Justice Delayed is Justice Denied
Thousands of Iranian applicants face years of uncertainty in Canada’s PR process. Families are separated. Futures are frozen. We call for fairness, transparency, and timely decisions.
IRANIANS.PR.DELAYS@gmail.com
Thousands of Iranian applicants face years of uncertainty in Canada’s PR process. Families are separated. Futures are frozen. We call for fairness, transparency, and timely decisions.
Canada is built on values of fairness, equality, and family. Yet for many Iranian permanent residency applicants, these values are being undermined.
Applicants wait years — often far longer than others — stuck in security screenings with no timeline, no transparency, and no updates. These delays separate families, deny people the chance to be present for loved ones, and leave lives on hold.
We are gathering peacefully to raise awareness and call for urgent action.
“Because of these delays, I’ve been forced to live apart from my husband for years. The prolonged separation has taken a deep toll on my mental health — I developed depression and anxiety and eventually had to seek therapy and medication just to cope.
The distance has also strained our relationship and limited our ability to grow as a couple in the ways that living together would allow.
On top of that, we’ve spent thousands of dollars on international travel just for short visits, which has created continuous financial pressure.
Most difficult of all is the uncertainty. We live in limbo, not knowing when we will finally be able to build a life together. That uncertainty has forced both of us to put our lives on hold, delaying important personal, professional, and family decisions that people in our situation should not have to postpone.”
“My colleagues and I, a team of Iranian physicians and engineers specializing in healthcare virtual reality, submitted our PR application in February 2020. We successfully passed medical and eligibility assessments and even received a pre-arrival letter. Yet since May 2024, our file has been stuck in security screening with no updates, despite repeated follow-ups and an ATIP request.
This prolonged delay has put our professional and personal lives at serious risk. We cannot establish a permanent presence or expand our work in Canada, despite awards and recognition. We have had to decline collaborations, postpone funding opportunities, and miss research initiatives. The uncertainty has caused financial and emotional strain for us and our families. Despite our compliance and contributions, this lack of a decision threatens our stability, careers, and future in Canada.”
“I came to Canada in December 2020 with my spouse to pursue a Master’s degree in Engineering Management. In January 2023, I submitted my Permanent Residency application under the OINP PNP-Non Express stream but our application is still in process, leaving us in limbo for over five years.
Since arriving, I have earned my P.Eng. designation and PMP certification and now work at a reputable Canadian company. Despite these achievements, the uncertainty around our status has caused significant stress, particularly concerning my work permit and the future of our daughter, who was born here. My spouse’s ability to pursue Canadian professional licenses is also dependent on the PR outcome.
This prolonged waiting period has taken a heavy emotional and mental toll, affecting our family’s well-being, stability, and ability to fully build our life in Canada.”
“I came to Canada six years ago, full of hope and determination to build a life here. I have worked hard, paying my taxes diligently, helping hundreds of Canadians as a fitness consultant and personal trainer, and dedicating myself to growing my business.
Three years ago, I applied for Permanent Residency, and since then, my application has been stuck in background checks for nearly two years.
During this time, I have seen my family only once. I missed my brother’s wedding and could not be there when my mother underwent heart surgery. The separation has been painful and isolating. Every milestone and family moment I’ve had to miss has weighed heavily on me. The uncertainty over my future leaves me anxious and frustrated. Despite all my contributions, I feel invisible, caught in a system that has placed my life and dreams on hold.”
“I came to Canada in December 2020 with my spouse to pursue a Master’s degree. In January 2023, a Permanent Residency application was submitted under the OINP PNP-Non Express stream. Background checks began in January 2024, but the application is still in process, leaving us in limbo for over five years.
Since arriving, I have earned my P.Eng. designation and PMP certification and now work at a reputable Canadian company. Despite these achievements, the prolonged uncertainty is causing significant stress, particularly regarding my work permit and the future of our daughter, who was born here. My spouse’s professional progress also depends on the PR outcome.
This long wait has taken a heavy emotional and mental toll, affecting our family’s well-being, stability, and ability to fully build our life in Canada.”
“I came to Canada with my spouse to pursue a Master’s degree in Engineering Management. We submitted our Permanent Residency application through the OINP PNP-Non Express stream, and although background checks have begun, the application is still in process.
Since arriving, I have earned my P.Eng. designation and PMP certification and now work at a reputable Canadian company. Despite these achievements, the uncertainty about our status causes constant stress, especially regarding my work permit and the future of our daughter, who was born here. My spouse’s career progress is also tied to the outcome of our PR application.
