Golden Overseas and Travels

15/06/2022

Canada extends validity of Super Visa, parents & grandparents can stay for 5 years per entry

18/05/2022

What IRCC accepts as proof of funds
For proof, you need official letters from any banks or financial institutions where you’re keeping the money.

According to the IRCC government webpage, letters must:

be printed on the financial institution’s letterhead;
include the financial institution’s contact information (address, telephone number and email address);
include your name;
list outstanding debts such as credit card debts and loans; and
include, for each current bank and investment account, the account numbers, date each account was opened, current balance of each account, and average balance for the past six months.
FSWP and CEC draws to resume July 2022
Canada will once again invite Express Entry candidates who are eligible for the FSWP and the CEC starting in early July, according to Immigration Minister Sean Fraser. Draws have been paused for FSWP candidates since December 2020, and since September 2021 for CEC candidates.

The immigration minister also said processing times for new Express Entry applicants would return to the six-month standard at that time. Processing times across most lines of business could return to normal by the end of 2022.

18/05/2022

Number of family members Funds required in CAD
1 $13,310
2 $16,570
3 $20,371
4 $24,733
5 $28,052
6 $31,638
7 $35,224
Each additional family member $3,586
You have until June 8 to update your profile if you have less than the above amounts shown on your documents. Updating an Express Entry profile does not affect the date and time that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) received your profile. This is important for when IRCC implements the tie-break rule. The candidates who have the minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score only receive invitations if their profile was received on or before a certain date, which IRCC provides in each invitation round.

The funds must be readily available to you both when you apply and if you get a permanent resident visa. When you arrive, you will have to prove to the immigration officer that you can legally access the money.

You must be able to pay the cost of living for your family, even those who are not coming with you. If your spouse is coming, you can count the money you have together in a joint account. If you are accessing it through an account in their name only you must prove you have access to the funds.

You cannot borrow this money from another person, and you cannot use equity on property as proof of settlement funds.

18/05/2022

Express Entry proof of funds increases for 2022
Federal Skilled Worker Program and Federal Skilled Trades Program candidates have until June 8 to update their proof of funds.

Canada has updated the proof of settlement funds requirement for Express Entry candidates.

These changes apply to Express Entry candidates in the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) and the Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP). They do not apply to candidates from these programs who have a valid job offer in Canada, nor Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates.

FSWP and FSTP candidates who do not have a Canadian job offer will need the following amounts to remain eligible for immigration:

12/05/2022

What is Express Entry?
Express Entry is the application management system for Canada’s three most popular immigration programs: the Canadian Experience Class, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, and the Federal Skilled Trades Program. PNP candidates in the Express Entry pool have already qualified for at least one of these programs.

Express Entry uses a points-based system, the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS), to rank candidates’ profiles. The top-scoring candidates receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA), and can then apply for permanent residency.

After the candidate applies, an IRCC officer reviews the application and makes a decision. The officer will ask for biometrics and may set up an interview or request more documents.

If the application is approved, IRCC issues a Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR). Approved permanent residents can then complete the landing process. If they are outside Canada, they can access pre-arrival services to help them with the first steps of settling in Canada.

12/05/2022

Express Entry: Canada invites 545 PNP candidate’s
Canada is holding bi-monthly PNP draws and will resume FSWP and CEC invitations rounds early July. Canada invited 545 Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence on May 11.

All invited candidates had previously received a nomination from a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) and had a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) of at least 753. The minimum score was relatively high because Express Entry candidates get an automatic 600 points added to their score when they receive a provincial nomination. Without the nomination, the lowest-scoring candidates would have had 172 base points.

For this draw, the tie-breaking rule was set for December 15, 2021 at 20:32:57 UTC. Candidates who had the lowest-eligible score were only invited if they had submitted their profiles to the Express Entry pool before this date.

In the previous invitation round, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) invited 829 PNP candidates with scores of at least 772.

