There has already been an indication that TR to PR will come back, and that again means if you're a student in Canada, you get a free PR. So sure, it's going to be much easier for them. But the for outsiders, direct PR is always going to get more difficult. master's plus 3 years work exp is pretty much getting to be the norm. Throw in a bit of mediocre french to get a few points and get an edge. Meanwhile, Master's plus 1 year of exp was more than adequate until May 2019. May 2019 scores went to 470, then took until September 2019 to get to 457, then they skipped a draw again, and scores jumped again to 465+ (don't remember the exact number here). The average scores were already on the rise even in 2019. The pandemic just supercharged this. In other words, yes, it was already getting more difficult to immigrate to Canada as an outsider before the pandemic.