How long does it take to process a Hong Kong pathway stream application?
Short answer: IRCC does not publish a dedicated Hong Kong-pathway processing time on the closed program pages. Use the IRCC processing-times tool and your account messages. The only official volume snapshot in the close notice is dated 30 June 2026: about 30,315 applications (48,560 people) received, more than 8,600 applications (13,485 people) approved, and about 13,370 people already granted permanent residence. That leaves a large remaining inventory. IRCC has not given a month count for those leftover files.
Media have reported waits stretching past 2027 or longer. That is not an IRCC posted time. Treat it as reporting, not a departmental guarantee. What IRCC will say on the after you apply page is the process: completeness check, acknowledgement of receipt (AOR), biometrics, medical exam, then a decision. Incomplete files can be returned. Criminal, security, or family-status issues add time. Update your address. Pay the Right of Permanent Residence Fee (RPRF) when IRCC is ready to confirm status. Check the live amount on the fee list.
What are the requirements for becoming eligible for the Hong Kong Pathway Stream B?
Short answer: Stream B was the Canadian work-experience stream. Before the close, you had to hold a valid HKSAR or BN(O) passport as IRCC defines it, be physically present in Canada when you applied and when you became a permanent resident, hold valid temporary resident status, intend to live outside Quebec, and show Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) level 5 in all four skills. In the 3 years before applying you needed at least 1,560 hours of paid work in Canada and a Canadian work permit held for at least 1 year. Hours as a full-time student, self-employment, work outside Canada, leave, an extended absence, or unemployment did not count. You could apply under only one stream. These rules are on who can apply. They do not reopen intake.
Stream A was the in-Canada graduate stream. Same passport, presence, status, Quebec, and language rules. You had to have graduated from a Canadian designated learning institution in the 3 years before applying, with at least 50% of the program in Canada, and a diploma of at least 2 years, a degree, or a graduate credential of at least 1 year. A graduate diploma also needed a prior diploma or degree finished in the 5 years before that program started.
| Rule | Stream A (graduates) | Stream B (work) |
|---|
| Where you applied | Inside Canada | Inside Canada |
| Passport | HKSAR or BN(O) as defined by IRCC |
If you lived in Quebec, you had to prove intent to settle elsewhere. IRCC lists a statutory declaration, job proof, family ties, or a lease on the documents page.
