New data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) shows that the overall application backlog continues to decline, dropping by 48,900 compared to the previous month.
As of February 28, the backlog stood at 941,400 applications. The most significant improvements included an 11% reduction in the work permit backlog, a 6% decrease in visitor visa delays, and a 4% drop across both Express Entry and study permit applications.
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Despite this progress, IRCC’s total inventory reached 2,092,700 applications, a slight increase of 700 over the past month. Of these, 1,151,300 applications were processed within the department’s service standards.
The backlog has now reached its lowest level since July 2025, reflecting steady progress over recent months.
Permanent Residence Applications
By the end of February, IRCC’s inventory included over one million permanent residence applications (1,007,400), up by 11,900 from January. Of these, 470,600 (47%) were processed within service standards, leaving 536,800 applications in backlog.
This category includes Express Entry, enhanced Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), and family sponsorship applications (outside Quebec). The Express Entry backlog dropped significantly from 15% to 11%, marking its lowest level since IRCC began reporting this data.
The enhanced PNP backlog also improved, falling from 42% to 40%, staying within projected levels. Meanwhile, the family sponsorship backlog remained steady at 22%, although its projected backlog rose slightly to 25%.
Between January 1 and February 28, 2026, IRCC processed 70,400 PR applications and welcomed 53,400 new permanent residents to Canada.
Temporary Residence Applications
IRCC reported 824,500 temporary residence applications in its inventory at the end of February, a decrease of 20,900 from the previous month. Of these, 480,400 (58%) were processed on time, while 344,100 remained in backlog.
Work permit backlogs saw a notable improvement, dropping to 27% from 38% in January, beating the projected 30%. Study permit backlogs also declined from 50% to 46%, though still above the projected 41%.
Visitor visa backlogs improved as well, falling from 54% to 48%, moving closer to the projected 43%.
From January through February 2026, IRCC finalized 302,800 work permit applications and 74,300 study permit applications, including extensions.
Citizenship Applications
By February 28, IRCC had 260,800 citizenship grant applications in its inventory, an increase of 9,700 from the previous month. Of these, 200,300 (77%) were processed within service standards, leaving 60,500 (23%) in backlog, slightly down from 24% in January and well within the projected 27%.
Between April 1, 2025, and February 28, 2026, Canada welcomed 509,100 new citizens.
Understanding IRCC Service Standards
IRCC sets internal service standards to define how long most applications should take under normal conditions. Typically, about 80% of applications are processed within these timelines. For example, Express Entry applications are generally completed within six months, while family sponsorship applications may take around 12 months.
Applications that exceed these timelines without a final decision are counted as backlog. However, IRCC notes that around 20% of applications may take longer due to added complexity, additional documentation, or extended background and security checks.
