Canada To Bring In Ukrainian Refugees On 3 Chartered Flights

Colin Singer
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0
Canada To Bring In Ukrainian Refugees On 3 Chartered Flights

Canada immigration news: Immigration Minister Sean Fraser says three planeloads of Ukrainian refugees are going to be flown to Manitoba, Quebec, and Nova Scotia in May and June under the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET).

“Canada is doing everything it can to support Ukrainians before and after they arrive in Canada,” said Fraser.

“Millions of Ukrainians have been displaced and forced to flee their homes, and these charter flights will help make sure that those who want to come to Canada have the support they need. We’ll continue to work with provinces and territories, settlement organizations and NGOs to make sure Ukrainians feel at home in their new communities.”

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The three chartered flights for people approved under the CUAET will take off from Poland. The first is scheduled to land in Winnipeg on May 23, the second in Montreal on May 29, and the third in Halifax on June 2.

Canadians Can Donate Points To Fund Flights For Ukrainians

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is providing up to 14 nights of accommodations for any of these refugees who do not already have a place to stay in Canada.

Through the Ukraine2Canada Travel Fund at least 10,000 free flights are expected to be made available for refugees fleeing the Russia-Ukraine war.

Canadians can donate their Aeroplan points through the Air Canada Foundation Ukrainian Relief Fund and Miles4Migrants websites to help cover the cost of flights for Ukrainian refugees. Canadians who would like to donate cash can do so through the Travel & Settlement Fund at the Jewish Foundation of Greater Toronto which will distribute these donations to sponsor displaced Ukrainians. 

On May 4, more than 204,000 CUAET applications had been submitted and roughly 91,500 applications had been approved. Ottawa has said Canada will accept an unlimited number of Ukrainian refugees under the CUAET.

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That compares to only 20,010 new permanent residents who came to Canada as refugees in 2021.

The flood of Ukrainians approved under the CUAET this year is already more than 10 times the 9,230 new permanent residents to Canada under refugee programs in 2020 and more than three times higher than the 30,070 new permanent residents under refugee programs in 2019, the last full year before the COVID-19 global pandemic.

The new arrivals to Canada from Ukraine are coming under temporary visas which can last up to three years and are not permanent residents. 

But, once in Canada, those Ukrainian refugees will certainly be able to apply for permanent residency and any work experience they gain or studying they do while in the country will only enhance their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores should they decide to complete Express Entry profiles and apply for permanent residency.

Asian Countries Biggest Sources Of New Canada Permanent Residents

The allegations of racism in Canada’s immigration practices, however, sound hollow because the biggest sources of new permanent residents to Canada are not primarily-Caucasian countries. 

The biggest sources of new permanent residents to Canada are China, India, and the Philippines which together accounted for a third of all new permanent residents to Canada last year. The fourth-biggest source of a new permanent residents to Canada in 2021 was Nigeria.

In March, Canada extended its settlement services with new programs specifically tailored for Ukrainian refugees that are being offered until the end of March next year, including:

  • language training;
  • information about and orientation to life in Canada, such as help with enrolling children in school;
  • information and services to help access the labour market, including mentoring, networking, counselling, skills development and training
  • activities that promote connections with communities;
  • assessments of other needs Ukrainians may have and referrals to appropriate agencies;
  • services targeted to the needs of women, seniors, youth and LGBTQ2+ people, and;
  • other settlement supports are funded through the settlement program.

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine on Feb. 24 and quickly struck the country with a full military onslaught. The early video showed the full extent of the devastation as nothing seemed to be spared the Russian air missile attacks, not even maternity wards and civilians. 

New British Columbia Draw Sees Province Issue At Least 166 Canada Immigration Invitations

Colin Singer
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0
New British Columbia Draw Sees Province Issue At Least 166 Canada Immigration Invitations

Canada immigration news: A new draw through the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program saw the province issue Canada immigration invitations to at least 166 candidates.

The May 10 draw saw invitations issued in four different categories.

Skilled workers and international graduates with a minimum score of 85 points received 126 invitations through the BC PNP Tech stream.

A draw targeted at Healthcare workers saw 20 invitations issued to skilled workers, international graduates and entry-level and semi-skilled workers, also with a minimum score of 62 points.

A further 20 invitations were issued to skilled workers and international graduates scoring at least 62 points in a draw targeting Early Childhood Educators under NOC 4214.

