IRCC Pauses Home Care Worker Immigration Pilots, No New Applications After March 2026
Canada to Replace Remote Area Border Crossing Permits with Telephone Reporting by 2026
Alberta Exhausts 2025 Provincial Nominee Allocation under Alberta Advantage Immigration Program
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New Brunswick Issues 110 Invitations in December PNP Draws, Targets Francophone Talent
New Brunswick’s first PNP invitation round since November issued 110 invitations on 9 December, primarily to Francophone skilled workers. The province continues to leverage its nomination program to attract bilingual talent, offering a 600-point Express Entry boost for successful applicants.
Canada freezes Start-Up Visa work permit and new SUV applications, plans targeted entrepreneur pilot
IRCC has stopped issuing optional work permits for Start-Up Visa (SUV) applicants and will halt new SUV permanent-residence filings after December 31, 2025, except for those holding 2025 commitment certificates. The department will prioritise in-Canada applicants and promises a new entrepreneur pilot in 2026. The sudden freeze forces start-up founders to seek other work-permit pathways and signals Ottawa’s push to curb temporary-resident growth while modernising business immigration.
IRCC pauses Home Care Worker immigration pilots to clear backlog
Ottawa has suspended new applications to the Home Child-Care Provider and Home Support Worker pilots, citing excessive demand and long processing queues. The pause lets IRCC focus on clearing existing files while keeping overall immigration levels in check, but leaves families scrambling for caregiver alternatives and would-be applicants in limbo.
CBSA reports record 19,000 deportations in 2025 amid stricter visa controls
Year-end CBSA statistics show 18,969 removals in 2025, up from 17,357 in 2024, as Canada tightens visa rules and reduces temporary-resident numbers. The record deportations, concentrated in Quebec and Ontario, reflect Ottawa’s enforcement-first approach and have implications for employers reliant on foreign talent.
Nationwide airport kiosk outage resolved, residual customs delays expected
CBSA has fixed a national outage that disabled primary inspection kiosks at major airports on December 19, but residual customs delays may linger over the weekend. The incident—one of several kiosk failures this year—highlights ongoing vulnerabilities in Canada’s border IT infrastructure.
Air Canada offers free switches from connecting to non-stop flights during holiday rush
Air Canada is letting ticketed passengers travelling 19–24 December switch from connecting itineraries via Toronto or Montréal to non-stop flights at no extra cost, aiming to de-clog hubs and improve punctuality during the peak holiday period.