Humanitarian & Compassionate (H&C) Applications – Delays and BacklogsAccording to recent reports, H&C applications now face wait times ranging from 12 to 600 months

Lloyd Hunter
Oct 12
2 min read

According to recent reports, H&C applications now face wait times ranging from 12 to 600 months (up to 50 years).
IRCC has confirmed a backlog of ~49,900 cases. The annual admissions target for H&C in the 2025 immigration levels plan is only about 1,100 spots. For Hong Kong applicants specifically, reports indicate approximately 21,000 pending cases, but only 1,800 admissions are allocated in 2025.
H&C backlogs demonstrate how discretionary programs become overwhelmed when demand spikes. While H&C is meant to provide relief for exceptional hardship, the numbers suggest the system cannot balance compassion with immigration targets.

🔹 Why Are Delays Increasing?

High Demand During Pandemic Years – Many individuals who lost status or pathways during COVID-19 turned to H&C as a last resort. Hong Kong residents especially, due to political changes back home, applied in large numbers hoping for leniency.
Resource Allocation by IRCC – IRCC has shifted processing resources to meet Express Entry and PNP targets. H&C cases, which require individualized assessment, are resource-intensive and therefore deprioritized.
Policy Shift – The 2025 immigration levels plan reduced H&C quotas from 13,750 in 2024 to 10,000 in 2025, showing a clear government pivot toward economic immigration and away from discretionary H&C approvals.

Impact on Hong Kong Residents

For Hong Kong applicants, there are an estimated 21,000 pending H&C cases but just 1,800 available spots this year.
Some Hong Kong applicants mistakenly believe that the Hong Kong PR pathway (Stream A/B) is part of H&C. In reality, it is a separate public policy program with clear requirements and faster processing.
The 21,000 pending HK H&C applications against only 1,800 spots show that over 90% will not be processed in 2025.

Advice:

The Hong Kong Pathway is a separate public policy program with clear requirements and relatively faster processing. Applicants should not feel overwhelmed or panic about recent reports. Instead, they are encouraged to seek professional guidance to explore options such as Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs), Express Entry, or study/work permit strategies, rather than relying on H&C.