Note: this reflects processing times reported during the COVID-19 pandemic period and may not reflect current IRCC timelines — check current published processing times before relying on these figures.A member nominated under a Masters Stream PNP and applying via the paper-based (non-Express-Entry) route asked about realistic PR processing times, having seen no updates for many months.
What the thread reported:- Paper-based applications historically took around 18 months even before COVID, according to one member — notably longer than the 4-5 months some may have expected based on older or informal benchmarks.
- IRCC's own website was showing a total processing time of 24 months for this category at the time, and another member reported having submitted in March 2021 with still no updates by the time of posting.
Takeaway: paper-based, non-EE PR applications following a provincial nomination have historically run much longer than Express Entry timelines — check IRCC's currently published processing time for your specific stream, and treat lack of updates over many months as within the expected range for this pathway rather than automatically a red flag.