Canada Cuts Wait Times For Some Economic PR Applicants

Some economic immigration applicants are now seeing shorter estimated processing times for Canadian permanent residence, according to the latest update from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

The new figures, dated June 8, show improvements for applicants under the Atlantic Immigration Program, the Provincial Nominee Program, and Quebec Business Class. The update compares the latest timelines with the previous figures published on May 12.

AIP Sees The Biggest Improvement

The Atlantic Immigration Program recorded the largest drop. Its estimated processing time fell from 38 months to 26 months, a decrease of one full year.

This is the program’s lowest processing estimate since September 2025. The service standard for AIP applications is 11 months, while IRCC currently has about 12,900 applications waiting for assessment in this category.

PNP Timelines Also Fall

Provincial Nominee Program applicants also saw a smaller improvement. Enhanced PNP applications, which go through Express Entry, dropped from seven months to six months.

Base PNP applications, which do not go through Express Entry, fell from 14 months to 13 months. The service standard is six months for enhanced applications and 11 months for base applications.

IRCC’s current inventory includes about 14,000 enhanced PNP applications and 110,200 base PNP applications awaiting assessment.

Quebec Business Class Waits Drop

For Quebec immigration, the Skilled Worker Selection Program stayed unchanged for 11 months. Quebec Business Class applications, however, fell from 78 months to 76 months.

The service standard for PSTQ applications is 11 months. IRCC does not publish a service standard for Quebec Business Class applications. Current inventory numbers show 24,800 PSTQ applications and 3,700 Quebec Business Class applications waiting for review.

Express Entry Remains Stable

Processing times for the main non-PNP Express Entry programs did not change. Canadian Experience Class applications remain at seven months, and Federal Skilled Worker Program applications also remain at seven months.

IRCC says there is not enough data to publish current or previous processing times for the Federal Skilled Trades Program. The service standard for all Express Entry applications is six months.

The inventory includes 60,900 Canadian Experience Class applications and about 52,000 Federal Skilled Worker Program applications.

Some Programs Still Face Long Delays

Applicants under the Start-up Visa and Federal Self-Employed Persons Program still face estimated waits of more than 10 years. Both programs are currently paused.

IRCC lists 46,600 Start-up Visa applications and 8,100 Federal Self-Employed Persons Program applications in its inventory.

Family Sponsorship Waits Increase

Most family sponsorship categories saw processing times rise by one month. Inland spouse or common-law partner applications now take 26 months for those planning to live outside Quebec and 32 months for those planning to live in Quebec.

Outland spouse or partner applications remain at 16 months outside Quebec but rose to 33 months for Quebec.

Parents and Grandparents Program timelines changed in both directions. Applications outside Quebec fell from 33 months to 32 months, while Quebec-bound applications rose from 66 months to 67 months.

Citizenship Timelines Unchanged

Citizenship processing times stayed the same. Citizenship grants remain at 13 months, renunciation of citizenship at seven months, and searches of citizenship records at 17 months.

There are now 326,400 citizenship grant applications in IRCC’s inventory, an increase of 5,300 since May 12.

Processing Times Are Not Guarantees

IRCC processing times are estimates, not guarantees. They show how long applications may take, depending on the type of file, completeness of documents, complexity, and whether officers need more information.

Service standards are different. They show how quickly IRCC aims to process most applications under normal conditions. Processing times are updated more often, while service standards usually change far less frequently.