Key Takeaways
• LMIA processing times soared from 58 to 165 days between September 2023 and March 2025, impacting work permit renewals.
• India-origin migrants face increased visa rejections: 50% of temporary residency applications denied in 2024, up from 35% in 2023.
• Canada imposed a 5% cap on temporary residents and cut permanent resident targets by 105,000 for 2025-2027.
Canada is witnessing a major change in the way it handles immigration, which has left thousands of Indian migrants and other foreign workers in a tough spot. Recently, many of these workers have lost their legal work status. This has created a wave of problems for people who first came to Canada legally and had built their lives there. For many families, the very things that drew them to Canada—job opportunities, a safe community, and the chance to start fresh—are now threatened by changing rules and delays that are hard to understand.
Long Delays in Document Processing
At the heart of this issue is the sharp increase in how long it takes the government to handle important paperwork, especially Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs). An LMIA is a document that employers in Canada must get before they can hire most foreign workers. It helps show that hiring a foreign worker will not hurt job chances for Canadians. When LMIA delays grow, workers cannot renew their work permits on time. As a result, they suddenly lose the right to work, and many must stop working even though they have already been living and paying taxes in Canada.
Between September 2023 and March 2025, the time to process an LMIA went up from an average of 58 days to 165 business days. This is almost three times longer than before. Because of this, many migrants are left waiting in Canada, jobless and without access to public services. They lose their health coverage and may struggle to pay bills or rent. For workers whose permits expire while waiting for LMIA approval, life becomes more uncertain by the day.
As reported by VisaVerge.com, these delays are not just a paperwork problem—they touch every part of a person’s life. Devi Acharya’s story is a strong example. She moved from India to British Columbia in October 2022 with her husband and son. She worked in a hotel as a housekeeper and applied for a new LMIA in September. Months later, she got no reply, and her work permit expired. Then, in March 2025, she had a miscarriage but could not seek medical care because she had lost her health coverage. She said she feared the medical bills because, without a valid permit, she was not able to get help from the public health system.
Why Is Canada Tightening Its Policies?
You might wonder why these changes are happening now. There are several reasons:
1. Growing Political Pressure: Over the last decade, the number of temporary residents in Canada increased from around 300,000 to over 3 million. This huge rise led to growing public concern about immigration levels. Many people feel that too many newcomers make it harder for Canadians to find jobs or housing. Canadian political parties are now under pressure to respond to these worries and have started making stricter immigration rules.
2. Reduced Goals for Permanent Residents: Canada’s new immigration goals reflect this change in attitude. The government now plans to let in 395,000 permanent residents in 2025. This is 105,000 fewer people than earlier plans. Canada is also stretching these lower targets over a three-year period, from 2025 to 2027.
3. Tighter Permit Rules: The new policies also make it harder to get certain types of work permits. For example, spousal open work permits, which let spouses of international students or foreign workers take any job, are now only available for people in certain study programs or who work in high-demand jobs.
4. First-Ever Limits on Temporary Residents: For the first time, Canada’s immigration plan includes caps on temporary residents, such as foreign workers and students. The goal is to limit these residents to 5% of Canada’s total population over the next three years.
How Indian Migrants Are Getting Hit Hardest
Indian migrants are among those most affected by these changes. They make up a big group of Canada’s temporary workers and international students. Many came with the intention to stay, work, and perhaps settle permanently. Changes in rules now put their futures on hold.
Work Permit Delays
Current visa processing times show that work permits for Indians now take about 16 weeks to process. That’s a long wait for people whose jobs, homes, and families depend on having a valid permit.
Loss of Legal Status
While they wait for their renewals, thousands of Indian migrants have lost their legal right to work. This means they risk losing jobs, homes, and even their children’s places in schools.
Access to Health and Schools
Losing a valid work permit also means losing access to things like provincial health insurance. This is dangerous for anyone who gets sick or has a medical emergency. Children of Indian migrants without valid permits may be told they cannot attend public schools, leaving them with fewer choices for education.
Housing Insecurity
Many Indian migrants had settled in Canada, even buying houses and planning for the long term. Now with their status in limbo, they do not know if they can stay, sell their homes, or will be forced to leave quickly.
To see current processing times and learn more about these permits, you can check the official Canadian government page for work permits.
Stricter Enforcement and Rejection Rates
While processing times drag on, Canada is also making it harder for people to get new visas and permits. Recent numbers show a sharp rise in the rejection of applications:
- In 2024, immigration officials turned down 2.35 million applications for temporary residency. That’s 50% of all applications filed that year.
- The year before, the rejection rate was only 35%, with about 1.8 million rejected.
- Visitor visas faced the most rejections, with 54% denied in 2024, up from 40% a year earlier.
- Student permit rejections rose to 52%; this is a jump from 38% the previous year.
- Not only are more applications being rejected, but the number of people applying for student visas has also gone down—by 46% in just one year.
On top of these higher rejection rates, Canadian authorities are also looking more closely at possible fraud. They are currently investigating thousands of fake visa applications every month. These cases lead to bans, more rejections, and even deportations.
