Weekly Digest | November 9, 2025

Key Highlights:

Recent Judicial Reviews
Immigration Levels Plan 2026–2028
Express Entry: 2024 Year-End Report
Medical Exams: IME Country List Update
Study Permits: Faster Processing for PhD Students
National Francophone Immigration Week
Open Work Permits: PNP Expression of Interest Pools
Restoration of Status
Provincial/Territorial Attestation Letters
Document Cancellations
Agri-Food Pilot: Employment Requirement
International Students: Off-Campus Work
Permanent Residence: Forms Page Removed
CBSA Enforcement: British Columbia Extortion Task Force
Northwest Territories Nominee Program: Third 2025 Intake
Québec: Immigration Plan 2026
Latest PNP Draws
Important Upcoming Dates

Recent Case Law

Canadian Experience Class – Express Entry – Akhter v. Canada, 2025 FC 1800: PR refusal under s. 11.2 upheld because the job offer did not guarantee at least one year of full-time employment after PR, resulting in loss of 50 CRS points. Officer was not required to accept a revised offer. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

Family Class Sponsorship – Ali v. Canada, 2025 FC 1747: Sponsorship refusal upheld where the sponsored adult son submitted a digitally altered police certificate. The IAD found the misrepresentation remained unresolved and the H&C assessment was within discretion. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

Temporary Resident Visa – Asgari v. Canada, 2025 FC 1790: TRV refusal set aside. The officer relied on weak ties and unexplained deposits but did not address evidence of ongoing employment, financial accounts, host support, and travel history. Reasons did not reflect the record. Judicial review granted. Read more

Express Entry – Brar v. Canada, 2025 FC 1788: PR refusal upheld where the work experience evidence did not show performance of the lead statement and substantial duties of the claimed TEER occupation. No duty to invite corrections. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

Humanitarian and Compassionate – Chang v. Canada, 2025 FC 1799: The officer’s best interests of the child analysis did not meaningfully weigh the applicant’s caregiving role, daughter’s epilepsy and glioma diagnosis, and children’s statements. Judicial review granted. Read more

Spousal Open Work Permit – Salkhan v. Canada, 2025 FC 1746: Spousal open work permit refusal upheld where proof of the spouse’s qualifying employment in Canada was not provided. Employment letters and pay records were not in the application record, and bank deposits lacked identifiable employer source. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

Start-Up Visa – Shabanpourfard et al. v. Canada, 2025 FC 1786: Refusal upheld where the officer found the essential founder’s primary motivation was immigration rather than advancing the venture, triggering refusal for all founders under IRPR 98.08(2). The Court held that inconsistent progress evidence and deficiencies in website and operational documentation, were justified and sufficiently explained. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

Canadian Experience Class – Singh v. Canada, 2025 FC 1767: CEC PR refusal upheld due to inconsistencies in wage, pay frequency, statutory holiday pay, and pay continuity. Procedural Fairness Letter issued. The applicant and employer provided affidavits attributing the discrepancies to administrative errors. Officer reasonably found the employment not genuine. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

LMIA Work Permit – Singh v. Canada, 2025 FC 1768: LMIA-based truck driver work permit refusal upheld under IRPR 200(1)(b) where limited financial establishment, temporary ties in Oman, and no proof of funding for mandatory MELT training led to concerns the applicant would not leave Canada. No fairness breach. Judicial review dismissed. Read more

Temporary Resident Visa – Zhang v. Canada, 2025 FC 1785: TRV cancellation and misrepresentation finding set aside. The officer reopened a concluded file and issued a PFL only to a former agent, denying the applicants a fair chance to respond. Judicial review granted. Read more

Temporary Resident Visa – Zubair v. Canada, 2025 FC 1772: TRV refusal and misrepresentation finding set aside. The officer did not assess whether the altered employment letter conveyed false information, despite employer confirmation and payroll support. Work permit refusal also unreasonable. Judicial review granted. Read more

Immigration Levels Plan 2026–2028

Immigration Levels Plan 2026–2028 – November 6, 2025: IRCC released the 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan, reducing new temporary resident arrivals and stabilizing permanent resident admissions at 380,000 for 2026. Economic immigration remains the priority at 63% of admissions. Two one-time initiatives (2026–2027) will grant PR to protected persons in Canada and accelerate PR for select skilled temporary workers in in-demand sectors, with emphasis on rural regions. Read more
Supplementary Information: Read more
2025 consultations on immigration levels – final report: Read more
2025 Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration: Read more
Budget 2025: Read more

IRCC News Updates

Express Entry – 2024 Year-End Report – November 3, 2025: IRCC issued 98,903 ITAs in 2024, with 43% issued through category-based selection (French-language, healthcare, STEM, trades, transport, agriculture). CEC remained the largest share of invitations, followed by PNP and FSWP. Processing times for most streams returned to the 6-month standard. Read more

Medical Exams – IME Country List Update – November 3, 2025: IRCC updated the list of countries requiring an IME for temporary residents. Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay, and Venezuela now require an IME; Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iraq, Latvia, Lithuania, and Taiwan no longer require one. Changes apply only to applications submitted on or after November 3, 2025. Read more

