Canada has warned that it is battling a backlog of applications from Hongkongers seeking permanent residency.
Most applications under the Hong Kong Permanent Residence Pathway will be processed after 2027, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
It said the backlog was due to a “high volume of applications and limited admission spaces.”
“As of October 31, 2024, 80% of permanent residence applications were processed within 12 months,” the IRCC website stated on Tuesday. “However, as Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has received a higher volume of applications, a backlog is being created and the processing times for clients for the two pathways to permanent residence will increase with most of them expected to be processed after 2027.”
As of last year, Canada had received over 26,500 applications and approved 10,500. Fewer than 200 were refused, according to IRCC statistics.
Hong Kong Pathways
Canada first introduced its “lifeboat” immigration scheme in February 2021, months after Beijing unilaterally passed national security legislation in Hong Kong. On its website, the IRCC described the security legislation as “undermining rights and freedoms” and said it may lead to “discriminatory or arbitrary interpretation and enforcement.”
The immigration policy recognises “the contributions made by Hong Kong residents to Canada’s economy and social-cultural landscape through human capital, while also promoting democratic values,” the IRCC added.
The scheme provides two additional ways for Hongkongers to gain permanent residence: Stream A, for those who have graduated from a post-secondary institution in Canada in the three years prior to their application, and Stream B, which requires the applicants to have had a year of work experience in Canada.
The pathway scheme has no cap on applications but expires on August 31, 2026.
In August 2023, Canada removed a post-secondary education requirement for Hongkongers applying for permanent residency through Stream B.
A separate programme for Hong Kong graduates to apply for work permits ended last month.
Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.
