IRCC Updates Processing Times: Study Permit Delays Grow as Visitor Visa Waits Decline
Sreejith
🚨 Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has updated processing times for temporary resident applications, showing improvements in visitor visas while study permit processing has increased sharply in some countries.
Recent updates comparing February 17 and February 24 estimates show relatively stable work permit timelines, modest visitor visa improvements, and a significant jump in study permit processing times for Pakistan-based applications.
Work Permit Processing Times
Work permit timelines remained mostly stable, with minor increases for applications submitted from Canada and Nigeria.
Key updates include:
- Canada: 256 days (up from 246 days)
- India: 8 weeks (no change)
- Pakistan: 30 weeks (no change)
- Nigeria: 11 weeks (up from 9 weeks)
- United States: 10 weeks (no change)
IRCC service standards aim to process:
- In-Canada work permit applications within 120 days
- Overseas work permits within 60 days
- International Experience Canada permits within 56 days
Study Permit Processing Times
Study permit timelines showed the most significant changes, particularly for applications submitted from Pakistan.
Key updates include:
- Canada: 9 weeks (up from 8 weeks)
- India: 4 weeks (no change)
- Pakistan: 15 weeks (up from 7 weeks)
- Nigeria: 8 weeks (no change)
- United States: 6 weeks (down from 7 weeks)
Applications from Pakistan saw the largest increase, with wait times more than doubling within a week.
IRCC service standards target:
- In-Canada study permit processing within 120 days
- Overseas study permits within 60 days
Visitor Visa Processing Times Improve
Visitor visa processing times showed modest improvements across most countries.
Key updates include:
- Canada: 19 days (down from 21 days)
- India: 71 days (down from 78 days)
- Pakistan: 53 days (down from 58 days)
- Nigeria: 56 days (up slightly from 51 days)
- United States: 23 days (down from 25 days)
The service standard for visitor visas submitted outside Canada remains 14 days, although many applications continue to exceed this target.
Super Visa Processing Times
Super visa processing times remained mostly stable, with some improvement for Pakistan-based submissions.
Key updates include:
- India: 210 days (down from 213 days)
- Pakistan: 136 days (up from 124 days)
- Nigeria: 47 days (up from 46 days)
- United States: 205 days (no change)
The service standard for super visas is 112 days, and applications must be submitted from outside Canada.
Understanding Processing Times
IRCC processing times represent estimates for new applications submitted today and indicate how long it may take to receive a final decision.
Processing begins once an application is received and ends when a decision is made.
These timelines are based on historical processing data, reflecting how long it took IRCC to finalize approximately 80% of applications.
Service standards, on the other hand, represent IRCC’s internal targets for processing most applications within a set timeframe, recognizing that more complex cases may require additional time.