Policy Changes That Matter Most to Indian Migrants
These shifts have touched the lives of Indian migrants in several key areas:
1. Wait Times and Return to India
Many Indian migrants applied for work permit renewals before their current permits expired. With wait times stretching to months, their legal status lapsed, and they were told to leave the country, even if their jobs and families were still in Canada.
2. Losing Healthcare and Schooling
Without valid permits, Indian migrants are automatically taken off provincial health plans. For families with children, this raises fears that their kids won’t be able to see a doctor or even continue going to school. For someone like Devi Acharya, it meant making a life-or-death choice: whether to seek help during a medical emergency or avoid huge debt.
3. Housing and Financial Problems
Because Indian migrants often put down roots in Canada, including getting mortgages and jobs, suddenly losing work rights or having to leave the country on short notice creates money problems. House payments, bills, and even basics like food become hard to afford without a steady paycheck.
4. Uncertain Future
Even for Indian migrants who follow every rule and do all the paperwork, the shifting policy means the dream of Canadian life is always uncertain. Plans to bring family over, buy a house, or start a business are now put on hold or scrapped altogether.
Why These Changes Came About
Canada’s approach to temporary foreign workers and international students has been known as friendly for years. As student and work programs grew, the idea was that bringing new faces would help fill jobs and add to the country’s economy. But the quick rise in numbers brought new worries: too many people for certain job sectors, not enough housing, and strains on health care and other services.
Public concern pushed political leaders to act. This led to a plan which reduces the number of new permanent residents, tightens who can get a work permit, and puts hard caps on temporary foreign residents. Labour Market Impact Assessments, which were meant to protect Canadian workers, now end up blocking many migrants from working legally, simply because they cannot be processed fast enough.
Stories from the Ground
People like Devi Acharya are not alone. Many Indian migrants and other foreign workers across Canada have suddenly lost jobs, health care, and homes because of the crushed processing system. Some report being unable to send their children to school, while others avoid seeking help when sick.
The real struggle becomes obvious when you look at the numbers:
- Temporary residents grew from 300,000 to over 3 million in just ten years.
- Processing times for LMIAs have increased nearly three-fold in under two years.
- A single delay can mean weeks or months without work or basic services.
The Bigger Picture for Employers and Communities
Employers in Canada are also feeling the pressure. Many jobs in hotels, construction, food processing, and care facilities depend on foreign workers. When work permits expire and LMIAs are stuck in limbo, businesses struggle to keep the doors open. Staff shortages hurt not just foreign workers but also local Canadians whose jobs may depend on the whole team being present.
Communities that once welcomed new workers and students now face the problems that come with sudden uncertainty—like classrooms with fewer students, businesses that cannot fill open spots, and seniors who rely on care workers.
What’s Next for Temporary Foreign Workers?
If you are a temporary worker or are thinking of applying for a work permit in Canada, staying informed is very important. You need to know about new rules, changing processing times, and whether your employer is able to support a Labour Market Impact Assessment. Canada’s official immigration website offers up-to-date details for those planning to work or study in the country.
For Indian migrants already in Canada, the best step is to check the status of your work permit regularly, stay in close contact with your employer, and save copies of every form and message about your case. If you are worried about health care, schooling for children, or housing, it is important to reach out to local support groups and legal services.
Employers who rely on foreign workers must also pay close attention to their paperwork, keep up with LMIA changes, and try to support staff facing delays or loss of status.
Final Thoughts
Canada’s new approach to immigration is having a big effect on Indian migrants and many other foreign workers. With longer waits for Labour Market Impact Assessments, tougher rules, and a dramatic rise in application rejections, people who wanted to build a life in Canada now must deal with uncertain futures. They have lost access to jobs, health care, and even basic schooling for their children.
The real lesson here is that changing immigration policies can quickly upset the lives of hard-working families, employers, and whole communities. If you or someone you know is affected by these issues, staying updated and seeking help are the best paths forward. Canada’s future on this issue is still being shaped, but for now, Indian migrants facing delays and permit losses must keep hoping for fairer, faster solutions.
Learn Today
Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) → A document employers need to hire most foreign workers, proving that hiring won’t negatively affect Canadian job seekers.
Temporary Resident → A foreign national allowed to live and work or study in Canada for a limited period under specific permits.
Spousal Open Work Permit → A work permit allowing spouses of international students or workers to legally work in Canada in almost any job.
Permanent Resident → A person granted the right to live permanently in Canada, but not a Canadian citizen.
Visa Rejection Rate → The percentage of visa applications denied by Canadian authorities within a given time or category.
This Article in a Nutshell
Canada’s immigration shift has left thousands of Indian migrants in limbo. LMIA processing delays, stricter visa rules, and rising rejection rates mean lost jobs, health coverage, and social stability. Migrant families and local employers struggle as the new policy climate threatens both livelihoods and community integration, demanding urgent attention and solutions.
— By VisaVerge.com
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