Canada’s Immigration Backlog Turns Into a “Marathon of Patience”

In Canada, waiting for immigration approval has become a marathon of patience.A PhD couple in Waterloo has waited five years for their permanent residency with no end in sight. Increasingly, Chinese students and Iranian researchers are also being caught in what the government calls “security screening” — a process that has grown slower, stricter, and more opaque, leaving many applicants’ lives on hold.

Iranian Couple Shocked by Sudden Security Review

Hesam Tajbakhsh and his wife, Sara Najafi Alishah, from Iran, have lived in Canada for five years on temporary visas. They were stunned when Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) suddenly transferred their permanent residency file to a “comprehensive security review.”

The couple said they understand the need to protect national security, but cannot fathom why their file was flagged years after arrival — or how long the review might take.

“Our lives are on pause,” said Najafi Alishah, a trained physician now working as a clinical assistant in Waterloo. She has passed all medical licensing exams but cannot begin residency or practice medicine until she becomes a permanent resident.

“They won’t tell us why we were flagged, or how long this will take. We’re completely in the dark.”

Rising Number of Files Sent for Security Screening

The number of immigration applications sent for security screening has surged in recent years, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.

Legal experts say they are seeing a growing number of applicants — both for temporary and permanent status — referred for security checks, even when they have no military background, government ties, or law enforcement experience, factors that traditionally trigger such reviews.

Chinese Students Sue Ottawa for Delays

Last month, dozens of Chinese graduate students admitted to Canada’s top universities launched a federal court lawsuit against IRCC, alleging discrimination after their study permits were frozen for months under “security review.”

Toronto lawyer Vakkas Bilsin, who represents the students, said the decision-making process lacks any transparency.

“People don’t know what went wrong or why their files are stuck,” he said. “They feel helpless and desperate.”

According to IRCC data, the number of permanent residency files referred for security screening rose from 9,125 in 2020 to 21,835 in 2024. Between January and July 2025 alone, 9,140 applications have already been flagged.

Top five source countries in 2024:

• China: 4,250 cases

• Iran: 3,855

• India: 1,620

• Pakistan: 1,175

• Syria: 1,136

Temporary residence applications have also soared — from 9,555 in 2020 to 41,470 last year — with China and Iran again among the top countries affected.

“If This Isn’t Discrimination, What Is It?”

The Waterloo couple say they have no ties to any sensitive organizations. Their permanent residency file, submitted in October 2023, was moved into security screening six months later.

“The review could take one year, five years — or even ten,” said 31-year-old Tajbakhsh, who works in information technology. “I have friends from other countries who got their PR in six months. If this isn’t discrimination, then what do you call it?”

They currently hold a bridging open work permit while waiting for a decision. Like many others trapped in “immigration limbo,” they fear Ottawa’s proposed new legislation could allow mass cancellations of pending applications “in the public interest.”

Widening Delays and Human Cost

Another applicant, Niloofar Darooeizadeh, came to Montreal in 2017 to pursue a master’s in biomedical and electronic engineering and now works in Vancouver as a senior data scientist. Her permanent residency application, submitted in mid-2023, has also been frozen under security screening.

“If you wanted to question my background, you should have done it before I came here,” she said. “If I intended harm, I would have done it years ago.”

IRCC declined to disclose what specific risk indicators trigger security referrals, saying only that every case is reviewed individually under the same standards.

“Every application is assessed independently, regardless of country of origin. Protecting the safety of Canadians remains our top priority,” the agency said in a statement.

Lawyers: “This Is a Policy Delay, Not a Security One”

Critics argue that the surge in referrals reflects geopolitical tensions and a deliberate slowdown in immigration processing rather than genuine security threats.

Immigration lawyer Lev Abramovich said that if security were the real concern, Ottawa should be speeding up the process. “Most people flagged eventually pass the review,” he noted. “The problem is the human cost of endless waiting.”

In 2024, among 21,835 permanent residency files referred for security screening:

• 8,505 were approved,

• 75 were rejected,

• 3,330 remain under review,

• 9,785 were still marked “received,”

• and others await additional documents or final decisions.

  
  

“Our Lives Are Frozen”

Software developer Aleksandr Vasin from Russia, who works in Vancouver, said the uncertainty has taken a toll on his mental health.

“This delay is destroying me,” said Vasin, who joined a support group of 250 applicants stuck in the security screening process. “We came here for our 11-year-old son’s future, but now I’m on antidepressants because of the anxiety.”

He worries about what will happen if his work permit expires in 2026.

Applicants caught in the bureaucratic limbo are now calling on Ottawa to set clear timelines for security reviews — turning what was once a dream of stability into a test of endurance.