“Canadian Visa Changes will Help Meet Demand from Irish Workforce”

Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney to hold a meeting with Tánaiste and Foreign Affairs Minister Eamon Gilmore in Dublin today

“The visa programme between Ireland and Canada is expected to be expanded today and looks set to double the number of visas allocated to young Irish people wanting to travel and work in Canada <http://searchtopics.independent.ie/topic/Canada>  and to young Canadians wishing to travel here for employment.

This is excellent news because last year only 5350 Canadian working holiday visas were granted to Irish people, while we would guestimate by the level of interest we received, the numbers looking for this type of visa would have hit 10,000 people.

In addition, Australia currently offers 4 times the number of working holiday visas to Irish passport holders and our experience would suggest that the demand for Irish people looking to travel to Canada, although not as high as Australia, is growing significantly year on year.

Another benefit of the Canada visa programme is that it allows Irish passport holders to apply up to their 36th birthday which is 5years more than Australia and New Zealand age limits.

Going on the volume of enquiries we have had at our recent regional road shows we have been advising people to register their interest with us ASAP so that as soon as the new visa quotas are release in January they will be able to apply. At the moment you cannot apply directly to the Canadian Embassy – they will only take applications once the new quotas are announced next year. Visa grants for Canada are on a first come first serve basis.

We have so many jobs to fill now in Alberta that we can also almost assure that anyone who has a Canadian working holiday visa will secure employment.” For more information: <http://www.visafirst.com>