I would say December 2021, but the most important part is the oath, If we can get it done in the next 3 months I am happy!
December 2021 hinges on two pre-conditions, in my mind:
a) In-person testing/interview
and Online Testing/Interview running concurrently between the next 5 odd months.
b) In-person oaths going to maximum capacity in-person events by September (albeit with Face Masks, etc). Call me old-fashioned, but I personally wanted my citizenship oath to be in-person so at least some members of my family could come and attend as guests, seeing as it is a momentous occasion and the end of a long journey filled with trials and tribulations.
The biggest question is if the IRCC has the actual capacity to run both simultaneously (online and in-person), or if it has to be one or the other.
If it does happen, then the backlog can be significantly reduced
if run efficiently.
Ultimately, it's anyone's guess at this point. There are political aspects to this as well; certain pundits seem quite sure that
Trudeau may call for a snap election in the fall this year, failing which it will be October 2023.
Additionally, it does seem that certain services are getting into gear in some of the sub-orgs as well.
This leads me to believe that there
does seem to be some sort of 'return to the office' plan for the IRCC that we might not be privy to and has likely been in place at least 2 weeks before now, with a possible full ramp-up time by around September end or so. This will vary provincially (based on provincial reopening plans, of which ON seems the most sluggish for now), but the timelines are governed by a certain 'drop-dead' date that is provided federally.