Minister Kenney Announces Proposed Plan to Expedite Skilled Workers' Transition From Temporary to Permanent Residence

Supreme Court of Canada Français : Cour suprême du Canada (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, Apr 16, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- To meet Canada's labour market needs more quickly, highly-skilled temporary foreign workers could soon transition to permanent residence faster than before, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today.

"Thousands of highly-skilled foreign nationals are working successfully in Canada on a temporary basis," said Minister Kenney. "Expediting their transition to permanent residence would help Canada retain bright and talented people who already have Canadian work experience and the ability to communicate in English or French. In many cases, they already have a job lined up. Such newcomers are set for success."

To make Canada's immigration system more flexible and even more responsive to our labour market needs, Citizenship and Immigration Canada intends to reduce the work experience requirement for eligible temporary foreign workers applying to stay permanently. One major benefit of the change would be to make it easier for skilled tradespersons working in Canada to transition to permanent residence as their work is often project-based and can be seasonal.

Currently, to be eligible to apply, applicants under the temporary foreign worker stream of the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) must have acquired 24 months of full-time work experience within the last 36 months. Under the proposed regulatory changes, the requirement would be reduced to 12 months of experience.

The announcement is the latest in a series Minister Kenney has made about transforming Canada's economic immigration program into a fast and flexible system focused on jobs, growth, and prosperity.

Launched in 2008, the CEC offers a pathway to permanent residence - and eventually Canadian citizenship - for international students and temporary foreign workers with highly-skilled Canadian work experience. The CEC aims to support the economic success of immigrants by selecting those who are most likely to succeed in Canada's labour market.

In 2011, a record number of people were admitted to Canada under the CEC. According to preliminary admissions data, 6,022 immigrants were welcomed under the CEC last year, a significant increase in admissions of more than 50 % from 2010. In 2012, 7,000 permanent residents are expected to be admitted through the CEC - more than ever before.

"The CEC is a key part of our plan for the future of immigration in Canada, and so it is gratifying to see the dramatic growth in the program since its inception," said Minister Kenney.

Further details about the proposed changes to the Canadian Experience Class will be announced later in 2012.

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Entry to Canada to cost wealthy foreigners more

Will and Kate on their first Overseas Royal Visit (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

STEVEN CHASE

OTTAWA— From Saturday's Globe and Mail

The Harper government is shaking up the federal immigrant investor program to ensure the money that wealthy foreigners bring here as a condition of entry is put to work in Canadian companies instead of languishing in bank accounts.

The Conservatives are also expected to at least double the cash that immigrant investors must inject into Canada, to $1.6-million from $800,000. The money is currently given to provincial governments for five years until it’s returned, without interest, to the immigrant.

The government’s game plan is to wring more benefits for Canada from the vast pool of foreign millionaires looking for a safe haven in places such as North America.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney kicked off consultations Friday on reforming the federal immigrant investor program.

“There are literally millions of millionaires around the world who would love to come to Canada and are willing to invest in this country,” he said. “But we’ve been massively under-pricing that program relative to our major competitors like Australia, New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom.”

The exercise is ultimately expected to result in changes requiring newcomers to invest more directly in Canadian businesses – making what Mr. Kenney calls more “durable investments.”

Canada currently admits about 3,000 immigrant investors per year through the federal program – or about 11,000 including their families. Largely from China, Taiwan and South Korea, these newcomers’ primary destinations are Ontario and British Columbia..

The existing program requires investors to make what amounts to an interest-free loan to a provincial or territorial government, ostensibly as investment capital to be used for economic development activities.

But Mr. Kenney complained the cash frequently ends up sitting idle on provincial government balance sheets rather than stimulating the economy.

“Right now, all Canada gets from the investor immigrant program is five years of use of about $750,000,” he said. “That’s the $800,000 contribution minus commissions and fees. ... It basically means that provincial governments that are getting that money are offsetting their debt service costs.”

Mr. Kenney said the Tories will also rewrite the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to allow Ottawa to rapidly create specialized investor programs targeting particular groups.

“If they have a brilliant idea, if they have Canadian investors, for example, who are willing to backstop them to start a business that will create jobs and wealth, we want to get them in the country.”

The immigration minister cited an article from the Wall Street Journal last November that said more than half of China's millionaires are either considering emigrating or have already taken steps to do so. Thirty-seven per cent of those named Canada as a top destination, he remarked.

That’s proof, Mr. Kenney said, that Canada can afford to hike the investment requirements.

Ottawa is currently scrambling to process a backlog of more than 25,000 wealthy foreigners – representing 90,000 people – hoping to gain a Canadian visa under the program.

“There are more people clamouring to buy seats on the plane than there are actually seats available on the plane. And that indicates to us that we can raise the price for the ticket,” the minister said.

Immigration lawyer Richard Kurland predicted changes would see immigrant investor cash funnelled into lending by the Ottawa-backed Business Development Bank or investments made by the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board.

He cautioned against allowing investors to invest directly in Canadian companies, saying in the past this led to firms secretly returning the money to immigrants, minus a fee. “It’s too easy to hoodwink the system.”

Mr. Kurland said Canada should at least triple the required investment. “We’re selling five-dollar pies at fifty cents.”

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