Visitor visa processing now at 71 days; most other timelines unchanged
As Prime Minister Mark Carney begins his visit to India aimed at strengthening bilateral ties, Canada’s immigration department has released updated processing timelines for temporary and permanent resident applications.
According to the February update from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), visitor visa processing times for Indian applicants have decreased slightly — from 78 days to 71 days.
For most other categories, timelines remain largely unchanged for applicants from India.
Work permits are currently taking approximately eight weeks to process, while study permits are being processed in about four weeks. Super visas — which allow parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens and permanent residents to make multiple entries over a period of up to 10 years — saw a modest improvement, with processing times declining from 213 days to 210 days.
IRCC noted that small reductions in visitor visa timelines were observed across several countries. However, study permit processing times increased for Pakistan-based submissions, while U.S. applicants experienced slightly shorter decision times.
Beyond temporary visas, citizenship applications are now taking an estimated 14 months to complete — one month longer than in January. The department reported that approximately 313,000 people are currently awaiting a citizenship grant.
Permanent residency applications are being processed in about 61 days, one of the more streamlined areas within IRCC operations. Renewals of permanent resident (PR) cards are taking roughly 29 days.
Family sponsorship applications present a more varied picture. Spousal or common-law partner sponsorships from outside Canada in non-Quebec provinces now require about 15 months for processing, up by one month. Nearly 47,300 individuals are awaiting decisions in that stream. In Quebec, the processing time is significantly longer at 35 months.
Economic immigration streams have also seen some adjustments. The Canadian Experience Class now carries a seven-month processing time, an increase of one month, with over 34,000 applicants in the queue. The Federal Skilled Worker Program remains steady at seven months.
Canada is home to nearly 2.88 million people of Indian origin, including Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), making it one of the top global destinations for the Indian diaspora.
Carney’s visit to Mumbai and New Delhi is expected to focus on trade, energy, education and mineral security, as both countries seek to improve economic cooperation after a period of diplomatic tension.
For Indian travellers and prospective immigrants, the updated IRCC timelines provide clearer expectations as Canada continues to manage demand across multiple immigration streams.