IRCC releases updated processing times for temporary residence applications
On May 20, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) released its latest processing time estimates for newly-submitted applications.
Significant improvements to wait time can be seen across various application types, primarily for submissions from India and Pakistan, while Nigerian and U.S. applicants experienced notable slowdowns.
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Most distinctly, Nigerian-based work permit submissions saw a six-week uptick, contrasted by a more than six-week reduction in super visa wait times for Indian applicants.
In this article, we examine how processing times have changed for various temporary residence applications over the span of two weeks (May 6–May 20).
Work permits
Applicants based in Canada and Pakistan are seeing shorter work permit wait times, led by Pakistan’s two-week reduction after holding steady since April 29. Nigeria, on the other hand, saw a six-week jump.
| Applying from: | Current (May 20) | Previous (May 6) |
|---|---|---|
| Inside Canada | 206 days | 212 days |
| India | 9 weeks | 9 weeks |
| Pakistan | 6 weeks | 8 weeks |
| Nigeria | 12 weeks | 6 weeks |
| United States | 5 weeks | 5 weeks |
| Philippines | 8 weeks | 8 weeks |
Service standard:
- In-Canada submissions (initial and extensions): 120 days
- Outside Canada submissions: 60 days
Study permits
While wait times for Nigeria-based study permit submissions edged upward by one week, Pakistan saw a substantial improvement, with processing time dropping by an entire month.
| Applying from: | Current (May 20) | Previous (May 6) |
|---|---|---|
| Inside Canada | 6 weeks | 6 weeks |
| India | 4 weeks | 4 weeks |
| Pakistan | 7 weeks | 11 weeks |
| Nigeria | 6 weeks | 5 weeks |
| United States | 5 weeks | 5 weeks |
| Philippines | 5 weeks | 5 weeks |
Service standard:
- In-Canada submissions (initial and extensions): 120 days
- Outside Canada submissions: 60 days
Visitor visas
Wait times for visitor visa applications increased modestly across the board, rising by between one and five days, whereas the processing timeline remained consistent for Pakistan-based submissions.
| Applying from: | Current (May 20) | Previous (May 6) |
|---|---|---|
| Inside Canada | 16 days | 11 days |
| India | 28 days | 27 days |
| Pakistan | 50 days | 50 days |
| Nigeria | 48 days | 47 days |
| United States | 25 days | 22 days |
| Philippines | 20 days | 18 days |
Service standard:
- In-Canada submissions: N/A
- Outside Canada submissions: 14 days
Super visas (for parents or grandparents)
Super visa processing times dropped sharply for applicants from India and Pakistan, declining by 43 and 32 days respectively, while submissions from the U.S. saw wait times climb by nearly two weeks.
| Applying from: | Current (May 20) | Previous (May 6) |
|---|---|---|
| India | 117 days | 160 days |
| Pakistan | 75 days | 107 days |
| Nigeria | 37 days | 35 days |
| United States | 115 days | 103 days |
| Philippines | 32 days | 32 days |
Service standard: 112 days
What to know about processing times and service standards
IRCC’s processing times provide applicants with a general idea of how long immigration, temporary residence, and citizenship applications are taking to process. These timelines are dynamic and may increase or decrease frequently based on application demand, staffing levels, and seasonal trends.
Applicants should understand that processing times are estimates—not guarantees—and actual timelines may vary depending on the complexity of a case, whether documents are complete, and if additional information is requested.
Processing estimates come in two forms:
- Historical estimates: based on how long it has typically taken to finalize about 80% of applications within a specific category in the past.
- Forward-looking estimates: based on current application inventories and available processing capacity to project application finalization timelines.
IRCC service standards, meanwhile, are the department’s internal targets for how quickly certain applications should be finalized under normal conditions. Typically, IRCC aims to finalize roughly 80% of submitted applications within the stated service standard.
In some cases, actual processing may move faster than the service standard; in others, it may take longer due to backlogs, operational pressures, or application complexity.
Although processing times are updated frequently—weekly or monthly depending on the application type—service standards are revised much less often, with temporary residence benchmarks last updated in 2018–2019.
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