Services

Canadian Immigration

Canadian Citizenship and Immigration to Canada start with an application for a Canada Immigration (Permanent Resident) Visa. There are several categories of Canadian immigration under which you can apply to immigrate to Canada:

3 Programs of Government
- A. Federal Program - The federal government created Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) on June 23, 1994. The department responsibilities include immigration application and levels, selection criteria, visa requirements, refugees issues, settlement, enforcement and federal-provincial relations on immigration. It handles also citizenship applications, registration and promotion.
- B. Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) - The federal and provincial government share responsibility for immigration. Federal provincial working groups examine specific issues, such as access to profession and trade, sponsorship, business immigration, promotion and recruitment, selection, settlement and language training, health, information sharing and research.
- C. Canada- Quebec Accord Program - Gives Quebec certain selection powers and sole responsibility for integration purposes. The federal government is still responsible for defining immigration categories, planning levels of immigration and enforcing laws.
Top 5 Source Countries

Canada – Permanent residents by source country

Download: Canada Permanent Residents

Visa Categories

Economic Class - persons selected for their ability to contribute to Canada's economy

Federal Skilled Worker Class - persons with specific occupational skills, relevant work experience, language skills and personal qualifications.

Basic Requirements:

Must reach the pass mark
Must provide proof that they have sufficient funds for their settlement in Canada
Must pass the health and security requirements

Provincial Nominee Class - persons who intend to reside in the province that nominated them. The nominees are expected to stay in the province for at least 3 years. Each provincial government has their own selection criteria.

Download: Provincial Nominee Class

Basic Requirements:

Must have the Certificate Nomination issued by the provincial government
Must pass the points system in certain provinces
Must pass the health and security requirements
Must have proof of funds in certain provinces

Quebec-Skilled Worker Class - persons who intend to reside in the province of Quebec

Basic Requirements:

Must reach the pass mark and speak the French language
Work experience must be listed in Quebec General Occupation List
Must pass the Health and Security requirements

Business Immigration Class - persons with business skills and capital. They contribute to the nation's economy and create job opportunities

Investor - persons who intend and have the ability to invest in Canada

Basic Requirements:

Must have a business experience
Must have a legally obtained net worth of CDN $1,600,000.00
Invest CDN $800,000 without interest for 5 years into the Federal Immigrant Investor program before receiving the visa

Entrepreneur - persons who have the ability to establish, purchase or make a substantial investment in a business or commercial venture in Canada and employment will be created or continued in Canada

Basic Requirements:

Must have a business experience
Must have a legally obtained net worth of CDN $300,000
Required to actively manage and control a qualifying Canadian business
Conditional visa for 3 years and are removed once conditions are satisfied

Self-Employed - persons who have the ability to be self employed in Canada

Basic Requirements:

At least 2 years relevant experience in self-employment in cultural or athletic activities
For Farm managers or owners, they must purchase and manage a farm
No immigration conditions

Canadian Experience Class - For people who have recent Canadian work experience or who recently graduated and worked in Canada

Family Class - Canadian citizens and permanent residents living in Canada, 18 years of age, or older may sponsor the following members of the family class living abroad:

Spouse, common- law or conjugal partner
Dependent children (biological, adopted or stepchild)
Parents and grandparents
Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces and grandchildren who are orphans under age 18

Basic Requirements:

You are exempt from financial requirements if you are sponsoring your spouse, common - law partner, conjugal partner or dependent children.
For other sponsored relatives, there is an income requirement for you to sponsor them.
You must be financially responsible for your relatives after they become permanent residents of Canada. You must support:
- Your spouse, common-law or conjugal partner for 3 years
- Dependent children under age 22 for 10 years, or until age 25 whichever comes first
- Dependent children aged 22 or over for 3 years and
- Other relatives for 10 years

Canada's Economic Action Plan 2012 – Changes to Canada's Economic Immigration System. Economic Action Plan 2012 initiatives include:

