To compensate for the losses caused by COVID-19 in the immigration sector, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has decided to speed up the application processing of the spousal sponsorship class. In October and December of 2020, Canada has planned to process 6,000 applications of spousal sponsorship each month. It is planned to finalize the 6,000 applications in the respective months of October and December.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has set up all the procedures to implement this plan, and in order to boost up the processing of applications the number of staff has also been increased. This will reduce the time processing and it will boost the overall process.

IRCC will also use the latest technology in the programs to make the applications processing digital. This methodology will allow the IRCC workers to process the applications remotely. Moreover, in the coming weeks, the interviews will also be conducted remotely. These procedures will lead to speeding up the application process and making it possible for Canada to process 6,000 spousal applications in the months of October and December. If it went in the same way, then this will result in 49,000 applications having reviewed decisions.

Due to the panic caused by COVID-19, there was uncertainty and delayed observed by the Canadian citizens and permanent residents who were to sponsor their spouses. By these reforms, the immigration track will continue in this way, and Canadian residents will be able to sponsor their spouses.

The spousal sponsorship applications have been disturbed and affected by COVID-19, and as a result of it, the protests have also been seen in Canada. In the Immigration Levels Plan of 2020-22, Canada had planned to call 70,000 immigrants as the spouses, partners, or children in a total of 341,000 immigrants.

By referring to the Canadian citizens, the minister Marco Mendicino has stated that:

“We understand that the last few months have not been easy for those who are far from their loved ones in these difficult times. This is why we are accelerating the approval of spousal applications as much as possible. Our government will continue to find new ways to keep families together.”