Canada will initiate a humanitarian pathway for Sudan conflict victims with families in Canada
On February 23, 2024, IRCC announced a new family-oriented humanitarian pathway for Sudanese and non-Sudanese nationals living in Sudan when the conflict began on April 15, 2023. This pathway aims to facilitate their permanent reunion with family in Canada and will start accepting applications on February 27, 2024. Eligibility for this program is extended to children of any age, grandchildren, parents, grandparents, or siblings of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident currently residing in Canada. Canada continues to express profound concern regarding the ongoing conflict in Sudan and remains committed to the welfare of the Sudanese populace.
Canada invited nearly 4,000 IEC candidates
Over the last week, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held new draws in the pools of International Experience Canada (IEC). From February 19 to February 25, Canada invited 3,995 young foreigners to apply for an IEC open work permit. As of February 25, there were 30,373 candidates registered in the pool, waiting for the invitation. In this round, there were 205 ITAs for Australia, 9 ITAs for Austria, 21 ITAs for Belgium, 106 ITAs for Chile, 9 ITAs for Costa Rica, 1 ITA for Croatia, 28 ITAs for the Czech Republic, 5 ITAs for Denmark, 3 ITAs for Estonia, 1,422 ITAs for France, 137 ITAs for Germany, 11 ITAs for Greece, 14 ITAs for Hong Kong, 168 ITAs for Ireland, 76 ITAs for Italy, 204 ITAs for Japan, 641 ITAs for Korea, 5 ITAs for Latvia, 8 ITAs for Lithuania, 1 ITA for Luxembourg, 32 ITAs for the Netherlands, 63 ITAs for New Zealand, 6 ITAs for Norway, 18 ITAs for Poland, 24 ITAs for Portugal, 14 ITAs for Slovakia, 2 ITAs for Slovenia, 84 for Spain, 17 ITAs for Sweden, 11 ITAs for Switzerland, 207 ITAs for Taiwan, and 443 ITAs for the United Kingdom. In 2024, Canada issued 46,016 ITAs under the IEC Program.
Ontario universities seek to increase international student enrolment
Ontario universities are requesting 35% of the capped study permit applications, equating to 82,250 of 235,000 applications from international students. The Council of Ontario Universities (COU) seeks to distribute these allocations based on each university’s proportion of international student enrollment. The COU aims to welcome 28,000 international students next year, maintaining their representation at around 20% of all students. Immigration Minister Marc Miller last month set a limit on study permit applications for 2024, which will reduce the number of study permits by over a third.
MIFI invited over a thousand candidates in the new Arrima draw
On February 23, 2024, the Quebec Ministry of Immigration (MIFI) published the results of the 58th invitation round in Quebec’s online system Arrima. On February 8, 2024, MIFI invited 1,034 candidates to apply for a Quebec Selection Certificate under the Quebec Skilled Worker Program. Candidates invited in this round had a minimum score of 613, at least level 7 oral proficiency in French, and a valid job offer outside the territory of the Montreal Metropolitan Community. Last year, Quebec invited 18,376 candidates through the regular Arrima draws. In 2024, the province invited 2,041 candidates.