28/01/2022

EU countries reached a joint agreement to lift additional restrictions on movement for persons who hold a valid COVID-19 vaccination document that proves they have been vaccinated or recovered from the virus, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

According to Portugal News, a source from the office of the Minister of International Administration told Lusa agency, “as always; the Government will consider possible adjustments to the rules in force in the national legal framework, taking into account the content of this recommendation and also the evolution of the epidemiological situation in Portugal”.

The Council of the EU introduced a new recommendation to ease the travel process amid the COVID-19 situation based on which Coronavirus measures should be applied considering passenger health rather than the epidemiological situation of their country of departure, except for high-risk countries.

The decision means that passengers from other countries will face milder entry rules when travelling to EU countries, provided they have completed their immunization process against the virus.

Everything you need to know about Schengen Area, Visa Types, Requirements, Insurance, Application Form and How to Apply - SchengenVisaInfo.com

16/12/2021

Immigrate to Canada without a job offer: British Columbia PNP
No job offer is required to apply under the International Post-Graduate category of the BC PNP.

Alexandra Miekus
Published on December 11th, 2021 at 08:00am EST
Vancouver from above
If you have a graduate degree in science from an eligible British Columbia institution, you can get Canadian permanent residence without a job offer.

Science grads may be eligible to apply for a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) called the Skills Immigration – International Post-Graduate category.

Under this category, the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) gives priority to immigration candidates who have completed a master’s or doctorate (PhD) degree in the following natural, applied, or health sciences programs:

agriculture;
biological and biomedical sciences;
computer and information sciences and support services;
engineering;
engineering technology;
health professions and related clinical sciences;
mathematics and statistics;
natural resources conservation and research;
physical sciences;
To meet the eligibility for this category, you will need to submit your application to BC PNP within three years of the date shown on your official transcript.

14/10/2021

Express Entry: Canada invites 761 PNP candidates
Canada has now held 19 Express Entry draws just for PNP candidates this year.

Canada invited 761 Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence on September 29.

Invited candidates had previously received nominations under a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), which amounts to an automatic 600 points added to their base Express Entry score. As a result of the award, candidates needed a score of at least 742 in order to be invited.

In the previous PNP draw, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) invited 521 PNP candidates with scores of at least 732. The new draw is larger but also has a higher score cutoff, suggesting there are more high-scoring candidates in the pool under the Provincial Nominee Class.

Get a Free Express Entry Assessment

Record number of ITAs issued
IRCC invited more Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence this year than ever before. In 2020, IRCC issued 107,350 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) through the Express Entry system. So far this year, it has issued more than 108,000 invitations, with three months left to go in the year.

The number of ITAs were driven through the roof on February 13, when IRCC invited every single Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidate in the pool.

14/10/2021

Express Entry Q3 2021: Focus on CEC and PNP candidates
An internal IRCC briefing note suggests the focus this past quarter was to invite as many in-Canada Express Entry candidates as possible.

Express Entry slowed down in the third quarter of 2021. The previous two quarters were both record-breakers, so the smaller number of invitations in Q3 made it the slowest three months of the year.

Throughout July, August, and September, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued 20,981 invitations for Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence. This is the lowest number since Q4 2019 when IRCC invited 18,000 candidates.

That being said, on September 14 the number of Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued in 2021 surpassed the amount for the entire year in 2020. Last year, IRCC issued a total of 107,350 ITAs. As of the last Express Entry draw on September 29, IRCC has issued 109,696 invitations with three months left in the year.

11/08/2021

Canada extending India flight restrictions until September
Transport Canada has confirmed that direct flights between Canada and India will remain on hold until September21

The Canadian government is adding another month of restrictions on flights to and from India.

As part of an ongoing public health measure, the ban on direct flights between Canada and India will continue until September 21, 2021, according to a Transport Canada media release. All direct commercial and private passenger flights are suspended. Only cargo operations, medical transfers, or military flights are allowed to go directly between the two countries.

Discover if You’re Eligible for Canadian Immigration

In order to come to Canada from India amid these restrictions, travellers will need to take an indirect route. Regardless of immigration status, travellers from India will need a pre-arrival test from a third country, taken within 72 hours of their final departure to Canada. This can be any country other than India, which may have its own coronavirus-related measures to follow.