Eliminating the backlog of old applications in the federal skilled worker category.
Reforming the federal skilled worker point system used to select immigrants to better reflect the importance of younger immigrants with Canadian work experience and better language skills.
Creating a new Federal Skilled Trades program, to make it easier for them to immigrate to Canada and fill labor market needs.
Modifying the Canadian Experience Class to make it easier for highly skilled temporary foreign workers to transition to permanent residence.
Consulting with industry on a "start-up" visa for innovative entrepreneurs
Strengthening the overseas verification of education credentials of applicants to the Federal Skilled Workers Program.
Consulting on possible reforms to the Immigrant Investor Program with stakeholders and provinces and territories.
Working with provinces, territories, and employers to create a just-in-time pool of skilled workers who are ready to begin employment in Canada.
Strengthening the Provincial Nominee Program by establishing minimum language requirements and ensuring an economic focus

FSTC (Federal Skilled Trades Class)
There would be a new FSTC (Federal Skilled Trades Class) Program.

Skilled tradespersons with experience ONLY in one the following NOC B occupational areas would be eligible to apply: Industrial, Electrical and Construction Trades (NOC Major Group 72) Maintenance and Equipment Operation Trades (NOC Major Group 73) Supervisors and Technical Occupations in Natural Resources, Agriculture and Related Production (NOC Major Group 82) Processing, Manufacturing and Utilities Supervisors and Central Control Operators (NOC Major Group 92) Chefs and Cooks (NOC Minor Group 632) Bakers And Butchers (NOC Minor Group 633)

Applicants to the proposed program would be required to meet ALL the (4) four minimum requirements:

A qualifying offer of employment from up to two employers in Canada of at least one year duration or a Certificate of Qualification from a provincial or territorial Apprenticeship Authority;
Language proficiency, as evidenced by a test from a designated language testing organization that demonstrates the applicant's abilities in the requisite skill areas meet the threshold set by the Minister in all four language abilities (speaking, reading, writing, oral comprehension);
Twenty-four months of work experience (after qualification/certification in the country where the work was performed, where applicable) in the same skilled trade in the last five years; and
Qualifications that satisfy employment requirements as described by the NOC, except for certification and licensing requirements, which are difficult to obtain outside Canada."

New FSW Points System | Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC)

The following are the major changes in Federal Skilled Workers Program Points System.

Language Factor . Requiring minimum language abilities in order to qualify for the program equivalent to IELTS Score of 6. The computation would be as follows:

CLB 7 = 4 points (IELTS 6)

CLB 8 = 5 points (IELTS 6.5 for Reading, Writing and Speaking. For Listening is 7.5)

CLB 9 = 6 points (IELTS 7 for Reading, Writing and Speaking. For Listening is 8)

Age Factor: Awarding a maximum of 12 points for applicants aged 18 to 35 and a reduction of 1 point for every year after 35:

36 years old = 11 points; 37 years old = 10 points; 38 years old = 09 points;
39 years old = 08 points; 40 years old = 07 points; 41 years old = 06 points;
42 years old = 05 points; 43 years old = 04 points; 44 years old = 03 points;
45 years old = 02 points; 46 years old = 01 points; 47 years old = 00 points

Work Experience Factor: 1 year= 09 points; 2-3 years = 11 points ; 4-5 years = 13 points 6 + yrs =15 pts.

Adaptability Factor: (Maximum is 10 points.) 10 points –

PA Previous Work in Canada (min. 1 yr at NOC 0, A, B) 05 points –
Previous study in Canada — PA 05 points –
Previous study in Canada — accompanying spouse/partner 05 points –
Previous work in Canada — accompanying spouse/partner 05 points –
Arranged employment 05 points –
Accompanying spouse/partner's official language (CLB/NCLC 4) 05 points -
Relative in Canada (18 years or over)

Education Factor: Education points would be awarded based on the equivalent Canada- Educational Credential Assessment (ECA).

25 points - Doctoral level
23 points - Master's level or professional degree
22 points - Two or more post-secondary credentials, one of which is a three-year or longer post - secondary credential
21 points - Three-year or longer post - secondary credential
19 points - Two-year post-secondary credential
15 points - One-year post-secondary credential
05 points - Secondary school