Study Permits – Faster Processing for PhD Students – November 6, 2025: Doctoral students applying online from outside Canada, and their accompanying family members applying together, may receive accelerated processing if the application is complete and biometrics are provided within two weeks. Read more and Read More

National Francophone Immigration Week – November 3, 2025: IRCC marked the start of the 13th annual National Francophone Immigration Week, highlighting contributions of Francophone newcomers and affirming progress toward the 2025 target of 8.5% French-speaking permanent residents outside Quebec. Read more

Open Work Permits – PNP Expression of Interest Pools – November 7, 2025: IRCC extended the public policy allowing open work permits for foreign nationals in a PNP expression of interest pool to December 31, 2025. Eligible applicants must be employed in the province/territory and hold a provincial support letter. Alberta has withdrawn from the policy, but workers issued a support letter on or before December 31, 2024 remain eligible. Permits may be issued for up to 2 years. Read more

Restoration of Status – Clarified Instructions – November 7, 2025: IRCC updated guidance on restoration of temporary resident status under R306 and R182 to clarify wording and interpretation in processing. Read more

Study Permits – Provincial/Territorial Attestation Letters – November 4, 2025: IRCC clarified guidance on PAL/TAL issuance for the 2025 allocation. Updates address PAL/TAL re-use rules, joint programs, when to close applications not accepted into processing, sample PAL/TAL formats for 2025, cases requiring an Organization/Entity ID, and procedures if the study permit cap is reached. Read more

Temporary Residents – Individual Document Cancellation – November 4, 2025: IRCC issued new instructions reflecting authorities in force since January 31, 2025 allowing case-by-case cancellation of temporary resident documents, including eTAs, TRVs, work permits, and study permits. Situations involving serious inadmissibility or exceptional circumstances will be covered in a future update. Read more

Agri-Food Pilot – Employment Requirement Clarification – November 5, 2025: IRCC updated internal guidance for assessing AFP applications to align the employment requirement with the client-facing instructions, correcting inconsistencies in how eligibility is evaluated under the pilot. Read more

International Students – Off-Campus Work Definition – November 5, 2025: IRCC updated the definition of off-campus work for international students to reflect the regulatory increase in allowable work hours, from 20 hours per week to 24 hours per week during academic sessions. Read more

Permanent Residence – Forms Page Removed – November 5, 2025: IRCC deleted the Forms related to permanent residence instruction page. Users are now directed to the Find an IRCC application package or form page for current PR forms and document versions. Read more

CBSA News Updates

CBSA Enforcement – British Columbia Extortion Task Force – November 7, 2025: CBSA, working with the B.C. Extortion Task Force, has opened immigration investigations into 78 foreign nationals linked to extortion activity in the Lower Mainland and has removed 3 individuals from Canada to date. Read more

Provincial Government News

Northwest Territories Nominee Program – Third 2025 Intake – November 10, 2025: NWT will reopen PNP intake on November 10, 2025, after the federal government restored its full 300-nomination allocation for 2025. Updated guidelines remove employer application limits, remove work permit expiry restrictions, and reinstate the one-year work experience requirement from prior years. Intake will close November 24, 2025, with up to 103 applications processed in order of urgency and date received. Read more

Québec – Immigration Plan 2026 and 2026–2029 Orientations – November 6, 2025: Québec tabled its immigration plan for 2026 and long-term orientations for 2026–2029. The plan sets permanent admissions at 45,000 and anticipates 84,900–124,200 temporary admissions in 2026. The PSTQ becomes the sole skilled worker selection program; the Québec Experience Program and the three permanent pilot programs will end. The suspension on collective sponsorship abroad is extended to 2029, and certain LMIA applications in Montréal and Laval remain suspended. A French language requirement (level 4 oral) will apply to TFWs seeking a CAQ after three years in Québec, with enforcement beginning December 17, 2028. Read more

Latest Draws

Important Upcoming Dates

November 19, 2025: Temporary special measures for Haitian nationals and family members in Canada expire. Read more

November 30, 2025: Special IRCC wildfire relief measures expire, ending fee waivers and restoration flexibility for affected residents and foreign emergency workers. Read more and Read more

December 1, 2025: Temporary in-Canada work permit printing process for IEC participants ends. Read more

December 31, 2025: Ministerial Instructions setting the 2025 study permit intake cap and attestation letter requirements expire. Read more

December 31, 2025: Yukon’s temporary measure for foreign nationals to obtain support letters for Yukon-specific work permits expires. Read more

December 31, 2025: Public policy allowing open work permits for foreign workers with provincial or territorial support letters (including Manitoba PNP) expires. Read more and Read more

December 31, 2025: Temporary pause on private refugee sponsorship applications from Groups of Five and Community Sponsors under the PSR Program ends. Read more

December 31, 2025: Temporary public policy allowing Groups of Five and Community Sponsors to support Sudanese refugees without an RSD document expires. Read more