2 new permanent residence pathways for Hong Kong residents

On Jun. 08, 2021, Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has officially announced two new Hong Kong pathways for permanent residency. 

The new public policy was effective on Jun. 01, and will end on Aug. 31, 2026.

In helping Hong Kong residents’ settlement and immigration in Canada, IRCC Minister Marco Mendicino devised multiple protocols since last November. On Feb. 04, 2021, IRCC has implemented its first policy towards Hong Kong residents. The policy grants up to 3-years of open work permits to post-secondary graduates.

Additional to the previous policies, IRCC’s two new pathways specifically targets Hong Kong graduates and workers in Canada.

Pathway Requirements

To satisfy the criteria in the pathway’s respective streams, the applicant must:

• Obtain a Hong Kong special administrative region (SAR) or British National Overseas (BNO) passport;
• Remain in Canada when submitting the application and receiving results;
• Maintain a valid temporary resident status;
• Intend to live outside of Quebec;
• Demonstrate English/French skills at a minimum of CLB/NCLC 5 level.

Hong Kong Pathway Steam A: International Graduates in Canada

Immediately preceding their submission date, applicants must obtain one of the following 3 credentials in the past three years. Moreover, applicants must accomplish 50% of their study program in Canada.

• Degree (bachelor, master, or doctorate);
• Program lasts a minimum of 2 years;
• Graduate or postgraduate credential from a program that lasts at least 1 year.

Hong Kong Pathway Steam B: Essential Workers in Canada

To qualify for this stream, applicants must have at least 1 year of full-time work experience (or the part-time equivalence of 1,560 hours) in Canada in the last 3 years. However, the following cannot be considered as work hours:

• Jobs taken while assuming full-time student-ship;
• Self-employment;
• Work experiences outside of Canada;
• Paid leaves (e.g. medical, childcare, etc.)
• Long-term vacations outside of Canada
• Unemployed periods

Despite the previous requirements, the applicant must provide one of the following credentials：

• Degree (bachelor, master, or doctorate) issued by a post-secondary designated learning institution (DLI) in Canada;
• Degree issued by an equivalent institution aboard;
• Diploma from an institution unmentioned in the DLI with an educational credential assessment (ECA) from a certification agency approved by IRCC;
• All certifications above must be obtained in 5 years immediately preceding the date of submission.