Program delivery update – February 11, 2016
This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.
Update to the instructions on bridging open work permits
Summary
The purpose of this update is to make editorial corrections and a minor clarification to the section regarding paper applications for permanent residence. Positive eligibility assessment is considered to be made once the status of the Eligibility field in the Global Case Management System is set to “Passed” or an Acknowledgment of Receipt letter or email has been sent to the applicant. In the previous sentence, taken from the program delivery instructions (PDIs), “and” has been replaced by “or”.
As per the program delivery update (PDU) published on December 1, 2015, under Express Entry, applicants who are eligible to apply for a bridging open work permit (BOWP) may now apply immediately after submitting their electronic application for permanent residence (e-APR). They are now only required to submit their Acknowledgment of Receipt letter that is automatically generated in their MyCIC account following the submission of their e-APR, instead of having to wait for a second Acknowledgment of Receipt letter issued by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
However, the application for a BOWP will not be processed until the completeness check has been performed at the Centralized Intake Office. BOWP applications received before the completeness checks have been performed will be held until they are ready to be processed. If an e-APR is found to be incomplete, the applicant is no longer eligible for a BOWP. In these cases, the application for a BOWP will be refused.
Note: The process for issuing BOWPs to applicants who have applied for permanent residence outside of Express Entry (i.e., under the caring for children class, the caring for people with high medical needs class or the provincial nominee class) has not changed.