Canada set to retain its ranking as the number one country in the world.
Applicants for Canadian permanent residence will now be paying higher fees. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has just increased fees for all permanent residence applications. This includes economic, permit holder, family and humanitarian classes.
In 2020, IRCC increased permanent residence fees to account for inflation for the first time since 2002. At that time, it was announced that fees would increase every 2 years to adjust for inflation.
The increase will affect applicants to most economic permanent residence immigration programs, except caregivers. The fees will then be automatically adjusted for inflation every 2 years for all permanent residence applications, including the economic, family and humanitarian programs, beginning in 2022.
The Government of Canada said the changes ensure that Canada remains competitive and in line with fees charged by other immigrant-receiving countries. In most cases, Canada’s fees are considerably less expensive than countries with similar migration systems, such as Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The new fees for Canadian permanent residence
The current right to permanent residence fee for a principal applicant and accompanying spouse or common-law partner will now be $515 instead of $500.
For Federal High Skilled, Provincial Nominee Program and Quebec Skilled Workers, Atlantic Immigration Class and most Economic Pilots, including Rural and Agri-Food, the new fee for principal applicants will be $850. The accompanying spouses or common-law partners will also now pay $850. For an accompanying dependent child, the cost will be $230 as opposed to the previous $225.
For those under the Live-in Caregiver Program and Caregivers Pilots, the principal applicant will be required to pay $570 and so will their spouse or common-law partner. The fee for a dependent child also goes up to $155.
What is permanent resident (PR)and who can apply?
A permanent resident (PR) is someone who is not a Canadian citizen but has the right to live and work in this country without a deadline on their stay.
Such a person holds most of the same rights as a Canadian citizen — they receive many of the same social benefits, including becoming contributing members of the Canada Pension Plan and receiving coverage by their province or territory’s universal health care system.
What they do not enjoy, however, is the right to vote in Canadian elections. They cannot run for elected office at any level of government, either. Nor can they hold jobs in the public or private sector that require high-level security clearance — for matters related to national security. They are also not eligible to join the Canadian Armed Forces or the police.
How to become a Permanent Resident in Canada
To become a permanent resident of Canada, one needs to apply to IRCC under one of their several programs available for foreign nationals. The programs include Express Entry, Provincial Nominee Program and Quebec Skilled Workers, Atlantic Immigration Class, Economic Pilots, Live-in Caregiver Program and Caregivers Pilots, Business (Federal and Quebec), Family Reunification, Protected Persons, Humanitarian and Compassionate, among others.
How many immigrants come to Canada yearly?
In 2021 — despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global migration — Canada was able to welcome more than 405,000 new permanent residents, the greatest number of newcomers in a year in Canadian history, according to the IRRC.
It is estimated that the number of new immigrants to Canada will hit 500,000 in 2022. The need for population growth in Canada and the pressure to bring in more refugees from war torn Ukraine will ensure Canada remains the “immigration capital of the world. “
The application fee increase for permanent residence will not dampen the enthusiasm to immigrate to Canada from China, India, The Philippines, Nigeria and other parts of the world.
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