Things that caught my attention:
- The department plans to process 35,000 to 44,000 of the applications received last week by December 31.
- To support processing capacity, we hired staff to handle applications in Canada and we also reallocated resources in certain lines of business such as the visitor class. (AKA, Visitor Visa officers are being relocated to process other kinds of applications)
- I mentioned earlier that we were getting ready to process between 35,000 and 44,000 applications this year. We will be making sure the various streams are fairly represented, despite the low volume of applications. ---> The 35k-44k applications processed this year won't necessarily be the first 44k but a % of each stream.
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For the applicants whose work permit may have expired after they made the application, will they have implied status or would there be a process of bridging work permits put in place for them?
That's a good question and one that we are looking at.
As per the terms of public policy, people do need to be in status and currently working. However, for those who apply and whose work permit may expire after they've applied, they can certainly reapply, as the honourable member said, to retain that status.
