Canada- Some IRCC Immigration Services to be disrupted Due to PSAC Strike in Canada

Find below more details released by Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) about the services to be impacted and not affected by the ongoing strike.

Services Not affected

A few of the IRCC services remain available during the labour disruption. You can still

• apply online
• mail applications to IRCC
• use your online accounts
• access some emergency services

Below services offered by non-governmental organizations are still available:

• settlement services from IRCC partner organizations
• health care through the Interim Federal Health Program
• visa application centres outside of Canada

Services partly or fully disrupted

Most IRCC services, i.e. most Canadian government services, are impacted. You should expect delays with the following:

Access to Information Act requests- You can expect longer processing times for Access to Information Act requests.

Citizenship events- Citizenship events will be rescheduled. Some urgent applications may still be processed.

Consular citizenship and passport services - You may face delays with citizenship or passport services outside of Canada. You can still access your passport applications and submitted documents.

Contacting IRCC

• Client Support Centre response times: The IRCC Client Support Centre is undergoing service delays. You can expect longer response times.
• Social media: The IRCC is not able to answer your social media enquiries during the labour disruption.
• IRCC web form response times: You should expect longer response times when using the IRCC web form.

IRCC also provides online self-serve tools for application status tracking that are still available online. This includes

• citizenship grant
• permanent resident family class
• Express Entry
• study permit
• work permit
• temporary resident visa

Extending your stay in Canada- You can apply online to extend your stay in Canada during the Government of Canada labour disruption.

Grants and contributions services – The IRCC will respond to urgent requests from funded recipients, but please expect delays with IRCC response times. Funded recipients will still get their first advance payment of 2023–2024.

Immigration-related appointments - In-person appointments may be rescheduled.

Passport services- Amidst the current labour dispute, the provision of key government services is contingent upon a negotiated agreement between the employer and the labour union. Unfortunately, at now, most domestic passport services have been suspended, leading to substantial delays in the processing of passport applications. It is advised that people expecting to acquire a passport should plan accordingly, considering the current labour disruption.

Processing applications - There will be limited volume during a strike, so delays in processing are expected. This comprises delays to applications currently being prioritized.

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To know more and apply for immigration to Canada this year through most relevant immigration program, you may get in touch with Visas Avenue trusted and experienced Canada migration expert on Toll-Free No. 78-18-000-777 or you can drop us an e-mail at info@visasavenue.com.

- Rajneesh Kumar