Canadian immigration visa processing times have been cut in half since 2005

From 2005 and 2009, the average overall processing time for Canadian immigration applications decreased to 26 months from 50 months. A recent analysis has found this improvement is linked to legislation introduced in 2008 which fast-tracked applications by skilled-workers such as registered nurses, crane operators, financial auditors, construction managers and 34 other qualifying occupations for the Federal Skilled Worker Category. The approximate processing time now for a skilled worker application is seven months, which represents a drastic reduction since previously the overall processing time could take up to five years.