Canada will move to virtual citizenship ceremonies sometime in the near future as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most citizenship appointments have been cancelled for over two months due to the global pandemic and social distancing rules. Only emergency citizenship ceremonies for essential workers and those who required it for employment. Many permanent residents [...]

When United States Citizenship Immigration Services (USCIS) reopens on June 4, 2020, interviews and oath ceremonies will be quite different. There have been many policy updates since the COVID-19 pandemic and USCIS’s reopening procedures are in line with recommendations from the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Some of these measures include social distancing and the [...]

On May 18th, USCIS introduced a new interactive voice response (IVR) telephone system for English and Spanish calls to the USCIS Contact Center. The new IVR system personalizes the caller’s experience by giving the caller the ability to: Speak to the system rather than selecting keypad options; Receive links for forms and information by email [...]

Starting on June 4, 2020, USCIS will open some of their domestic field offices and Asylum offices and resume face-to-face, non-emergency services to the public. The offices were temporarily closed to the public for routine visa services, starting on March 18th due to the spread of Coronavirus. We are advised that the Application Support Centers [...]

On May 13, 2020 the OINP issued 703Notifications of Interest (NOIs) to applicants in the Express Entry (EE) pool under the OINP Tech Program of the Human Capitals Priorities Stream (HCP). Targeted Draw OINP Tech draws requirequalifying experience in one of the six targeted tech sector priority occupations. During this draw, Immigration Refugees Citizenship Canada [...]

On May 29th, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will resume premium processing for Nonimmigrant Worker Petitions (Form 1-129) and Immigrant Petitions for Alien Workers (Form I-140). This will occur in staggered phases over the next month. June 1st Effective June 1, 2020, USCIS will accept Premium Processing (Form I-907) applications for Form I-140 petitions. June [...]

On May 29, 2020, President Trump announced that the U.S. will be suspending entry of certain Non-Immigrants from the PRC into the U.S. The ban includes certain Chinese Students and Researchers. This Proclamation will become effective on June 1, 2020 at 12pm EDT. The purpose of the proclamation is to prohibit certain Chinese nationals who [...]

The Federal Express Entry (EE) Draw #150 held on May 28, 2020 by Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Services (IRCC) issued a total of 3515 Invitations to Apply (ITA) to candidates under the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) category. The CEC candidates required a minimum Comprehensive Ranking Score (CRS) of 440. This is the lowest CRS score [...]

On May 24, 2020, the Trump administration has issued a temporary travel ban on foreign nationals from Brazil that went into effect on Tuesday, May 27th, two days earlier than originally planned. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany indicated that this ban is an effort to “help ensure foreign nationals who have been in Brazil do [...]

May 27, 2020 - Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), conducted a targeted Express Entry (EE) draw, issuing that 385 Invitations to Apply (ITA) to candidates holding Provincial Nominations (PNP) with a minimum Comprehensive Ranking Score (CRS) score of 757. IRCC continues to use targeted draws. The selection of PNP candidates aligns with IRCC’s commitment [...]