Canada Forms Immigration Agreement with Ukraine
New Working Group Will Improve Immigration Opportunities for Ukrainians
The Canadian federal government has announced an agreement with Ukraine that will improve mobility opportunities for Ukrainians looking to come to Canada while also maintaining the integrity of Canada's immigration and visa processes.
Titled the "Canada-Ukraine Mobility Working Group," Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino unveiled the new agreement last week on the 29th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Canada and Ukraine.
“Through generations of Ukrainians who have made Canada their home, the Ukrainian-Canadian community continues to make outstanding contributions to Canada’s economy, our society and our diverse cultural fabric,” said Mendicino. “The unique partnership that we are announcing today will serve to further strengthen the deep-rooted, people-to-people ties between our two countries.”
The goal of this new group is to identify and improve opportunities for Ukrainians looking to live and work in Canada.
According to a press release from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada, the group will enable both Canada and Ukraine to:
- Share best practices on migration management
- Increase recruitment
- Promote Canada’s economic immigration programs
- Strengthen co-operation on immigration-related matters
The group will also help Canada and Ukraine develop a youth mobility agreement. This agreement will provide travel opportunities to Canadian and Ukrainian youth when the COVID-19 travel restrictions are lifted.
“The people of Canada and Ukraine have a strong relationship that will only be deepened by the announcement made today,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau. “Our people-to-people ties, but also our commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, is unequivocal and Canada will continue to stand by Ukrainians as reforms take place in the country.”
There are currently more than 1.3 million Canadians of Ukrainian descent. According to the press release, the new agreement will help further strengthen Canada's long-standing relationship with Ukraine, which it describes as "anchored by close people-to-people ties and shared values."
Despite the travel restrictions in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, "the mobility working group will build on our relationship with the people of Ukraine and bring us even closer together," stated the press release.
Canadian Citizenship Rates Expected to Rise Dramatically
Researcher Predicts That Online Citizenship Tests Could Increase Demand For In-Person Testing
Canada is set to experience a massive surge in permanent residents obtaining citizenship, either later this year or early next year. This is according to statements made to Immigration.ca by Robert Falconer, a research associate at the University of Calgary.
This surge should not come as a surprise, as citizenship rates dropped dramatically in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In fact, during the first 11 months of 2020, only 107,119 people took the citizenship oath in Canada. This is a decrease of 45.9 per cent, compared to the 233,397 people who became Canadian citizens during the same period in 2019.
The reason for the decline in 2020 is that citizenship ceremonies across the country were cancelled in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In April, only 14 people took the citizenship oath, and by May, this number increased to 61. As lockdown restrictions were lifted, the number began to increase again with 1,716 people taking the oath in June, and 13,819 in September.
In November, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) launched an online platform allowing new Canadian residents to take citizenship tests. This made Canada the first country in the world to offer citizenship testing online. However, the platform is still undergoing testing, and only a limited number of people have been invited to use the platform at this point.
Falconer told Immigration.ca that moving immigration testing online will likely lead to a decrease in the number of people taking their citizenship tests. He believes this is because becoming a Canadian citizen is a momentous occasion that many want to celebrate with friends and family. However, due to the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, these types of in-person celebrations are not taking place.
By the summer of 2021, though, Falconer predicts that there will be an increase in demand for in-person citizenship ceremonies.
“There’ll be an explosion in citizenship ceremonies for a couple of reasons,” said Falconer. “People are waiting until they can do it in person and, on the government side, it’s taking longer to process the applications."
Between the increase in demand and the regular volume of a normal year, Falconer estimates that 30,000 people could become citizens each month in 2022.
However, Falconer added that it may be difficult for the IRCC to handle this influx in citizenship applications.
“The IRCC is one of the most under-staffed government institutions in Canada,” he said.
Ottawa Caregiver's Dream of Permanent Residence At Risk Due to Medical Condition
Kidney Disease Diagnosis Was Given Six Months After Arrival in Canada
A woman from the Philippines who has been living and working as a childcare provider in Canada for the past three years is likely to be deemed medically inadmissible and therefore ineligible for permanent residence after being diagnosed with kidney disease.
According to CBC News, Kherin Dimalanta first arrived in Canada in 2017 after applying for a live-in caregiver visa. Her goal was to work as a live-in nanny and eventually apply for permanent residency, so she could arrange to have her own children come live with her in Canada.
Since her arrival, she has been caring for the children of two doctors currently working on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unfortunately, though, six months after her arrival, Dimalanta was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. Even though she had been working and paying taxes in Canada for months before her illness was discovered, she is likely to be deemed medically inadmissible to Canada and unable to obtain permanent resident status due to this inadmissibility, unless she is granted an exemption from this inadmissibility.
"It just turned my life upside down," Dimalanta told CBC in an interview. "I feel like I don't have the right to dream anymore."
What it Means to be Medically Inadmissible
According to Canadian immigration law, a permanent residence applicant can be found medically inadmissible to Canada if their medical costs exceed $21,204 a year.
In Dimalanta's case, her dialysis treatments are estimated to cost $40,000 a year, which is nearly twice the annual health-care cost threshold set by the federal government.
