In their efforts to deal with the current backlog of immigration applications, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has proposed changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) in the federal budget for 2008. At present, the IRPA states that Citizenship and Immigration Canada must process every application that enters the system.

Processing times have suffered as a result. The proposed budget implementation bill includes a legislative change that gives the immigration minister the authority to limit new applications, should the backlog reach a certain size.

The bill was tabled today in the House of Commons and is scheduled for second reading on March 31. The governing Conservative party will need the support of opposition parties to pass the bill. Even if it does pass, the implications may not be known for some time. However, in theory, the changes could be effective from April 1st, the start of Canada’s fiscal year.

Should the bill pass, it would be gooad news to applicants who are currently in the queue waiting for their visas to be processed. Budget 2008’s $22 million over the next two years to implement this modernization of the immigration system is aimed at reducing wait times and improving service. Canada is working towards the goal of a “just-in-time” immigration system to process skilled immigrant applications quickly so that they can make an immediate contribution to the economy.

Nevertheless, a limit on the number of new immigration applications is cause for concern given Canada’s declining birthrate, aging population, and labour shortages. The Opposition Liberal and New Democratic Parties are critical of the proposal. The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Diane Finley, would not say whether she intends to use the new power to limit new immigration applications, stating that the budget bill will have to pass before any announcements will be made.

Attorney David Cohen and his team at Cohen Immigration Law will continue to follow this news very closely. We will post the latest news on Canadavisa.com as it is released from CIC – please stay tuned.

At present, Canadian Immigration Visa Offices around the world continue to accept new immigration applications in all categories.