Practicing Exclusively in Canadian Immigration Law
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Who we are
Steven Meurrens is a Partner at Larlee Rosenberg, a highly regarded law firm in Vancouver, British Columbia that practices exclusively in Canadian immigration law.
Practice Areas
Our firm practices almost exclusively in Canadian immigration matters, including work permit applications, provincial nominations, skilled worker applications, and more.
Immigration Blog
IRCC/ESDC Employer Compliance Inspections
All employers of temporary foreign workers in Canada need to understand how the employer compliance regime works. Both Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada ("IRCC") as well as the Department of Employment and Social Development ("ESDC") regularly audit and inspect the employers of foreign workers to make sure that they are complying with the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and/or the International Mobility Program (which are the two main programs through which foreign nationals can work in Canada). Both ESDC and IRCC have indicated that about 25% of employers can expect an inspection in any given year. Most of these inspections and audits start with the employer receiving a letter from the Government of Canada informing them that they will be examined on a multitude of factors, including whether they have employed the foreign national in the job that they were supposed to, whether they paid the wages that they were supposed to, whether the employer complied with laws regulating employment, whether they maintained records and whether they took reasonable efforts to provide a workplace that was free of abuse. I have embedded below the standard employer compliance letter that is sent out at the start of an audit. Consequences of Non-Compliance There ...
Language Requirements and Work Permits
Regulation 200(3)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, SOR/2002-227 provides that an officer shall not issue a work permit to a foreign national if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the foreign national is unable to perform the work sought. An issue that is becomming increasingly common is whether someone has sufficient language ability to perform the work sought. IELTS For the most part, the Federal Court has been very deferential to visa officers when assessing whether they have the language requirements to perform the work sought. In Sen v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2022 FC 777, for example, Madam Justice Strickland determined that it was reasonable for a visa officer to determine that someone with a 3.5 IELTS reading score could not perform the duties of a Cook in Canada because they might be unable to follow recipes, read notes from serving staff, and read food safety instructions. In Singh v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2023 FC 170 , Madam Justice McDonald ruled that it was reasonable for a visa officer to determine that an individual with IELTS 5.0 in reading would be unable to safely read road signs, understand safety procedures and regulations, record cargo information and administer bills. ...
Restoration of Status
If a visitor, worker, or student loses their legal status in Canada, they may be eligible to apply for status restoration. This process, known as a restoration application, allows individuals to regain their temporary resident status under specific conditions. According to section 182 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations ("IRPR"), applicants must meet certain eligibility criteria to restore their status in Canada.: 182. On application made by a visitor, worker or student within 90 days after losing temporary resident status as a result of failing to comply with a condition imposed under paragraph 185(a), any of subparagraphs 185(b)(i) to (iii) or paragraph 185(c), an officer shall restore that status if, following an examination, it is established that the visitor, worker or student meets the initial requirements for their stay, has not failed to comply with any other conditions imposed and is not the subject of a declaration made under subsection 22.1(1) of the Act. According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada ("IRCC") Guidelines, if an individual applies to extend their temporary resident status and IRCC refuses the application after their status has expired, the Case Processing Centre – Edmonton will notify them that they can submit a restoration of ...
