Canada's immigration system is facing increasing pressure from a growing number of temporary residents seeking to extend their legal status while awaiting decisions on permanent residency applications.

Recent reports indicate some temporary residents have been submitting applications with little chance of approval in order to maintain legal status in Canada while a decision is pending on an extension request. Under current immigration rules, many applicants can continue to remain in the country while their extension application is being processed.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has reported a sharp increase in extension applications in recent years. Visitor status extension applications rose from 167,955 to 275,905 over the past five years, while work permit extension applications climbed from 442,715 to 1,039,275 during the same period. Refusal rates have also increased, with visitor extension refusals rising from six per cent to 12.1 per cent and work permit extension refusals increasing from 6.5 per cent to 10.1 per cent.

Federal officials have introduced a series of measures intended to tighten administration of temporary resident programs. Among them was the decision to largely end flagpoling, a process that allowed temporary residents to leave Canada briefly and return through a land border crossing to obtain immigration services more quickly.

More than four million temporary resident permits are scheduled to expire across 2025 and 2026, according to federal immigration data. While Ottawa can track permit expiry dates, officials have acknowledged challenges in determining how many temporary residents leave Canada once their status ends.

While federal officials can track when temporary resident permits are set to expire, they do not know with certainty how many permit holders will leave Canada when their status ends. Ottawa has responded by tightening rules for temporary resident programs while continuing to provide permanent residency pathways for some workers and international students.