If forced to return to the Philippines, she would not be able to afford the cost of dialysis treatment. Without treatment, doctors have told her she would likely die from her condition.
Her employer, Dr. Cathy Kyeremanteng, told CBC that Dimalanta should be exempt from inadmissibility because she had already been living and working in Canada prior to her diagnosis.
"She fell sick while she was here, by no fault of her own," said Kyeremanteng. "How could Canada send somebody home to die in front of their children, just because we have to pay for the medical treatment?
Next Steps
Dimalanta has applied for Permanent Residence on humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds. The H&C application is a permanent residence pathway available for people who have made Canada their home and established close ties to their community, but are unable to apply for permanent residence through other channels or are inadmissible to Canada, including for reasons of medical inadmissibility.
This requires applicants to demonstrate that they have compelling and compassionate reasons for remaining in Canada based on a variety of factors, including hardship they would suffer in their home country.
Two years have passed since Dimalanta's H&C application was submitted, but no decision has been made. In the meantime, she has applied for a temporary resident permit and an open work permit. This application also continues to be in processing, and Dimalanta has “implied status” with which she can continue to live and work in Canada while she waits for a decision on her applications. However, she cannot leave Canada without risking that she won’t be allowed back in, and as a result, she has not been able to see her children in nearly four years. She must also appeal to the Ontario Health Insurance Plan review committee every few months to continue receiving health coverage.
Canadian Government Outlines Immigration Priorities in Mandate Letter
New Letter Prioritizes Immigration During and After Pandemic
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has provided Marco Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, with a new supplementary mandate letter that outlines a new set of priorities related to immigration. The letter emphasizes that immigration will remain a top priority when it comes to Canada’s economy and society, both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The mandate letter was released less than three months after Canada announced its new 2021-2023 Immigration Levels Plan, which aims to welcome 400,000 immigrants per year – the highest in Canadian history.
A mandate letter is considered the most important policy document within Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). It outlines the goals that Canada’s prime minister wants the immigration minister and IRCC to pursue and prioritize.
The most recent supplementary mandate letter was provided to Mendicino to line up with the new session of Parliament, which began in September, and incorporates new objectives developed in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
The new mandate letter also defines key issues and programs involving immigration in Canada. This includes Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan, new immigration programs for IRCC to create, the improvement of immigration application processing times, and other issues.
The following points are the key priorities outlined in the mandate letter:
- Continue welcoming new immigrants to support Canada’s economic growth and post-COVID-19 pandemic recovery.
- Expand pilot programs to welcome refugees through economic class immigration streams and expedite family reunification.
- Work on sectoral and regional pilot programs.
- Implement measures that offer permanent residence pathways to newcomers who have provided health care in long-term care homes, medical facilities, or who have performed other essential services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Work with cabinet colleagues to protect the health and safety of Canadians, and manage Canada’s ports of entry responsibly and compassionately.
- Identify new permanent residence pathways for temporary foreign workers.
- Work with the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion to protect workers considered to be vulnerable to COVID-19 and fill labour force needs in farming and food processing sectors.
- Work with the provincial and territorial governments to provide settlement support to newcomers, including French-language training.
What these goals reveal is that Canada will continue to prioritize immigration during the COVID-19 pandemic to support the Canadian economy and fill gaps in the labour market.
New Policy Is Introduced for International Students Who Lost Work During COVID-19
Open Work Permit Gives Students a Second Chance to Obtain Work Experience Needed for Permanent Residence
The Federal government has announced a new policy designed to give international students affected by COVID-19 another chance to gain work experience in Canada. This work experience is needed to become eligible to apply for permanent residence. .
The new policy, which was introduced on January 8, will allow former international students with an expired or expiring Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) to apply for a new open work permit in 2021. The application process will be open from January 27 to July 27, 2021.
An open work permit allows foreign nationals to work for any employer of their choice in Canada. Open work permits differ from closed work permits, which require foreign workers to remain with just one employer in Canada.
The new open work permits will be valid for 18 months. During this time, permit holders will be able to remain in Canada while they continue to look for work.
Eligibility Criteria
In order to receive one of the new open work permits, applicants must meet all of the following criteria:
- Must have a PGWP that expired on or after January 30, 2020, or a PGWP that expires in 4 months or less from the date of your application
- Currently reside in Canada
- Must have a valid temporary status or be in the process of applying to restore your status
Why It's Important
The goal of this new initiative is to provide PGWP holders who lost jobs, had hours decreased, or lost out on work opportunities due to the COVID-19 pandemic with more time to gain work experience and become eligible for permanent residence status.
Helping international students remain in Canada permanently after their studies have concluded has long been a top priority for the Canadian government, as immigration helps employers fill labour shortages and recruit new talent.
However, because the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant effect on the number of international students coming to Canada in 2020, Immigration Minister Mendicino has announced many new policies over the past several months to help offset the decline.
In fact, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has estimated that around 52,000 international student graduates with expired or expiring PGWPs will benefit from this new policy.
“Our message to international students and graduates is simple: we don't just want you to study here, we want you to stay here,” said Mendicino.