Summary of Major Immigration Changes Coming to Canada

The Minister of Immigration, Marc Miller, recently announced several major reforms to strengthen the system's integrity and efficiency. IMPORTANT: Despite the announcement, these measures have not yet come into effect, and no implementation date has been announced. Therefore, nothing has changed for now. :)

Here are the proposed changes:

1 - No More Extra Points for LMIA Job Offers
Express Entry candidates receive additional points for job offers supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). The Minister proposes to eliminate these extra points. However, we still don’t know when this will happen or who will be affected.

2 - More Power for Immigration Officers
Immigration officers would have greater authority to suspend, alter, or cancel visas and applications in cases of mass fraud or system abuse.

3 - No More “Flagpoling” for Temporary Residents
Temporary residents in Canada seeking visa extensions or status changes will no longer be able to use the “flagpoling” process. We reiterate that, after contacting CBSA, we were informed that flagpoling is still happening as usual. For this measure to take effect, the government is expected to create service offices for this work, relieving border officers.

4 - Faster Processing of Fraudulent Asylum Claims
To address growing concerns over false asylum claims, Canada will adopt a more efficient process, similar to the U.S., to identify and act on fraudulent claims.

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