Canada’s latest immigration processing update shows shorter wait times for several economic permanent residence streams, especially the Atlantic Immigration Program, while most family sponsorship processing times increased slightly and citizenship timelines remained unchanged.
The comparison is based on Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada processing estimates as of June 8, 2026, compared with the previous update on May 12, 2026.
Economic Permanent Residence
Processing times for economic immigration did not increase in any listed category. Several programs either remained unchanged or became faster.
Atlantic Immigration Program
The Atlantic Immigration Program saw the largest improvement.
Processing time fell by 12 months, reaching its lowest point since September 2025.
- Current processing time, June 8: 26 months
- Previous processing time, May 12: 38 months
- Service standard: 11 months
- Applications in inventory awaiting assessment: 12,900
Provincial Nominee Program
Provincial Nominee Program processing times fell by one month for both enhanced and base applications.
| Application type | June 8 | May 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Through Express Entry, enhanced | 6 months | 7 months |
| Non-Express Entry, base | 13 months | 14 months |
Service standards:
- Enhanced PNP applications: 6 months
- Base PNP applications: 11 months
Applications in inventory awaiting assessment:
- Enhanced: 14,000
- Base: 110,200
Quebec Immigration
Processing times for the Skilled Worker Selection Program remained unchanged, while Quebec Business Class applications became faster by two months.
| Stream | June 8 | May 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Skilled Worker Selection Program | 11 months | 11 months |
| Quebec Business Class | 76 months | 78 months |
Service standards:
- Skilled Worker Selection Program: 11 months
- Quebec Business Class: unpublished
Applications in inventory awaiting assessment:
- Skilled Worker Selection Program: 24,800
- Quebec Business Class: 3,700
Express Entry
Processing times for non-PNP Express Entry applications remained unchanged.
| Application type | June 8 | May 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Experience Class | 7 months | 7 months |
| Federal Skilled Worker Program | 7 months | 7 months |
| Federal Skilled Trades Program | N/A | N/A |
IRCC cited “not enough data” for Federal Skilled Trades Program processing times.
Service standard for all Express Entry applications: 6 months.
Other Economic Programs
Start-up Visa and Federal Self-Employed Persons Program applicants continue to face waits of more than 10 years. Both programs are currently paused.
| Application type | June 8 | May 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Start-up Visa | More than 10 years | More than 10 years |
| Federal Self-Employed Persons Program | More than 10 years | More than 10 years |
IRCC does not publish service standards for these programs.
Applications in inventory awaiting assessment:
- Start-up Visa: 46,600
- Federal Self-Employed Persons Program: 8,100
Family Sponsorship
Most family sponsorship processing times increased by one month. The only decline was for Parents and Grandparents Program applicants planning to reside outside Quebec.
| Application type | June 8 | May 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse or common-law partner living inside Canada, outside Quebec | 26 months | 25 months |
| Spouse or common-law partner living inside Canada, in Quebec | 32 months | 31 months |
| Spouse or common-law partner living outside Canada, outside Quebec | 16 months | 16 months |
| Spouse or common-law partner living outside Canada, in Quebec | 33 months | 32 months |
| Parents and Grandparents Program, outside Quebec | 32 months | 33 months |
| Parents and Grandparents Program, in Quebec | 67 months | 66 months |
The service standard is 12 months for sponsorship of a spouse or common-law partner outside Quebec. Service standards for the other listed family sponsorship categories are unpublished.
Applications in inventory awaiting assessment:
- Partner living in Canada, outside Quebec: 55,200
- Partner living in Canada, in Quebec: 12,100
- Partner living outside Canada, outside Quebec: 51,300
- Partner living outside Canada, in Quebec: 18,600
- Parents and Grandparents, outside Quebec: 43,500
- Parents and Grandparents, in Quebec: 11,000
Citizenship
Processing times for citizenship applications remained unchanged from May 12.
| Application type | June 8 | May 12 |
|---|---|---|
| Citizenship grant | 13 months | 13 months |
| Renunciation of citizenship | 7 months | 7 months |
| Search of citizenship records | 17 months | 17 months |
There are 326,400 citizenship grant applications in IRCC’s inventory, an increase of 5,300 since May 12.
The service standard for citizenship grants is 12 months.
Processing Times Versus Service Standards
IRCC processing times and service standards are different.
Processing times are estimates of how long immigration, temporary residence, or citizenship applications may take. They are not guarantees. Actual timelines can vary depending on application complexity, completeness, and whether IRCC requests more information, documents, or clarification.
IRCC uses two types of processing estimates:
- Historical estimates: based on how long it took to finalize 80% of applications of that type in the past
- Forward-looking estimates: based on current inventory and projected processing capacity
Service standards are internal benchmarks for how quickly IRCC aims to process applications under normal operating conditions. IRCC generally aims to finalize about 80% of applications within the applicable service standard.
Processing times are updated regularly, either weekly or monthly depending on the stream. Service standards are revised much less often, with years typically passing between updates.
The main practical takeaway is that Canada’s latest update is most favorable for AIP, PNP, and Quebec Business Class applicants, while family sponsorship applicants generally face slightly longer waits and citizenship timelines remain flat.
Source article: www.cicnews.com
