- GenesisLink
April 28, 2026
Stream Watch
Business-class PR applications face the largest fee hike (+$85 to $1,895) effective April 30, 2026 at 9 AM Eastern. PNP fees also rise by $40. Applications submitted and paid before the deadline lock in current rates. Here is what immigration professionals need to review today.
Effective 9:00 AM Eastern tomorrow, April 30, 2026, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is raising permanent residence application fees across all categories. For immigration professionals advising clients on PNP entrepreneur, business-class, or C11-to-PNP pathways, this is a same-day operational priority.
What is Changing: The Full Fee Table
IRCC confirmed the increases on March 27, 2026, and published the formal regulation in the April 4, 2026 Canada Gazette under subsection 303(1.1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. The changes are an inflation-indexed biennial adjustment required by law. The new fees for principal applicants, effective April 30, are:
Business class: $1,895 (up $85 from $1,810) — the largest single-category increase
Provincial Nominee Program: $990 (up $40 from $950)
Right of Permanent Residence Fee (RPRF): $600 (up $25 from $575) — applied to both the principal applicant and accompanying spouse or common-law partner in most programs
Express Entry and most other economic categories: +$25
The official IRCC notice is published at canada.ca .
The Business category increase of $85 represents a 4.7% per-file rise — notably higher than the flat $25 to $40 applied to other categories. On a PNP entrepreneur file with an accompanying spouse, the total increase is $130 (two RPRF increases plus two PNP processing fee increases). A federal business-class PR submission with an accompanying partner increases by $110.
Why This Matters for File Strategy
The rule is straightforward: applications submitted and fees paid before 9:00 AM Eastern on April 30 are processed at the current rate. IRCC does not retroactively apply the new fee to applications already in the queue with the correct old payment attached.
The reverse also applies. If an applicant pays the old fee but IRCC receives the application on or after April 30, the applicant must submit the fee difference before the application can be processed, creating an avoidable delay for files at a critical stage.
For professionals managing PNP business stream files, C11-to-PNP transitions, or federal business-class applications, this creates a clear pre-deadline submission window today. Files that are structurally ready — the business plan, financial model, and supporting documentation complete and reviewed — should be prioritized for immediate submission.
Two additional factors reinforce this urgency.
First, this fee increase coincides with a major structural shift in Ontario. The OINP has confirmed it will revoke all nine of its existing streams — including the current Entrepreneur stream — on May 30, 2026, and replace them with an entirely new framework. If any of your active Ontario PNP business files are anchored to the current stream criteria, the practical submission window is shorter than it appears on the calendar.
Second, for clients using the C11 Significant Benefit Work Permit as the entry mechanism before transitioning to a PNP business nomination, the April 30 fee increase affects the PR stage only. IRCC has not announced changes to work permit processing fees at this time. C11 filing costs remain unchanged for now, but the downstream PR costs should be reflected in client engagements going forward.
What Advisors Should Do Now
Run through your pending files today with three questions:
Is the business case complete and submission-ready? For PNP entrepreneur and business-class files, the business plan, job creation analysis, and financial projections are the most common bottlenecks. If they are not ready today, update your client's total PR cost estimate to reflect the new fee schedule.
Has the applicant been briefed on the RPRF impact for accompanying family members? The RPRF increase applies to both principal applicant and accompanying spouse or common-law partner. For files with a spouse, that adds $50 across both applicants before the program-specific fee is factored in.
Is the fee planning in your client agreement current? If engagement letters or fee disclosures were prepared using the old IRCC schedule, update them before the client's file reaches submission stage.
IRCC's updated fee table and cost calculator are available at ircc.canada.ca .
GenesisLink builds the business case behind the immigration file — the business plan, financial model, job creation analysis, and documentation framework that positions a PNP or business-class application for a strong outcome. If this update affects your current files, contact us or book a strategy call .
