Immigration

We live in a time of rising global uncertainty. It is more important than ever that the Canadian immigration system can respond to arising global crises in an expedient and flexible manner. Alarmingly, this is not the case.

Even before major global refugee crises such as the Afghanistan, and Ukrainian crises, IRCC has been struggling with massive backlogs in all the immigration streams. Delayed immigration application is the most common request for assistance at my office, with some applications delayed for years! Behind the delayed applications are separated families, missed opportunities, and in some cases, immigration is a life-and-death situation for people who need to leave dangerous situations.

To start, IRCC should stop the practice of returning applications when there are minor mistakes and missing information and documents that can be easily provided by applicants. IRCC must also end oppressive immigration policies such as the inhumane cap on parent/grandparents’ sponsorship applications, closed work permits for migrant workers, and the unfair treatment of caregivers and domestic workers.

Lack of resources for IRCC is the major root cause of delayed applications. I will continue to advocate for adequate resources for IRCC to process applications in consistently reasonable timeframes and for immigration policies that are more just.

Hill Times: Feds’ communication over permanent residency plans gave temporary workers ‘false hope,’ says NDP MP Kwan

The federal government’s plans to fast-track permanent residence applications for temporary workers in limbo failed to meet the expectations created by what one opposition MP and immigration experts called “misleading” messaging from the minister.

On May 4, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced that it would fast-track permanent residence applications for up to 33,000 temporary workers already living in Canada as part of a one-time initiative—first announced in the 2025 budget—supporting the government’s efforts to reduce the number of temporary residents to less than five per cent of the population by the end of 2027.

NDP MP Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, B.C.), her party’s immigration critic, told The Hill Times in a May 5 email that the language used in the government’s announcement was “misleading and outright deceptive.”

“What they have done is create confusion and fuel opportunities for those who are angling to exploit temporary foreign workers who have been negatively impacted by the drastic changes to Canada’s immigration policies. It is giving false hope to temporary foreign workers,” she said.

*Click image or link to read the news story - https://www.hilltimes.com/2026/05/07/feds-communication-over-permanent-residency-plans-gave-temporary-workers-false-hope-says-ndp-mp-kwan/503085/

MEDIA RELEASE: NDP Immigration Critic Jenny Kwan’s statement in response to government announcement on accelerating permanent residence for 33,000 workers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NDP Immigration Critic Jenny Kwan’s statement in response to government announcement on accelerating permanent residence for 33,000 workers

The language used in the announcement by the Carney Liberals is misleading and outright deceptive. What they have done is create confusion and fuel opportunities for those who are angling to exploit temporary foreign workers who have been negatively impacted by the drastic changes to Canada's immigration policies. It is giving false hope to temporary foreign workers.

To be clear, this is not a new program. The immigration levels plan is not increasing. Intake for the argi-foods and caregiver programs have been closed since last year. They will not be eligible for PR through this program. All that the Carney Liberals are doing is "accelerating" the processing of 33,000 temporary foreign workers who have been working in the community for 2 or more years and have already applied for PR under the PNP, Atlantic, Rural and Francophone streams. In other words, they are announcing that IRCC will just do their job to processing these applications in a timely fashion - nothing more.

Successive Liberal and Conservative governments have heavily relied on migrant workers to support Canada’s economy. The last time Pierre Poilievre was in government, Conservatives doubled the TFW program —dramatically helping corporate chains treat migrant workers as cheap and disposable.

Then in 2022, Justin Trudeau expanded the use of temporary foreign workers, allowing big businesses to use temporary foreign workers for up to 30 per cent of their workforce, regardless of local unemployment rates. Both the Liberals and Conservatives have turned the TFWP into an ongoing business model that tramples on worker’s rights while suppressing wages in Canada.

Under the constant threat of deportation, workers are often unable to leave their jobs or challenge unfair and unsafe labour practices. They often endure poor and dangerous working conditions, racism, discrimination, wage theft, and are denied fundamental human and labour rights, trapping them in involuntary servitude.