The final invitations to entry-level and semi-skilled workers targeted Health Care Assistants under NOC 3413, with a minimum score of 62. The number of invitations was listed as ‘less than 5’ to protect the privacy of those invited.

Read More Canada Immigration News

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Latest B.C. Immigration Draw

Date

Category

Minimum Score

Invitations Issued

Description

10-May-22

 

 

 

Skilled Worker, International Graduate

85

126

Targeted draw: Tech

Skilled Worker, International Graduate, Entry Level and Semi-Skilled

62

20

Targeted draw: Healthcare

Skilled Worker, International Graduate

62

20

Targeted draw: Childcare: Early childhood educators (NOC 4214)

Entry Level and Semi-Skilled

62

<5

Targeted draw: Healthcare: Health care assistants (NOC 3413)

Video:

 

Record Numbers Of Hong Kongers Immigrating To Canada

Colin Singer
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0
Record Numbers Of Hong Kongers Immigrating To Canada

Canada immigration news: Hong Kongers are immigrating to Canada in record numbers after Ottawa open its arms for residents suffering from China’s anti-democracy crackdown.

The communist superpower has quashed dissent in Hong Kong by closing newspapers, forcing all candidates running for office to take a loyalty test, and tearing down monuments commemorating the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. 

Unions and other independent organizations have been closed. Pro-democracy activists who were unable to flee or hide were arrested under what was described as a draconian national security law. 

Read More Canada Immigration News

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Special Work Permit Program For Hong Kong Graduates Sees Almost 6,000 Applications

In the midst of all the turmoil in Hong Kong, Canadians stepped forward. Ottawa offered two new pathways to immigration for Hong Kongers last year, one for students and the other for workers.

“With young Hong Kongers casting their eyes abroad, we want them to choose Canada,” said then-Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino in a statement last year.

“Our Hong Kong immigration pathway is a historic initiative, intended to attract talented applicants who will drive our economy forward. Skilled Hong Kongers will have a unique opportunity to both develop their careers and help accelerate our recovery,” he said.

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It seems to be working.

Last year, Canada welcomed 2,295 new permanent residents from Hong Kong. 

That’s more than double the 1,045 new permanent residents from Hong Kong in 2020 and 49 per cent more than the 1,540 new permanent residents from Hong Kong in 2019, the last full year before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The latest data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) shows 555 Hong Kongers became new permanent residents of Canada in the first two months of this year.

That puts Canada on track to receive 3,330 new permanent residents from Hong Kong this year.

The number of Hong Kongers coming to live in Canada had been climbing steadily since at least 2015 when 895 of them made the move. The following year and again in 2017, there were 1,360 new permanent residents to Canada from Hong Kong and in 2018 there were 1,525.

Study Permits For Hong Kongers in Canada More Than Doubled Last Year

The anti-democracy crackdowns fueled a strong desire in many Hong Kong residents to leave. 

When Ottawa announced a new pathway to permanent residence for Hong Kong university and college graduates who had completed at least 50 per cent of their program at a Canadian college or university last year, the number of Canadian study permits for Hong Kong residents jumped.

In the last year before the pandemic, Canada issued 2,490 study permits to students from Hong Kong. That nudged up to 2,605 study permits for Hong Kong students the following year. 

At the start of last year, it seemed there was little change.

Then, the new pathway was announced – and the number of study permits issued to Hong Kong residents spiked. By the end of 2021, Canada has issued 6,370 study permits to Hong Kong residents, more than double the number issued in 2019.

The other pathway to permanent residency opened up for Hong Kongers last year was for workers who had at least one year of full-time work experience – or the equivalent of 1,560 hours in part-time work – and who had either a university degree or certificate or a college diploma. 

That education did not have to be completed in Canada or at a Canadian college or university.

Temporary Residents in Canada From Hong Kong Skyrocketing

Since the announcement of that pathway to permanent residence, the number of Hong Kongers working as temporary residents in Canada has skyrocketed.

Last year, Canada issued 5,550 work permits to Hong Kongers through the International Mobility Program (IMP), up 136.2 per cent from the 2,350 such work permits issued in 2020 and an increase of 169.4 per cent from the 2,060 such work permits issued in the last year before the pandemic.

The number of work permits issued through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) also jumped last year. These rose by almost 71.9 per cent, to 275, from 160 the previous year and by 150 per cent compared to the 110 issued in 2019.

That means there were 5,825 temporary workers in Canada from Hong Kong last year, almost three times as many as the 2,170 in the last full year before the pandemic and more than twice as many students from there in Canada as well.

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