This prolonged waiting period has taken a heavy emotional and mental toll, affecting our family’s stability, well-being, and ability to fully build our life in Canada.”
“I am 37 and hold a master’s degree in electrical engineering. I applied for Permanent Residency through the Saskatchewan Provincial Nominee Program, and after provincial approval and federal processing, my application entered the security check stage. I have been waiting ever since.
During this time, I obtained my EIT designation and prepared for professional growth in Canada for myself and my family. Yet the prolonged delay has put all our plans on hold.
My 3-year-old child is now ready to start school, and we face growing financial pressures, including rising living costs.
This uncertainty has disrupted our family life and future planning.
Despite our preparation and dedication, the delay is causing emotional stress, limiting our opportunities, and affecting our stability in Canada.”
“I came to Canada in 2019 with my husband and our young child to pursue a graduate degree in Artificial Intelligence. I submitted my Permanent Residency application through the Quebec Skilled Worker Program, and though background checks have begun, the process is still unresolved.
My husband has remained in Canada since our arrival, but the uncertainty has made it impossible for us to truly feel at home.
The delay has taken a heavy toll on our lives. I have missed career opportunities because I cannot relocate, and my husband has turned down promising jobs. We have postponed plans to buy a home, start a business, or build a future with certainty.
This prolonged limbo has caused deep emotional strain, stress, and anxiety, affecting our family’s well-being and leaving us uncertain about the life we had hoped to build in Canada.”
“I am a pharmacist who came to Canada with my family to pursue graduate studies and build a better future. We worked hard to establish ourselves here — studying, working, paying taxes, and contributing to our community. I was proud to be nominated for permanent residency, yet we are still waiting endlessly for a decision.
The uncertainty has placed enormous strain on my husband, our two young sons, and myself. Our health coverage and documents are expiring, limiting our ability to work, travel, or plan even the simplest parts of life. Career opportunities are slipping away, and we cannot visit our loved ones abroad for fear of not being allowed to return.
We followed every rule and gave our best to Canada, but our lives remain on hold. The silence and delays leave us feeling invisible and deeply discouraged.”
“I came to Canada with my husband to build a future together. We applied for permanent residency, but our application remains in background checks with no updates for years. This prolonged uncertainty has left us feeling stuck and anxious.
We cannot return to Iran, and career opportunities remain out of reach. I am unable to advance professionally, and my husband’s work permit is still pending, limiting his ability to contribute fully. We face constant stress over renewing health coverage and essential documents, while every aspect of daily life feels uncertain.
The waiting has taken a heavy emotional toll. We long for stability, the ability to plan our family’s future, and the chance to feel at home in the country we love. Each day of silence deepens our worry and frustration.”
“My spouse and I came to Canada to pursue a master’s degree, and I joined as a dependent. After submitting our PR application, we waited months without any news. With follow-ups through our MP, Ontario eventually issued our certificate, and our application was sent to the federal stage. Since then, it has been stuck in security checks, and even after receiving a recent notice, nothing has changed—our file hasn’t been reviewed.
The cost of this stream was significant, and during this time, we’ve been unable to start plans for having children, buying a home, or launching a business. Even our small business, which would have employed Canadian workers, has been put on hold. My spouse had hoped to continue studying, but tuition and the uncertainty of our status forced them to pause. We feel trapped in a long period of limbo, unsure what the future holds.”
I came to Canada with my team through the Start-Up Visa Program on work permits, ready to grow our business. We have completed all eligibility requirements and medical exams, yet our Permanent Residency applications remain stuck in security checks, with some team members still waiting. This prolonged delay has serious consequences. We cannot access government programs, loans, or investment opportunities essential for scaling our innovation, which undermines our competitiveness. Our families face constant stress—repeated medical exams, permit renewals, and uncertainty about children’s futures. Living in limbo prevents us from integrating into society, investing in housing, or planning long-term. The emotional strain, anxiety, and instability continue to affect our well-being, despite our commitment and contributions to Canada.
I arrived in Canada with my husband, full of hope to build our future here. We submitted our Permanent Residency application with dedication, believing it would open the doors to stability and belonging. Months have passed since the background checks began, yet our file remains pending.
We have not seen our families since coming to Canada, and the long separation has been heartbreaking. The stress of endless waiting has worsened a women’s health condition I had been managing, eventually leading to surgery. Recovery has been physically draining and emotionally overwhelming, made harder by the uncertainty of our status.
My husband, a skilled carpenter, dreams of starting his own business and contributing fully to Canada. Yet without Permanent Residency, our lives, health, and future remain on hold. These delays weigh heavily on everything we are working to build.
