Canada Reports 1.5 Million Immigration Files Awaiting Decisions

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada had 1,517,770 applications awaiting finalization as of May 31, 2026, according to newly released federal data.

The inventory included permanent residence, temporary residence and citizenship applications that had not yet received final decisions.

IRCC published the figures on July 21 through a redesigned version of its online application-processing webpage. The department says the values are approximate and rounded to the nearest multiple of five.

Permanent Residence Files Lead Inventory

Permanent residence applications represented the largest category, with 705,315 files awaiting finalization.

IRCC now divides these applications into economic, family and protection categories.

The economic category contained 238,335 applications. Of those, 75 per cent were actively being processed, while 25 per cent were waiting for admission space under Canada’s annual immigration targets.

Economic programs include Express Entry, federal business programs, the Provincial Nominee Program, the Atlantic Immigration Program and rural and Francophone community immigration pilots.

IRCC finalized 111,000 economic applications between January 1 and May 31.

Family immigration accounted for another 159,765 unfinished files. About 60 per cent were being processed, while 40 per cent were waiting for space.

This category includes applications involving spouses, partners, dependent children, parents, grandparents and international adoptions. The department finalized 45,900 family applications during the first five months of 2026.

Protection applications formed the largest permanent residence subcategory, with 307,215 files. IRCC reported that 54 per cent were in processing and 46 per cent were waiting for available space.

The category covers protected persons in Canada, government-assisted refugees, privately sponsored refugees, and humanitarian and compassionate applications. IRCC finalized 42,800 protection files between January and May.

Visitor Visas Dominate Temporary Files

IRCC had 404,070 temporary residence applications awaiting decisions.

Visitor visas accounted for 337,365 of those files. The department finalized 1,073,755 visitor visa applications during the first five months of the year.

The remaining temporary residence inventory included 35,040 work permit applications and 31,665 study permit applications.

IRCC finalized 140,775 work permit files and 74,370 study permit files between January 1 and May 31. Temporary residence figures cover new applications rather than permit extensions.

Citizenship Inventory Exceeds 408,000

Citizenship applications accounted for 408,385 unfinished files.

That total included 326,365 applications for citizenship grants and 82,020 applications for proof-of-citizenship certificates.

IRCC reported finalizing citizenship grants for 131,420 new citizens during the first five months of 2026. It also issued 28,940 proof-of-citizenship certificates.

The redesigned webpage provides broader information about how applications move through the system. However, it no longer displays the overall percentage of files processed within established service standards.