Total complete applications received since July 1, 2011

On January 31, 2012, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) and Statistics Canada updated the 2006 edition of the National Occupation Classification (NOC) with a 2011 version. The changes affect Federal Skilled Worker applications in certain occupations.

For more information, see the full notice.

Between July 1, 2011, and June 30, 2012, a maximum of 10,000 complete Federal Skilled Worker applications will be considered for processing. Within the 10,000 cap, a maximum of 500 Federal Skilled Worker applications per eligible occupation will be considered for processing within this same time frame.
Starting November 5, 2011, CIC will accept a total of 1,000 applications from international students who have completed at least two years of study towards a PhD and or who graduated from a Canadian PhD program in the 12 months before the date their application is received byCIC. Find out more about eligibility for this category or see the number of applications received to date on this site.
These limits do not apply to applications with an offer of arranged employment (job offer).

Note: Due to the high volume of applications we receive, the CIO cannot review each application for completeness on the same day it arrives at the office. The numbers on this page are updated at least once a week, but these figures are meant as a guide only. There is no guarantee that an application sent in now will fall within the cap by the time it reaches the CIO.

*The number of complete Federal Skilled Worker applications received is approximate.
**Once the cap has been reached, we can only accept applications for this occupation from people with an existing offer of arranged employment.

Eligible Occupation (by National Occupational Classification [NOC] code)	Number of Complete Applications Received*
0631 – Restaurant and Food Service Managers	500 (Cap reached)**
0811 – Primary Production Managers (Except Agriculture)	138
1122 – Professional Occupations in Business Services to Management	500 (Cap reached)**
1233 – Insurance Adjusters and Claims Examiners	439
2121 – Biologists and Related Scientists	500 (Cap reached)**
2151 – Architects	500 (Cap reached)**
3111 – Specialist Physicians	500 (Cap reached)**
3112 – General Practitioners and Family Physicians	500 (Cap reached)**
3113 – Dentists	500 (Cap reached)**
3131 – Pharmacists	500 (Cap reached)**
3142 – Physiotherapists	273
3152 – Registered Nurses	500 (Cap reached)**
3215 – Medical Radiation Technologists	70
3222 – Dental Hygienists and Dental Therapists	41
3233 – Licensed Practical Nurses	500 (Cap reached)**
4151 – Psychologists	152
4152 – Social Workers	500 (Cap reached)**
6241 – Chefs	144
6242 – Cooks	341
7215 – Contractors and Supervisors, Carpentry Trades	157
7216 – Contractors and Supervisors, Mechanic Trades	404
7241 – Electricians (Except Industrial and Power System)	189
7242 – Industrial Electricians	199
7251 – Plumbers	53
7265 – Welders and Related Machine Operators	54
7312 – Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics	61
7371 – Crane Operators	13
7372 – Drillers and Blasters – Surface Mining, Quarrying and Construction	12
8222 – Supervisors, Oil and Gas Drilling and Service	147

Applications received from PhDapplicants:

Applications received toward the overall cap: 197 of 1,000

Toward a better refugee-determination system

Canada has a long-standing and well-deserved reputation as a place of refuge for people fleeing persecution in their homelands.

At the same time, however, it has also gained repute as an easy mark for the unscrupulous who fraudulently use our generous refugeedetermination system as a way to get into Canada without submitting to standard immigration requirements and procedures.

Last week the federal government introduced what it calls the Protecting Canada's Immigration Act, legislation intended to make it more difficult for what Immigration Minister Jason Kenney calls "bogus" refugee claimants to game the system, and to streamline the existing cumbersome screening process.

The bill aims to dissuade refugee claimants coming from what the government classifies as "safe" countries - notably European Union member states, from which there has lately been an uptick in refugee claimants. Safe countries, by the government's definition, are ones with democratic political systems, solid human-rights records and independent judiciaries.

The processing of refugee claimants from countries designated as safe would be fasttracked - completed within 45 days as opposed to the 1,000 days it currently takes. Failed claimants from these countries would be immediately deported without recourse to appeal.

The legislation also proposes harsher penalties for those who engage in human smuggling, as well as for asylum-seekers who pay smuggling syndicates to get them to Canadian shores. And it allows for the collection of biometric data - fingerprints and digital photos - of people entering Canada on a visitor visa, a work permit or a study visa.

Both of these measures are advisable. Human smuggling is an odious enterprise that should be severely punished. And while the smugglers' clients are perhaps desperate people in many cases, they are nevertheless participants in an illegal activity that should be strongly discouraged.

The collection of biometric information is a sensible security precaution that will be a valuable tool in preventing people from slipping into the country with false identities.

However, refugee advocates have a point in their complaints that the legislation is too harsh in the removal of appeal provisions for persons from designated safe countries seeking refugee status.

The measure was invoked in large part due to a flood of applicants of Roma origin from eastern European countries, notably Hungary. And while Hungary and others, such as Romania, Bulgaria and the Czech and Slovak republics, would qualify as safe under the proposed criteria, all of them have a history of discrimination against and persecution of their Roma populations.

As such, closer examination of their cases than the legislation allows might show some of these to be legitimate claimants.

Also, the new bill would eliminate a provision in previous refugee legislation that called for a committee of experts to decide which countries should be designated as safe. This should be restored. It is preferable to leaving it up to the government - any government - to decide, a process in which humanitarian considerations could be overridden by political considerations.

Shielding the refugee system from false claimants is not only in the best interest of Canadians, on whom they are a financial burden, but also of legitimate applicants who stand to lose out if bogus claimants cast the system as a whole into disrepute.

Establishing a system that is both efficient and fairly balanced is a daunting challenge, but it is one that should be tackled realistically and at the same time in a spirit of generosity that should stand as a Canadian hallmark.

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Toward+better+refugee+determination+system/6182455/story.html#ixzz1n4SsMiCJ