IRCC’s latest processing times
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has updated its processing times for applications for study permits, work permits, visitor visas, permanent residence, and citizenship applications.
We’ll compare the latest processing times, available as of September 10, 2025, to figures from July 23, 2025.
See your eligibility for all Express Entry streams
Temporary residence applications
Study Permits
Applying from: Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Canada* 6 weeks 12 weeks
India 4 weeks 3 weeks
United States 10 weeks 7 weeks
Pakistan 9 weeks 11 weeks
Nigeria 8 weeks 5 weeks
*Processing times provided in the table are for initial study permits for inside Canada. Extensions are currently processed within 163 days as of the latest processing times.
The service standard for study permits inside Canada is four months; for outside Canada, two months.
Work Permits
Applying from: Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Canada 190 days 182 days
India 8 weeks 7 weeks
United States 3 weeks 4 weeks
Pakistan 12 weeks 5 weeks
Nigeria 22 weeks 12 weeks
The service standard forwork permitapplications from within Canada is 120 days, both for initial work permit applications and for extensions.
Work permit applications made from outside Canada have a service standard of 60 days, with the exception of International Experience Canada (IEC)* work permits, which have a standard of 56 days.
*The IEC allows youths from certain countries who have bilateral youth mobility agreements with Canada to access easier work permits. Visit our dedicated webpage to learn more.
Visitor visas
Applying from: Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Canada 13 days 25 days
India 63 days 28 days
United States* 24 days 21 days
Pakistan 48 days 36 days
Nigeria 31 days 56 days
Visitor visa applications from outside Canada have a service standard of 14 days.
Super Visa
Applying from: Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
India 139 days 139 days
United States* 89 days 87 days
Pakistan 112 days 126 days
Nigeria 55 days 57 days
Philippines 71 days 74 days
Super visa applications have a service standard of 112 days.
Economic immigration
Express Entry
Stream Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Canadian Experience Class 5 months 5 months
Federal Skilled Worker Program 6 months 6 months
Federal Skilled Trades Program N/A N/A
All Express Entry streams have a service standard of 6 months.
Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)
Stream Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Enhanced (online via Express Entry) 8 months 8 months
Base* 19 months 19 months
Enhanced PNPstreams have a service standard of 6 months, while basePNPstreams have a service standard of 11 months.
The standard for PNP applications is the processing time after a successful nominee has applied to IRCC.
*Processing times for base streams can vary based on when an applicant submits their complete application.
See your eligibility for all Express Entry streams
Quebec Immigration
Stream Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Skilled Worker Selection Program (PSTQ) 11 months 9 months
The service standard for applications under thePSTQis 6 months. This does not include the processing time of applications by theQuebec immigrationministry.
Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP)
Stream Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Atlantic Immigration Program 13 months 12 months
AIPapplications have a service standard of 11 months.
Family Sponsorship
Stream Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Spouse or common-law partner living inside Canada 23 months (intending to reside outside Quebec)
53 months (intending to reside in Quebec)
34 months (intending to reside outside Quebec)
38 months (intending to reside in Quebec)
Spouse or common-law partner living outside Canada 15 months (Outside Quebec)
41 months (intending to reside in Quebec))
11 months (intending to reside outside Quebec)
37 months (intending to reside in Quebec)
Parents and Grandparents Program 26 months (intending to reside outside Quebec)
41 months (intending to reside in Quebec))
36 months (intending to reside outside Quebec)
48 months (intending to reside outside in Quebec)
Applications for sponsorship of a spouse or common-law partner living outside Canada have a service standard of 12 months. Other streams in the table above do not feature a service standard.
Dependent child
Applying from: Latest processing time Service standard
Canada 29 months N/A
Prior processing times and processing times by place of application were not available for dependent child sponsorship.
Citizenship
Stream Latest processing time Processing time as of July 23, 2025
Citizenship grant 11 months 10 months
Citizenship certificates (proof of citizenship) 5 months 5 months
Citizenshipgrant applications have a service standard of 12 months.
Understanding processing times and service standards
Processing times are IRCC’s prediction of how long it will take to process a new application if it were submitted on the current day. IRCC calculates processing times on the basis of historical data along with data on its current inventory of applications.
Processing times start when a complete application is received and end when a decision is reached.
Processing times come in two forms:
Historical processing times; and
Forward-looking processing times.
Historical processing times are based on how long it took IRCC to process 80% of a specific kind of application in the past.
Forward-looking processing times are based on IRCC’s current inventory, specifically the total number of each kind of application the department still has to process, and the number of applications it expects to process in a given month.
Depending on which kind of application you inquire about, you may see either the historical processing time or the forward-looking processing time. Only the current lines of service use forward-looking processing times:
Canadian Experience Class (CEC);
Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP);
Provincial Nominees Program (PNP) (Express Entry and non-Express Entry);
Quebec Skilled Worker Selection Program (PSTQ);
Spouse or Common-law partner (inside or outside Canada);
Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP);
Citizenship grants; and
Proof of citizenship.
Service standards, on the other hand, are IRCC’s commitment to process an application of a certain kind, under “normal circumstances.” IRCC aims to process 80% of applications within service standards, allowing that 20% of applications will require additional time due to complexity or other factors. Unlike processing times, service standards are not updated regularly, nor are they available for all of IRCC’s lines of service.
