In March 2020, Canada will begin accepting applications from eligible candidates in the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot. Meat product manufacturing; Greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production, including mushroom production; and Animal production, (excluding aquaculture) are three industries targeted by the pilot. According to IRCC, beginning on January 1 of each year, applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. This pilot will last for 3 years. IRCC also allocated annual quota for each eligible occupation. The eligible occupations include six following NOCs: NOC 6331 Retail butchers and NOC 9462 Industrial butchers (both NOCs combined were allocated 1470 spots), NOC 8252 Farm supervisors and specialized livestock workers (50 spots), NOC 9617 Food processing labourers (730), NOC 8431 General farmworkers (200 spots), and NOC 8611 Harvesting labourers (300 spots).
On February 19, 2020, the New Brunswick government announced the increase of the minimum wage to $11.70 per hour that will be in effect on April 1. The current minimum wage in the province is $11.50 per hour. The official statement of the provincial government noted that the minimum wage rate is indexed to the province’s consumer price index, rounded to the nearest five cents. The consumer price index in New Brunswick grew by 1.7% in 2019. The Atlantic provinces harmonize the date of effect of any minimum wage rate increase to April 1.
On February 19, 2020, British Columbia has officially removed guaranteed invitation scores for the Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS) that serves the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP). This provincial points-based system was launched in 2016. Previously, the province published these scores to demonstrate the minimum points required to be invited to apply. However, since BCPNP regularly publishes scores for each category, candidates can assess their chances based on current scores. The average processing times in the BCPNP is 2-3 months.
On February 19, 2020, Canada conducted the largest invitation round since the launch of the system in 2015. In round #137, which was the fourth round in 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued 4,500 Invitations to Apply (ITA) for a permanent residence. Despite issuing a 1,000 ITAs more than in round #136, the Comprehensive Ranking System cut-off score decreased for only two points and was 470. The tie-breaking rule for this round was January 13, 2020 at 10:52:52 UTC. As of February 14, 2020, there are 144,042 profiles in the pool of candidates, 1,551 more compared to the previous round. The number of candidates with the CRS score in the range 451-600 is 21,116. In total, Canada issued 14,800 ITAs in 2020.
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) updated the processing delays of the Labour Market Impact Assessment applications (LMIA). As of January 2020, average LMIA processing times were:
- Global Talent Stream – 13 business days
- Agricultural stream – 20 business days
- Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program – 11 business days
- Permanent residence stream – 38 business days
- In-home caregivers – 35 business days
- High-wage stream – 49 business days
- Low-wage stream – 64 business days
In addition, the government is preparing to start LMIA Online – Pilot with Job Bank. No further information is available at the moment. Nevertheless, switching to online service may enhance the obtaining of LMIAs.
On February 4, 2020, Alberta updated the inventory of the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP). So far, the province did not issue new certificates of nomination. However, it continues assessing the applications. The inventory of the AINP consists of 1,950 applications waiting for the eligibility assessment. In the Alberta Opportunity Stream, the approximate number of applications waiting for assessment is 1,700. Those applications were received before September 5, 2019. In addition, the province conducted new draws in the Alberta Express Entry Stream. On January 22, 2020, Alberta invited 201 candidates and the lowest score of the round was 350 points. On January 29, 2020, AINP issued another 150 invitations to candidates whose score 300 points and higher. In total, Alberta invited 501 candidates in the Alberta Express Entry Stream in 2020.
