growing further. It took several years for the backlog to build up, and it will take several years to bring it down.

How long will depend on a number of factors, such as the number of applications that are withdrawn, the number that are processed through referrals to provinces and territories, and the number of immigrants we admit every year within the annual immigration levels plan, which in 2009 calls for the entry of 240,000 to 265,000 new permanent residents.

Why doesn’t the government just hire more people for processing and accept more immigrants?

In fact, the 2008 budget did include more resources for processing, but that alone will not solve the problem. Investing more money in processing without addressing the underlying problem with the old law would not have allowed us to tackle the backlog and make the system more flexible.

Like most countries, Canada manages the number of immigrants we accept every year. We do so to balance the number of immigrants we welcome with the opportunities and infrastructure available to help them successfully settle into Canadian communities and the work force.

The changes to the law, combined with the 2008 budget funding, are necessary to better manage applications, to be more responsive to the labour market, and to allow the Department to begin to reduce the backlog of applications.

Why are processing times so long?

Many people want to live in Canada. Processing all the applications we get, including proper medical and security checks, takes time.

There are several other classes of immigrants we must process besides skilled workers. Some classes are given priority, and this can mean longer processing times for others. For example, we try to give priority to applications from sponsored spouses. Also, our international commitments require that applications from people in need of protection be processed quickly.