This article lists the new official IRCC processing times, which were updated on June 25, 2024, as well as a comparison with previous processing times reported by the IRCC.

IRCC is now reporting prevailing processing times for various citizenship, family sponsorships, and economic immigration on a monthly basis, effective May 1, 2024. Processing times for permanent resident cards, all temporary residence, and business immigration applications are being updated on a weekly basis. These processing timelines are provided to help applicants understand how long it may take for a decision to be made on their application. Furthermore, prospective candidates who wish to make an application in the future can have an understanding of what to expect before doing so.

IRCC Processing Times for Citizenship (updated monthly) and PR Cards (updated weekly)

The number of applications in their inventory, the number of staff members assigned to handle these kinds of applications, and the anticipated number of new applications that IRCC might receive all go into calculating citizenship processing times.

IRCC is now delivering acknowledgement of receipt (AOR) letters and emails to paper and online applications received during the week of June 13, 2024. New permanent resident card and renewals’ processing time is updated on a weekly basis and is based on the time it took IRCC to process 80% of the complete applications in the past.

Family Sponsorship IRCC Processing Times (Updated Monthly)

Family sponsorship processing times are now being updated on a monthly basis, beginning in May 2024 and are predominantly based on:

  • Number of applications in IRCC inventory
  • Number of IRCC staff processing these types of applications
  • Number of applications IRCC is expecting to get

It also includes the time taken for the person being sponsored to give biometrics, the assessment, and the eligibility of the applicant and sponsoring person.

The immigration department is now using two new automation tools to speed up the processing of spousal sponsorship applications. According to the most recent official IRCC data, the Canadian immigration backlog was 897,100. Furthermore, 1,323,100 applications were still being processed in compliance with IRCC service standards. Overall, IRCC had a processing inventory of around 2.2 million applications as of April 30, 2024.

Permanent Residency Economic Class (Updated Monthly and Weekly)

Temporary Residence Processing Times (Updated Weekly)

All the temporary residency applications’ processing times are updated on a weekly basis and are reflective of the time IRCC took to process most of the applications in the past. However, it does not include the time taken for your application to move between a visa application centre (VAC) and the official IRCC office. Furthermore, the time taken to give biometrics is also NOT included in these processing times.

For work permit applications outside Canada, the IRCC is currently prioritizing applications for essential occupations. If you are not applying for a position in an essential occupation, your processing time may be longer than that mentioned above.