Canada has reached its intake cap of 40,000 international student graduates 25 hours after the launch of the government’s temporary residence (TR) to permanent residence (PR). According to an internal memo’s revelation, the immigration department received a significant number of applications, more than it had planned. Through a CIC News briefing obtained via access information request briefing , Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) confirmed receipt of 7,307 additional applications to the International Graduate stream of the TR to PR pathways.
But, what are TR to PR pathways? TR to PR pathways consist of six special immigration programs developed by the federal government to allow essential workers, French speakers, and international student graduates in Canada to apply for Canadian immigration. However, the one-time programs that were opened on May 6 will likely close on November 5 or upon reaching of the intake caps.
Canada accepted the additional applications for the international graduate program due to a technical error with the electronic system. During the technical hiccup, the counted applications at the time of submission using a live counter revealed the number of applications received on the government’s website. In the process, the system counted some simultaneously submitted applications as one. Simply put, when two applicants accidentally hit ‘Submit’ synchronously, the system counted the coincidences as a single application.
Fortunately, IRCC might also be expecting a less significant percentage of additional application numbers from other populations like people living with disabilities who need to apply for accommodation. Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino has been requested to approve a temporary public policy to process the applications due to the system error.
Without the application process authorization from the immigration minister, the current policy states that the applications must be returned to the applicants together with the registration fee. The briefing also stated that it might be unfair since IRCC sent the respective applicants confirmation that their applications had been received within the intake cap.