The Liberals say they want to regularize them since 2021, it was even in the former Minister of Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship’s mandate letter. But despite this commitment, not only have the Liberals reneged on their promise, they began proactively blame migrant workers, international students and new comers for their failed housing policy and abruptly changed immigration policies that further negatively impacted these workers.

As a result, many of the temporary foreign workers are now finding themselves falling out of status. This is wrong. They are not responsible for the failures of Canada's housing policy.

The NDP is calling for the Liberals to adopt a broad and comprehensive regularization initiative for the workers that are already in Canada so that they have a clear and accessible pathway to permanent residency. New Democrats strongly believe in the principle that if you are good enough to work and study in Canada, you are good enough to stay.

The NDP is also calling for the Liberals to invest in domestic labour and return to a standard of landed status for the full spectrum of workers.

HANSARD: Table PMB C-274, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act

Globe & Mail: Midwife barred from working in B.C. heads home to Scotland amid health care worker shortage

A Scottish-born midwife, who was ordered to stop working in British Columbia and threatened with deportation, has returned home, highlighting what advocates say is a case of a foreign-trained health care worker getting entangled in bureaucratic errors amid a shortage in the province.

Heather Gilchrist, who worked at The Midwives Collective in Victoria for about six months, left for Glasgow, Scotland, on Saturday after she was unable to get clearance from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to remain in the country. Ms. Gilchrist completed the Internationally Educated Midwives Bridging Program through the University of British Columbia, which helps graduates transition to working in Canada.

She was told her work permit was not approved because she failed to upload an English proficiency test, according to politicians and families who have supported her. Later, immigration officials erroneously told her the UBC program did not lead to a certificate, diploma or degree, the supporters said. Ms. Gilchrist could not be reached Wednesday for comment.

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At the end of last month, two of Ms. Collins’s former parliamentary colleagues, Gord Johns and Jenny Kwan, wrote to Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab about Ms. Gilchrist’s situation.

The letter, dated March 28, detailed how IRCC initially rejected Ms. Gilchrist’s postgraduate work permit because results from an English exam were not uploaded. It said an online portal did not provide a prompt and that Ms. Gilchrist provided a copy of her results to the department but didn’t hear back.

The letter from the NDP MPs also described how the IRCC reviewed Ms. Gilchrist’s file again, but it was refused a second time because the IRCC claimed the UBC program does not lead to a certificate, diploma or degree. Ms. Kwan and Mr. Johns wrote that the program provided confirmation that graduates are eligible for a work permit upon its completion.

Click link to read the full news story - https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/british-columbia/article-midwife-barred-from-working-in-bc-heads-home-to-scotland-amid-health/

OPEN LETTER: Elected Member of European Parliament denied entry to Canada

I’ve issued an open letter to the Ministers of Immigration & Public Safety regarding the unjust denial of entry to MEP Rima Hassan. This last-minute reversal of her eTA raises grave concerns about political neutrality & freedom of expression in Canada.I am calling for an immediate explanation & for the Ministers to facilitate her entry to allow for scheduled democratic exchange

Radio International Canada: A major immigration reform bill is now law in Canada. Some worry it rolls back refugee rights

Ottawa hopes to bring immigration under control but social advocates see legal battles ahead.

A major bill reforming immigration powers is now law in Canada, giving Ottawa powers to mass cancel groups of visas and setting time limits on asylum claims in the name of bringing immigration numbers under control.

But the legislation, passed Thursday, (new window) has also raised concerns from a coalition of civil society groups, including Amnesty International, immigration lawyers and public sector unions, that says it places too much authority in the government's hands and is vowing to fight it.

Bill C-12 attacks the rights of refugees and migrants, Julia Sande, a lawyer specializing in privacy and migrant rights at Amnesty International Canada, said in an interview with CBC News. It makes it harder for people to have their claims for refugee protection fairly assessed, so it puts people at risk of being deported to face persecution and torture.

