The work permit extension applications are currently taking upwards of six months, which is a really long time and that's not just for people who need to extend their stay. It's for people who are changing the conditions of their work permit, if they're moving from one employer to another. There have been some innovative programs that have allowed for the quick change of employers, but the work permit extension application is taking about six months right now, which is causing hardship in terms of getting housing, in terms of getting extended health care, and also with respect to social insurance numbers.
There are immigration impacts on other aspects of people's lives while they're waiting for their work permits to be extended. They can't travel or they will lose their implied status, and if they leave Canada before the work permit is issued and they try to come back, they don't have the right to work. The 183 days' or six months' processing time is very problematic for people who are basically stuck in Canada until their work permit can be processed. It's a matter of just printing out a work permit, or maybe issuing a letter that authorizes employment. There have been some new letters from the government that talk about implied status and say that candidates are allowed to remain in Canada and have access, but there's a date on those letters, which is problematic. It's an arbitrarily decided date four months from the date of the application, whereas implied status based on paragraph 186(u) of the regulations has no date. If a person receives that letter, the employer—