The Canada government has announced plans to accelerate permanent residence (PR) processing for up to 200,000 foreign nationals already living in the country in 2027, as part of efforts to reduce immigration application backlogs and provide greater certainty for newcomers.
The initiative, announced by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) under the 2027–2029 Immigration Levels Plan, will provide additional admissions spaces for selected workers and humanitarian applicants seeking to transition to permanent residence.
According to the government, the measure will be implemented through two major groups: a workers’ cohort and a humanitarian cohort, with up to 100,000 spaces allocated to each.
The workers’ category will cover eligible foreign workers already living in Canada, alongside their accompanying family members. The government intends to work with provincial and territorial authorities to identify workers who meet regional labour market requirements.
Eligible workers will include those who qualify for permanent residence through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), as well as applicants awaiting decisions under selected federal immigration programmes.
These programmes include the Atlantic Immigration Program, Start-Up Visa Program, Self-Employed Persons Program, Agri-Food Pilot and Home Care Worker programmes.
The humanitarian category, also allocated up to 100,000 spaces, will cover people already in Canada who have been waiting for permanent residence decisions, including applicants under specific family reunification and humanitarian pathways.
Among those expected to benefit from the humanitarian allocation are:
- Spouses, common-law partners and dependent children: Family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents who have already applied for permanent residence and are awaiting final decisions.
- Hong Kong residents: Applicants under Canada’s permanent residence pathways for Hong Kong residents, which closed to new applications on August 31, 2026.
- Ukrainian nationals: Applicants under the Ukraine Family Reunification Pathway, which closed to new applications on October 22, 2024.
- Humanitarian and compassionate applicants: Individuals already in Canada whose applications for permanent residence have received approval in principle. The government said the additional spaces would help it process all remaining applications under the Hong Kong and Ukraine pathways, while also supporting family reunification and fulfilling existing humanitarian commitments.
IRCC also said the initiative would help reduce waiting periods for spouses and partners of Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the aim of bringing processing times closer to 12 months for applicants destined for provinces outside Quebec.
The department clarified that eligible applicants do not need to submit a separate application or take additional steps to be considered under the temporary initiative.
However, the measure does not represent a new immigration pathway for people applying from outside Canada. It is specifically designed for individuals already living in the country who fall within the selected categories.
The 200,000 additional spaces will also be separate from Canada’s regular permanent residence admissions target of 380,000 for 2027.
Under its 2027–2029 Immigration Levels Plan, Canada intends to maintain annual permanent residence admissions at 380,000, while targeting 370,000 new temporary resident arrivals, comprising 220,000 workers and 150,000 international students in 2027.
The initiative forms part of Canada’s broader efforts to stabilise its immigration system, address labour shortages, reduce application backlogs and support people who have already established lives and communities in the country.
