Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you, officials, for being here.
In 2020, the approval rate for temporary resident visas for spouses and partners with a spousal sponsorship application was 46%. However, individuals residing in a visa-exempt country, who need only to apply for an electronic travel authorization, had a 90% approval rate.
Please explain to the committee this difference in approval rates.
A further question on this is, why are applicants from visa-exempt countries more successful with their applications than those from countries requiring visas?