My spouse and I entered Canada in 2021. I hold a Master’s in Chemical Engineering and work as a Product Manager, while my spouse is completing a PhD in Electrical Engineering.
We submitted our Canadian Experience Class application in August 2023 and entered Background Check in January 2024.
IRCC’s website states an average processing time of 5 months, yet we have now been waiting 24 months—nearly five times longer. This prolonged uncertainty has severely disrupted our lives.
I have lost career opportunities without PR status, while my spouse requires PR to join the industry upon graduation. We cannot plan basic milestones like buying a home, starting a family, or investing long term. The stress has deeply affected our mental health.
Canada has been my home since 2019. I first arrived as a postdoctoral researcher and later continued as a permanent researcher in Quebec, dedicating more than five years of my life to advancing science and contributing to this country.
In October 2023, I applied for permanent residency, believing the process would be fair and timely. I have not seen my family for years, holding on to the hope that soon I would be able to reunite with them.
Every day I check my account, waiting for an update, while colleagues from other countries have already received their status. The silence is crushing.
Instead of stability, I live in constant uncertainty. This endless waiting has deeply shaken my health, my future, and the sense of belonging I have worked so hard to build here.
I am speaking as a mother. My daughter Anahita graduated from high school here in Canada and was accepted to Memorial University.
But since June 2023, she has been unable to start her studies because our Permanent Residency application is still stuck in security check.
She has already deferred her admission three times and even had to apply again just to keep her spot at the university. This is not fair for a young student who only dreams of continuing her education.
We have lived in Canada for almost five years. We have studied, worked, and paid taxes — but my daughter’s future is on hold.
I ask for fairness. Security checks should not take this long. Students like my daughter deserve a chance to move forward with their lives.
My son and I came to Canada in July 2022. He was only 12 then, starting Grade 8. Today, he is 16 and in Grade 11—and for all these years, he has grown up without his father by his side.
I applied for my husband’s open work permit in July 2023, and since November 2023 his application has been stuck in security screening. For almost two year now, we have received no answer.
My husband has no military or government background. There is no clear reason why this process should take so long. Meanwhile, our family has suffered greatly. My son is losing precious years without his father during the most important stage of his life.
We are just an ordinary family, working hard and contributing to Canada. Our only wish is to live together.
I respectfully ask for your help to end this unfair wait and reunite us as a family.
It took twenty years for my husband and me to finally be together and get married. Before that, I myself spent nine long years waiting to enter Canada. Now, after overcoming all those struggles, we face yet another barrier: for the past twenty-six months, my husband’s permanent residency application has been stuck behind closed doors in prolonged security checks. During this painful wait, I even lost my father, a loss I had to endure without the comfort and support of my husband by my side. All of my family members are here in Canada—yet my husband, the person who means the most to me, is still absent. This endless delay has caused severe financial struggles, harmed my health from overwork, and left deep emotional scars from our forced separation.
Above all, it contradicts Canada’s core values of family unity and keeping loved ones together.
For 25 months, I have been separated from my wife and my two young children, who are just 6 and 9 years old, because of endless security background checks in our Express Entry application.
In these long months, I have missed their birthdays, their first days of school, and the chance to hold them when they were scared. My wife has been left alone — carrying all the weight of raising our children, while surviving illness, financial hardship, and even the fear and displacement of a 12-day war.
No family should have to endure this. We followed every rule, we waited patiently, but waiting has turned into suffering. All we ask for is fairness, transparency, and timely decisions — so that my children and my wife can finally come to Canada and be with their father again.
When I came to Canada, I carried the dream of building something meaningful. My team and I started a health-tech company with the hope of helping patients and contributing to Canada’s economy. We submitted our Start-Up Visa application years ago, provided every document, completed every medical exam, and shared every business update. Yet, after all this time, our file still sits in uncertainty. Investors have walked away, and without permanent residency we cannot access loans, secure certifications, or grow our company. Beyond business, the delays have touched my life deeply—I lost my father and could not return to say goodbye. We also face heavy financial burdens as temporary residents. Every day feels like waiting in limbo, unable to move forward, unable to go back, watching precious years of our lives slip away.
Our Key Demands:
An end to discriminatory delays for #IranianPRapplicants
Transparency and clear timelines in the PR process
A system that reflects Canada’s values of fairness, equality, and family
📍 Parliament Hill, Ottawa
⏰ 10:00 am – 4:00 PM
.jpg)
Click on the images to see the full album.
