Increase in permanent residence fees effective April 30

Ottawa, April 30, 2020—In order to manage increasing program and service delivery costs, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is increasing permanent residence fees for most economic immigration programs, except caregivers, as of April 30, 2020.

Permanent residence fees have not increased since 2002. As such, they do not reflect the rise in inflation over the last 18 years and the increasing cost of permanent residence operations and processing.

The increase on April 30 will affect applicants to most economic permanent residence immigration programs, except caregivers. The fees will then be automatically adjusted for inflation every 2 years for all permanent residence applications, including the economic, family and humanitarian programs, beginning in 2022.

The Government of Canada supports a cost-effective approach to financing government programs, where most of the costs are borne by those who receive the services and benefit directly from them.

The changes ensure that Canada remains competitive and in line with fees charged by other immigrant-receiving countries. In most cases, Canada’s fees are considerably less expensive than countries with similar migration systems, such as Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.

For more information on the fee increases, please see the regulations, which came into force April 30, 2020.