Ottawa plans 2027 admission space to process remaining Hong Kong and Ukraine family permanent-residence files already in Canada

OTTAWA – The federal government says it will create enough permanent-resident admission space in 2027 to process all remaining files in two closed programs for Hong Kong residents and Ukrainian family members already living in Canada.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada expects the Hong Kong files to lead to as many as 32,000 admissions and the Ukraine Family Reunification Pathway files to account for as many as 18,800. The figures describe possible admissions, not guaranteed approvals.

The measure does not reopen either program or create a new application route. The Hong Kong pathways closed to new applications on Aug. 31, 2026, while the Ukrainian family pathway closed on Oct. 22, 2024. IRCC says people with files in the queue do not need to reapply or contact the department simply because of the announcement.

The added space is part of a one-year measure proposed with Budget 2026 for people already in Canada. Ottawa says the two groups are already living and working in Canadian communities, so processing their files would change their status but would not amount to the same number of new arrivals at the border.

The commitment answers a long-running concern about applicants who had built lives in Canada while waiting for final decisions. The Ukrainian Canadian Congress welcomed the plan to address the family-reunification backlog by the end of 2027, while saying it wants further talks on permanent-residence options for Ukrainians admitted under the emergency travel program.

For Hong Kong applicants, the announcement provides a processing objective but does not remove the need to meet legal and program requirements. Applicants must also keep valid temporary status where required while IRCC works on their permanent-residence files.

The broader temporary measure includes up to 100,000 spaces for selected workers and their eligible relatives, plus up to 100,000 spaces for specified humanitarian and family groups. IRCC says those spaces are additional to the regular 2027-29 immigration levels plan and will not become a recurring increase.

Other groups identified by the department include up to 12,600 people already found eligible for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds and up to 45,000 spouses, partners and dependent children of citizens or permanent residents who live in Canada.

The next test will be delivery. IRCC has not promised that every individual file will be approved, and its release did not provide monthly processing milestones. Applicants should rely on official messages in their accounts and keep their contact and status information current.

Source notes

– Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, news release, published Nov. 10, 2026

– IRCC, immigration-system measures and cohort details, published Nov. 5 and checked Nov. 11, 2026

– Ukrainian Canadian Congress, community response, published Nov. 9, 2026