Click image or link to read the news story - https://ici.radio-canada.ca/rci/en/news/2242744/a-major-immigration-reform-bill-is-now-law-in-canada-some-worry-it-rolls-back-refugee-rights

HANSARD: Debating Bill C-12 Strengthening Canada's Immigration System and Borders Act

MEDIA RELEASE: MP Jenny Kwan Statement on the Auditor General's Report on the International Student Program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MP Jenny Kwan Statement on the Auditor General's Report on the International Student Program

The Auditor General report confirms what many students, communities and post-secondary institutions have been saying for years: under Justin Trudeau and now Mark Carney, the Liberal government has allowed the International Student Program to drift into disorder—failing both the people who come here in good faith and the communities that rely on a fair, well-managed system. Without a transparent structure and process, the politically driven policy lurches have had devastating eﬀects for students and for the post-secondary sector as a whole.

The findings expose a system that has been neglected at the top while ordinary people pay the price. For years, the government allowed bad actors—unscrupulous recruiters and exploitative institutions—to take advantage of international students, many of whom arrive in Canada with hopes of building a better life. Instead of protecting them, the system left them vulnerable to fraud, abuse, overwhelming debt, and uncertainty. Now, rather than fixing those structural problems, the government has lurched to the other extreme.

The rushed cap on study permits is a clear example of policy driven by political pressure rather than principle. After years of inaction, the Liberals abruptly imposed sweeping cuts that have hit smaller provinces and communities the hardest. Atlantic Canada and the Prairies—regions that depend on international students to sustain local economies and public institutions—have seen reductions of 59 percent or more, despite earlier assurances. Even more troubling, the department admits it cannot explain why approval rates fell so far below projections. The government's policies have been driving the chaos and putting post-secondary institutions deep into deficits and job cuts.

This pattern of neglect followed by overcorrection reflects a government reacting to hysterical political criticism from Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives instead of leading with a clear, humane, and evidence-based vision. Canadians deserve better than policies that swing back and forth depending on the political winds, leaving students, workers, communities, and post-secondary institutions caught in the middle.

A fair immigration system must be built on integrity, transparency, and respect for the people it aﬀects. That means cracking down on exploitation, properly resourcing enforcement, and ensuring that international students are treated with dignity—not as revenue streams or political talking points.

Under Mr. Trudeau and now Mr. Carney, we have seen the consequences of a system shaped by sudden politically driven decisions and policy reversals. It is time to build an immigration system that is stable, accountable, and rooted in long-term planning, not short-term political calculation and issues management.

Hill Times: Feds on track with immigration cuts, but policy’s long-term impacts remain unknown, say observers

The federal government’s immigration levels plan might be working successfully according to a recent analysis, but its long-term impact remains unknown, say an opposition MP and observers.

NDP MP Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, B.C.), her party’s immigration critic, told The Hill Times in a March 11 email that a Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) report offers a demographic snapshot of the government’s immigration levels plan, but does not examine the short or long-term impacts of the Liberals’ “drastic” policy changes.

“Immigration policy cannot be judged by population projections alone. We must look at the real consequences these decisions are having on people, families, communities, and the economy,” she said.

Radio-Canada: Where is Canada's immigration minister? Community groups are asking

MPs question Lena Diab's performance at question period and in committee

Criticism is coming not only from opposition parties, but also from Diab's own Liberal colleagues.

Away from the cameras, 10 Liberal MPs spoke to Radio-Canada about her performance. They were granted confidentiality in order to express themselves freely.

Of those, only one defended Diab's job performance. Although several of them emphasized that she is a "good person" in charge of a "difficult" portfolio, nine MPs said they believe that the minister is overwhelmed and are openly questioning her place at the cabinet table.

"It doesn't make sense. In the House of Commons, many MPs hold their breath when she answers questions from the opposition," said one Liberal elected official.

"We're afraid she'll put her foot in her mouth."

New Democrat Jenny Kwan, her party's immigration critic, said that both Carney and Diab are responsible for how the immigration file is handled.

"That responsibility is to be responsive to stakeholders, to take these issues seriously, to examine the policies, to evaluate them, to hear from opposition and the public and look for ways to improve them," she said.

"That is their job."