Fresh IRCC data released this week show that Indians—the largest source of temporary residents to Canada—now face an average 99-day processing time for visitor visas, while super-visa applications for parents and grandparents stretch to 169 days. Citizenship and family-class queues are also lengthening, with nearly 290,000 people awaiting oath ceremonies.
The bottlenecks come despite IRCC’s deployment of automated triage tools and a high-profile service-standards campaign earlier in 2025. Officials blame surging demand ahead of the December holiday season and staffing shortages linked to the ongoing Phoenix pay-system dispute in federal HR.
![Visitor-visa wait times for Indian nationals hit 99 days as IRCC backlogs swell]()
For employers, the delays pose reputational risk when senior executives cannot attend Canadian board meetings or project kick-offs on short notice. Mobility teams should factor three-to-four-month lead times into visit plans and consider Business Visitor Letters to bolster urgent cases. Some companies are pivoting to the CUSMA Professional or Global Skills Strategy streams, which still enjoy two-week processing in many posts.
Indian travel agents report a spike in ‘soft landing’ itineraries—flying clients through the U.S. with ESTA permits to await Canadian visas—raising questions about missed tourism revenue. IRCC says additional case officers have been redeployed to Delhi and Chandigarh, but stakeholders do not expect significant improvements until Q2 2026.
The bottlenecks come despite IRCC’s deployment of automated triage tools and a high-profile service-standards campaign earlier in 2025. Officials blame surging demand ahead of the December holiday season and staffing shortages linked to the ongoing Phoenix pay-system dispute in federal HR.
For employers, the delays pose reputational risk when senior executives cannot attend Canadian board meetings or project kick-offs on short notice. Mobility teams should factor three-to-four-month lead times into visit plans and consider Business Visitor Letters to bolster urgent cases. Some companies are pivoting to the CUSMA Professional or Global Skills Strategy streams, which still enjoy two-week processing in many posts.
Indian travel agents report a spike in ‘soft landing’ itineraries—flying clients through the U.S. with ESTA permits to await Canadian visas—raising questions about missed tourism revenue. IRCC says additional case officers have been redeployed to Delhi and Chandigarh, but stakeholders do not expect significant improvements until Q2 2026.
