Message from our President

It is hard to believe that 25 years has passed since my father started Solutions Immigration Consulting after 30 years with the federal Immigration department. While so much has changed since 1997, Sol’s core value of commitment to excellence remains the same. We are extremely proud of our team of Immigration Consultants, Caseworkers and Administrators that has grown over the years. I truly look forward to all of the future opportunities to help others achieve their dreams of working, visiting or moving to Canada. None of this would be possible without you – our valued clients. So I’d like to thank you for trusting us to assist you in meeting your immigration goals.

Cari Gombinsky

Online Applications for Permanent Residence

Transitioning to Digital Applications is one step the Canadian government is taking to process Permanent Residence applications more efficiently.  With very few exceptions, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will accept only online applications for most Permanent Residency programs after certain specified dates.* For example, the effective date for mandatory digital family sponsorship applications was September 23, 2022.  Unless an exemption is granted, all paper applications received after these effective dates will not be processed and will be returned to the applicant.

Errors in online applications can cause significant delays or, even worse, can result in an application being refused. For this reason, we highly recommend that you seek professional advice from a licensed immigration consultant to assist you in preparing and submitting your application. Having helped thousands of individuals obtain their permanent residence over the past 25+ years, we look forward to assisting many more individuals and families with their online applications.

*Please click on the Find Out More link for a list of effective dates for each immigration program.

Removing Covid-19 Travel Restrictions

As of October 1, 2022, travelers entering Canada by air, land or marine mode no longer require proof of Covid-19 vaccination. In addition, no pre-entry or arrival tests for Covid are required for entry. Travelers flying into Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal’s International airports can still choose to complete their Advance CBSA Declaration using the ArriveCAN App in order to save processing time upon arrival. While masks on planes and trains are still strongly recommended by the Canadian government, they are not required.

“Canada’s travel measures successfully mitigated the full impact of COVID-19 for travelers and workers in the transportation sector, and helped keep communities safe. Thanks to Canadians who rolled up their sleeves and got vaccinated, we are able to take this great step towards easing measures and returning to normal.”

The Honourable Omar Alghabra
Minister of Transport

Temporary Lifting of Work Restrictions for  International Students

On October 7, 2022, the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, announced a temporary change that will allow post-secondary International Students in Canada to work off campus more than 20 hours per week. The lifting of the 20 hour per week cap will come into effect on November 15, 2022 and will extend through the end of 2023.   

“With the economy growing at a faster rate than employers can hire new workers, Canada needs to look at every option so that we have the skills and workforce needed to fuel our growth. Immigration will be crucial to addressing our labour shortage. By allowing international students to work more while they study, we can help ease pressing needs in many sectors across the country, while providing more opportunities for international students to gain valuable Canadian work experience and continue contributing to our short-term recovery and long-term prosperity.”

 – The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

EXPRESS ENTRY FOR SKILLED WORKERS

In last year’s annual report, The Federal government set a target to welcome 431,645 new Permanent Residents (PRs) to Canada in 2022. This includes a combined 55,900 PRs in the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program and Canadian Experience class. All of these skilled workers are placed in the Express Entry pool and ranked using a points-based system called the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).  The pandemic led to a delay in CRS draws until July of this year, which created a substantial backlog of candidates. This resulted in a very high minimum CRS score of over 500.

The exciting news is that as the backlog is reduced these numbers are trending down, and we are hopeful that the minimum CRS scores will return to Pre-Covid levels. With more Invitations to Apply for Permanent Residence being issued and a lower minimum CRS score, we highly recommend that individuals who qualify for an Express Entry Program create a profile in the Express Entry Pool.  Our team at Solutions would be happy to assist you with the profile and also the Permanent Residence Application if you receive an Invitation to Apply from IRCC.

Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP)

On October 11th, IRCC announced that Canada will accept up to 15,000 applications for sponsorship under the Parents and Grandparents Program. Invitations to apply are being sent to 23,100 interested potential sponsors to ensure that the goal of 15,000 applications is reached.

Due to the number of Interest to Sponsor forms remaining in the pool of submissions from 2020, IRCC will only send Invitations to Apply to randomly selected potential sponsors from that pool rather than opening the program to the general public, repeating the same approach as 2021.

For those of you who will not be able to sponsor your Parents or Grandparents, one option to consider is applying for a Super Visa. This year the government amended the program to allow for holders of the Super Visa to be eligible to stay in Canada for up to 5 years at a time.  If you would like more information on the best option to bring your parents or grandparents to Canada, we would be happy to set up a consultation for you.

Starting or buying an existing business?

If you or someone you know would like to come to Canada with the goal of obtaining Permanent Residence, business immigration programs might be an exciting option for qualified candidates. 

Government Business Programs Include:

•    Self Employed
•    Start-Up Visa
•    Provincial Entrepreneurial Programs
•    Significant Benefit Work Permits
•    Intra-Company Transfers
•    Treaty Investors

If you have business ownership or management experience and are interested in coming to Canada to open or purchase a business, please contact our office for a consultation to determine the program that would best suit you.