Immigration.ca - Canada Immigration News - July 2012
This month the Conservative government announced a moratorium on immigration applications in two popular skilled worker streams.
The decision comes on the heels of several other controversial changes announced recently by Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, which he says are an attempt to streamline the processing and minimize waiting periods for both applicants and Canadian employers who so desperately need skilled labour.
As of July, the Canadian government will halt processing applications under the Federal Skilled Worker category and the Immigrant Investor Program. Kenney argues that the six-month interruption will provide time for the department to adjust to new regulations designed to ensure maximum opportunities for success for newcomers.
�This is all about getting to a faster system,� said Minister Kenney upon announcing the moratorium. �The only way we can get to a faster system, which can better connect immigrants with the jobs that are available and so they have higher levels of employment and better incomes, is to get rid of the backlog.�
Kenney insists that the pause will not lead to a decrease in immigration in the coming year. The move will allow the approximately 100,000 applications currently pending to be processed without allowing others to contribute to a new backlog.
This spring, the government legislated the return of over 300,000 immigration applications filed before 2008 in an attempt to reduce waiting times that have grown up to 8 years for some.
Source: Globe and Mail
