The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced on May 11, 2026, that the Four Falls land port of entry in northwestern New Brunswick will be permanently closed, formalizing a suspension that began as a temporary COVID-19 measure on May 17, 2020 and ending six full years of inactivity at the small seasonal crossing; CBSA cited four factors — seasonal-only operations, low traveller volumes, the density of alternative crossings nearby, and the absence of any corresponding U.S. port of entry on the opposite side of the border — and argued that the move aligns Canadian operations with what U.S. Customs and Border Protection already does on this stretch of the boundary, leaving travellers between northwestern New Brunswick and Maine to reroute through one of two alternative ports of entry within 15 km of Four Falls, the 24/7 Andover crossing and the Gillespie Portage crossing (open daily 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.), with CBSA reminding the public that all travellers must still report to a designated port of entry on arrival or risk fines, seizures, loss of trusted-traveller status, or prosecution under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act or the Customs Act.

The British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BCPNP) issued at least 341 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) across two back-to-back draws on May 5 and 6, 2026, covering both its Skills Immigration (SI) and Entrepreneur Immigration (EI) categories, with the vast majority going to SI candidates. These were the first official selections held since British Columbia unveiled its "Look West" strategy on April 23, restructuring the entire BC PNP around three pillars — Care, Build and Innovate — while permanently closing the Entry Level and Semi-Skilled (ELSS) stream, ending technology-specific draws, and scrapping a planned dedicated pathway for international graduates. ITAs in this round were concentrated in four target areas — health, education, veterinary care and construction trades — with construction trades accounting for 121 ITAs, or 36.3 per cent of the total, in what is widely seen as the first clear signal that British Columbia's new immigration direction has now moved from policy announcement to live implementation.

Canada's federal government announced on May 6, 2026 that a sweeping overhaul of the regulatory framework governing the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC) will come into force on July 15, 2026 — the most significant regulatory upgrade since the CICC succeeded the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC) on November 23, 2021. The new rules give the College stronger disciplinary teeth, allow the federal government to step in and take over the College's board if it fails to protect the public, and establish, for the first time, a dedicated compensation fund to provide redress to clients who suffer financial losses because a CICC-licensed consultant engaged in theft, fraud, misappropriation of funds, misrepresentation, or refusal to cooperate with professional liability insurance; at the same time, the College's public register will be expanded with additional disclosures about each licensee, making it easier for the public to verify a consultant's licensing status, good standing, and disciplinary history — and squeezing the operating space of so-called "ghost consultants."

Effective May 4, 2026, the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP) is restricting invitations to apply (ITAs) under the NB Experience pathway of its Skilled Worker Stream to candidates working in just three sectors — healthcare, education, and construction trades — until further notice; the province has attributed the change to the limited nomination space remaining under the stream, with industry trackers estimating New Brunswick's total 2026 allocation at roughly 3,603, well short of the federal-level expansion that pushed the national PNP target to 91,500 spots for the year; this marks the second major sector-focused tightening within four months, following the February 3, 2026 overhaul that froze the accommodation and food services sector (NAICS 72) and several retail-oriented National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes, and candidates outside the targeted sectors are encouraged to either withdraw and resubmit their Expression of Interest (EOI) under another stream, or open a separate INB profile (using a different email address) to pursue another pathway or an Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) endorsement.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on May 1, 2026, updated the operational instructions issued to immigration officers, formally expanding the scope of in-Canada restoration of status: temporary residents who have lost their worker or student status may now apply to be restored directly as visitors, instead of being effectively forced to leave Canada and re-enter as visitors as was generally the case under the previous guidance; applicants must still file within 90 days of losing status, remain in Canada while their application is processed, and immediately stop any activities that depended on the work or study authorization they no longer hold; the change comes at a moment when Canada's temporary resident population is contracting sharply — falling from roughly 3.149 million on October 1, 2024 to about 2.676 million on January 1, 2026, with more than 314,000 work permits set to expire in the first quarter of 2026 alone — and is widely viewed as a softer in-country bridge for workers and international graduates who cannot immediately secure a new work permit or a permanent residence pathway.

British Columbia held its latest Entrepreneur Immigration (EI) selection round on April 14, 2026, issuing 14 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) through the Base stream of the BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP) with a minimum qualifying score of 115 — two points lower than the March 10, 2026 Base-stream draw and the largest standalone EI round the province has run so far this year. With six entrepreneur draws and at least 41 ITAs now issued in 2026 under a federal 2026 allocation of 5,254 nomination spaces (up roughly 31% from BC's initial 4,000-spot allotment in 2025 but still below what the province requested), BC PNP continues to focus on business candidates expected to generate high economic impact in the province.

Canada has further expanded work permit access for family members of foreign workers employed by selected companies. As of March 23, 2026, foreign workers employed in British Columbia by Lululemon Athletica or Microsoft Vancouver can support an open work permit application for their spouse or common-law partner, without the usual restrictions based on the principal applicant’s skill level, salary, or seniority. The new measure applies to applications received on or after that date and represents a targeted exemption for companies tied to significant investment projects, even as Canada continues tightening spousal open work permit rules more broadly.

British Columbia recently held a new draw under the Entrepreneur Immigration (EI) program of the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP), issuing invitations to eligible candidates under both the Base and Regional streams. Those invited were mainly business applicants planning to establish a new business in British Columbia or acquire and expand an existing one. In this round, the minimum invitation score was 117 for the Base stream, with 7 invitations issued, while the minimum score for the Regional stream was 129, with fewer than 5 invitations issued. Since the start of 2026, British Columbia has completed five entrepreneur-category draws, reflecting the province’s continued steady pace in attracting business immigrants and supporting regional economic development.

Canada has recently introduced two new facilitated work permit pathways under the International Experience Canada (International Experience Canada, or IEC) program for young people from Taiwan and Portugal. These are the TGPI program for Taiwanese youth and the Inov Contacto program for Portuguese youth. Both new pathways offer employer-specific work permits and include tailored arrangements in terms of program structure, financial support, and eligibility requirements. At the same time, applicants from Taiwan and Portugal may still continue to apply under the regular criteria for the IEC Young Professionals category. The new policy suggests that Canada is further expanding youth talent exchange and short-term employment cooperation with specific countries and regions through bilateral youth mobility arrangements.

The Government of New Brunswick announced and implemented a wide-ranging set of changes on February 3, 2026, affecting both the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP) and the province’s Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP). The updates include removing consideration for accommodation and food services (NAICS 72) roles across multiple pathways, excluding several specific occupations from consideration, moving AIP endorsement processing to a candidate-pool model, temporarily pausing new AIP employer designation applications, and tightening endorsement eligibility for overseas candidates to three priority sectors. In addition, New Brunswick will extend its Private Career College Graduate Pilot through the end of 2026 in a limited capacity for certain international students already enrolled in eligible programs at Oulton College or Eastern College whose completion dates extend beyond the pilot’s original end date.