Canada launching new immigration programs for int'l graduates, essential workers

The Canadian government has decided to launch six new immigration programs for international student graduates, essential workers and French speakers who will get permanent residency this May.

The announcement for the new programs in Canada was made by the immigration minister Marco Mendicino on April 14 which will pave the way for 90,000 new immigrants to get permanent residency this year.

According to CIC News, the other three streams for French-speaking immigrants will have no intake cap.

The report stated that the new programs will be for temporary workers employed in hospitals and long-term care homes, and those on the frontlines of other essential sectors, as well as international student graduates from Canadian educational institutions.

The Canadian Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will begin accepting applications under the following three streams from May 6 including 20,000 applications for temporary workers in health care, 30,000 for temporary workers in selected essential occupations and 40,000 applications for international students who graduated from a Canadian educational institution.

It added that the streams will remain open until November 5, 2021, or until they have reached their limit, whereas, the new public policies will be applied to workers in 40 healthcare occupations, as well as 95 other essential jobs across a range of fields, like caregiving and food production and distribution.

Workers will need at least one year of Canadian work experience in a healthcare profession or another pre-approved essential occupation to be eligible for applying in the said programs.

International graduates must have completed an eligible Canadian post-secondary program within the last four years and no earlier than January 2017.

Graduates and workers must have proficiency in one of Canada’s official languages; meet general admissibility requirements; and be present, authorized to work and working in Canada at the time of their application to qualify. They also must be residing in any Canadian province other than Quebec.

“These new policies will help those with a temporary status to plan their future in Canada, play a key role in our economic recovery and help us build back better,” Mendicino said in a media release. “Our message to them is simple: your status may be temporary, but your contributions are lasting—and we want you to stay.”

The immigration minister had been hinting at the idea of facilitating immigration for temporary residents since the fall, after announcing the highest immigration targets Canada has ever seen.

Mendicino said the move would be necessary in order to bounce back from a year of reduced immigration. Canada did not admit enough immigrants in 2020, and as a result, population growth fell to WWI levels.

Over the next three years, Canada is aiming to welcome about 1.2 million new immigrants. About 401,000 are supposed to become permanent residents in 2021 alone, yet the coronavirus-related travel restrictions are still in effect, hindering many from immigrating to Canada.