Canada announces two new immigration streams for Hong Kong residents

The Government of Canada has announced two new immigration streams for Hong Kong residents.

“With young Hong Kongers casting their eyes abroad, we want them to choose Canada,” said Canada’s Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino in a statement.

The announcement comes following new initiatives that were unveiled by Mendicino last November to help more Hong Kongers come to Canada. The first stream opened for applications this past February.

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Now, the other two streams are open, offering a path to permanent residence for eligible Hong Kong residents in Canada who are workers or recent graduates. Eligible applicants must have valid temporary resident status and be in Canada when they submit their application and when their permanent residence is granted. They must meet the specified language, education, work and eligibility requirements and are subject to Canada’s regular immigration application, screening processes, and admissibility requirements.

Stream A

Applicants must have completed one of the following educational credentials at a post-secondary designated learning institution in Canada in the last three years, and they must have done at least 50% of their program of study (in person or online) while in Canada:

• Degree (bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or doctorate)
• Diploma from a program that is at least two years in length
• Graduate or post-graduate credential (for a diploma or certificate) from a program that is at least one year in length; in addition, the program must require a post-secondary degree or diploma, which must have been earned no more than five years before starting the graduate or post-graduate program

Stream B

Applicants must have at least one year of full-time work experience (or the part-time equivalent of at least 1,560 hours in total) in Canada in the last three years; they must also have completed one of the following at a post-secondary learning institution in or outside Canada in the last five years:

• Degree (bachelor’s degree, master’s degree or doctorate)
• Diploma from a program that is at least two years in length
• Graduate or post-graduate credential (for a diploma or certificate) from a program that is at least 1 year in length; in addition, the program must require a post-secondary degree or diploma, which must have been earned no more than five years before starting the graduate or post-graduate program.

Last month, Mendicino expanded the education requirements for the new three‑year open work permit to include applicants who have completed, within the last five years, a graduate or post-graduate educational credential (diploma or certificate) for a program that is at least one year in length. The graduate or post-graduate program must include the prerequisite of a post-secondary diploma or degree, which the applicant must have completed no more than five years before starting the graduate or post-graduate program.

The two additional pathways to permanent residence under this public policy are available to eligible Hong Kong residents who hold a valid passport issued by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China or by the United Kingdom to a British National (Overseas) from Hong Kong.

To be granted permanent residence, applicants must intend to live in any Canadian province or territory other than Quebec, the government said.

Hong Kong residents who are living in Quebec can consult the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration to learn more about immigration pathways available to them in that province.