Canada’s immigration department has quietly revised processing timelines for thousands of temporary visa applicants, with Indian travellers seeing a notable improvement even as other categories show signs of strain. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has updated its processing times for temporary resident applications, including visitor visas, work permits, study permits, and super visas.
The most significant relief is for visitor visa applicants from India. Processing time has dropped to 83 days from 99 days in the previous update issued on January 14, marking a 16-day improvement. In contrast, applications from Nigeria and those submitted from within Canada have experienced slight increases in wait times. While IRCC maintains a service standard of 14 days for visitor visa applications submitted outside Canada, it does not specify a benchmark for applications filed within the country.
Work permit processing remains uneven. Although overall timelines have been relatively stable, several markets have seen slower processing and greater unpredictability. Applicants from Pakistan and the United States are facing longer wait times. For Indian applicants, the work permit processing time currently stands at eight weeks, a marginal improvement from nine weeks in the January update. IRCC targets a processing time of 120 days for work permit applications submitted within Canada, including extensions, and 60 days for those filed outside Canada, except for International Experience Canada permits, which carry a 56-day standard.
Study permits continue to be the most stable category, with only minor fluctuations rather than sharp delays. However, processing times for Indian applicants have increased slightly to four weeks, up from three weeks in the previous update. IRCC’s service standard remains 120 days for applications filed inside Canada and 60 days for those submitted outside the country.
Super visa applications continue to face extended wait times well beyond IRCC’s internal target. For India, processing time has increased to 214 days from 206 days in mid-January. The most dramatic change was observed in applications filed from the United States, where super visa processing times doubled within a two-week period, possibly due to a sudden surge in application volumes. IRCC’s service standard for super visas is 112 days, and these applications can only be submitted from outside Canada.
IRCC processing times are estimates that reflect how long it may take to reach a final decision for applications submitted today. The timeline begins once IRCC receives an application and ends when a decision is made. Actual processing can vary depending on factors such as case complexity, verification requirements, and how quickly applicants respond to additional information requests. These estimates are based on historical performance and current workloads and may change frequently as application volumes fluctuate.
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