Hong Kong Watch holds Hong Kong Pathway seminar with Costas Menegakis MP and Jean Yip MP
On 29 November, Hong Kong Watch Canada held a seminar on the Hong Kong Pathway at the HongKonger Community Centre Toronto (HKCC), with nearly 200 Hong Kongers in attendance. The Hong Kong Pathway backlog as a result of insufficient admission spaces has been a pressing concern of the Hong Kong community in Canada.
The seminar, moderated by Chair of Hong Kong Watch Canada Aileen Calverley, had two sessions.
The first session featured Costas Menegakis MP, member of the Immigration Committee and former Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. He fielded questions from participants and committed to raising the demand for a one-time increase in admissions with the Minister of Immigration.
During the second session, Jean Yip MP shared information she got from IRCC. She brought over official replies to practical questions she asked previously on behalf of Hong Kong Pathway applicants, including:
Can an open work permit be renewed automatically? No, the permit holder has to apply for renewal.
Can a Hong Kong Pathway applicant apply for permanent residency under the economic stream? Yes, this is possible as long as the applications are in two different categories (e.g. one under the humanitarian and compassion category, the other the economic category).
She also answered questions about the latest developments in the admissions for 2026 and strategies in response. We extend gratitude to Jean Yip for her years-long support for Hong Kongers and advocacy with IRCC officials for the Hong Kong community.
Ahead of the seminar, the Hong Kong Young Professionals Association Canada (HKYPA) delivered a petition outside the local office of Minister Tim Hodgson, MP for Markham—Thornhill, urging the Minister to raise Hong Kongers’ call for a one-time special quota with the Minister of Immigration to tackle the shortage of permanent residency spaces.
Both HKCC and HKYPA events took place in Markham—Thornhill, where many Hong Kongers reside. The severe backlog of permanent residency applications from Hong Kongers therefore requires the local MP’s urgent attention.
We thank Minister Hodgson for his attention to the matter. He sent his Ottawa-based senior advisor to receive the petition at his local office in Markham and learn firsthand about issues surrounding the Hong Kong Pathway, including delays in processing permanent residency applications, lack of PR admissions, and dozens of work permit rejections due to administrative issues.
The senior advisor attended the event at HKCC after getting the petition. Hong Kong Watch’s Advocacy and Communications Officer Landson Chan helped moderate a roundtable discussion and meet with Hong Kongers in need of urgent assistance.
Hong Kong Watch Canada collected urgent cases concerning work permit rejections for subsequent follow-up. We are glad that many Hong Kongers who previously sought assistance from Hong Kong Watch at HKCC have had their work permits approved by IRCC. They thanked the Chair, staff and volunteers of Hong Kong Watch Canada during the event.
Hong Kong Watch Canada has been in close contact with members of the Immigration Committee, the Prime Minister’s Office and the Minister of Immigration’s Office to urge for a prompt solution to the Hong Kong Pathway backlog.
香港監察舉辦Hong Kong Pathway研討會 Costas Menegakis MP、Jean Yip MP到場與港人交流
11月29日，加拿大香港監察在多倫多香港人社區中心舉辦「Hong Kong Pathway」研討會，近200名在加港人出席活動。「Hong Kong Pathway」永久居留配額嚴重不足，導致大量申請積壓，已成為在加港人最迫切關注的問題。
研討會由加拿大香港監察主席Aileen Calverley主持，分為兩節。
第一節由曾任公民及移民部長國會秘書的國會議員兼移民委員會委員Costas Menegakis MP主講。他逐一解答參加者的疑問，並承諾直接向移民部長反映要求一次性增加移民配額的訴求。
第二節由國會議員Jean Yip MP分享她從移民部得來的資訊。她就早前代表「Hong Kong Pathway」申請人向移民部提出的實務問題，轉達官方最新回覆，包括：
開放式工作簽證可否自動續期？不能，必須主動申請延期。
「Hong Kong Pathway」申請人可否同時申請經濟類別移民？可以，只要兩個類別不同（例如一個屬於人道與恩恤，另一個屬於經濟類別），兩者互不衝突。
她亦詳細解答2026年移民配額的最新情況及應對策略。我們非常感謝Jean Yip MP對香港人的支持，她多年來為港人社群向移民部官員倡議政策。
研討會舉行前，加拿大香港菁英協會（Hong Kong Young Professionals Association Canada）前往Markham—Thornhill選區國會議員Minister Tim Hodgson的地區辦事處外遞交請願信，促請部長協助向移民部長表達港人訴求，要求透過一次性特別配額，解決永居配額嚴重短缺的問題。
Markham—Thornhill選區有許多香港人居住，上述多倫多香港人社區中心和加拿大香港菁英協會的活動也在這個選區舉辦。港人永居申請嚴重滯後因此是急需當地國會議員關注的問題。
我們十分感謝部長Minister Hodgson關注問題。他派出駐渥太華的高級政策顧問到萬錦市議員辦事處接收請願信，親自了解「Hong Kong Pathway」的種種問題，包括永居申請嚴重滯後、永居配額不足，以及因行政問題而導致大量工作簽證申請被拒的問題。
高級政策顧問在接收請願信後，前往多倫多香港人社區中心出席活動。香港監察倡議及傳訊主任Landson Chan協助官員主持圓桌會議，會見需要緊急援助的香港人。
加拿大香港監察在現場收集工作簽證被拒的緊急個案，作後續跟進之用。我們很高興有多位之前到社區中心向香港監察求助的香港人已得到移民部回覆，重新獲得工作簽證。他們到場感謝加拿大香港監察主席、職員和義工。
加拿大香港監察正與移民委員會議員、總理辦公室和移民部長辦公室緊密聯繫，要求儘快解決「Hong Kong Pathway」申請嚴重積壓的問題。