Regulation 186(v) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations provides that a foreign national may work off campus if: (v) if they are the holder of a study permit and (i) they are a full-time student enrolled at a designated learning institution as defined in section 211.1, (ii) the program in which they are enrolled is a post-secondary academic, vocational or professional training program, or a vocational training program at the secondary level offered in Quebec, in each case, of a duration of six months or more that leads to a degree, diploma or certificate, and (iii) although they are permitted to engage in full-time work during a regularly scheduled break between academic sessions, they work no more than 20 hours per week during a regular academic session; In brief, international students can work can work part time (up to 20 hours a week) during a regular academic session and full time during regularly scheduled breaks between academic sessions. The Guidelines According to the IRCC Guidelines, international students can work off campus without a permit, provided that all of the following statements are true: they hold a valid study permit they are full-time students enrolled at a designated learning institution (DLI) the program in … Read More
Digital Nomads and Immigration
Over the course of the past several years I have noticed a steady increase in the number of what I call digital nomads seeking to immigrate to Canada. These individuals, often avid readers of Tim Ferris’s The Four Hour Work Week, typically work from home. They are hyper efficient, and through delegation and automation can accomplish in twenty hours what most people take forty hours to do. They work on contract, often with multiple employers, or are self-employed. While they have skills that would make them very marketable in the Canadian labour force, most do not want to give up the freedom that they have built just to obtain permanent residency. The question that they all have is simple. Can they immigrate to Canada without having to become an employee? Economic Immigration Programs Specifically for Entrepreneurs Most Canadian economic immigration programs discourage self-employment. For example, in the Canadian Experience Class, self-employment in Canada does not count towards the one-year work experience requirement. In Express Entry, meanwhile, self-employment does not earn any points for Canadian work experience. Most skills-based provincial nomination programs also prohibit independent contractor work, and even set caps on what percentage of a Canadian business a prospective immigrant … Read More
Work Permits for Vulnerable Workers
Section 207.1 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (the “IRPR”) states that (modified for ease of reading): 207.1 (1) A work permit may be issued under section 200 to a foreign national in Canada if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the foreign national is experiencing or is at risk of experiencing abuse in the context of their employment in Canada and if they (a) hold a work permit; or (b) previously held a work permit, have applied for a renewal of that permit and are authorized to work in Canada under implied status. Family member of vulnerable worker (2) A work permit may be issued to a foreign national in Canada who is a family member of a person described in paragraph (1)(a) or (b). In other words, temporary foreign workers in Canada who are experiencing, or have experienced abuse, can apply for open work permits. People who have engaged in unauthorized work or have not complied with employment conditions are not excluded from the program. The objectives of IRPR r. 207.1 are to: provide migrant workers who are experiencing abuse, or who are at risk of abuse, with a distinct means to leave their employer; mitigate the … Read More
Caregiver Judicial Reviews
The history of caregiver programming in Canada, aimed at providing pathways to permanent residency for caregivers, dates back decades, with key developments occurring after the introduction of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). There have been four main caregiver pathways since the 1950s: Live-in Caregiver Program (1992 to 2014): This program was established to bring qualified temporary workers to Canada to provide in-home care for children, the elderly, or the disabled. It allowed caregivers to apply for permanent residency after accumulating sufficient work experience in Canada, defined as at least 24 months or a total of 3,900 hours within a minimum of 22 months. Caring for Children and Caring for People with High Medical Needs pilots (2014 to 2019): These pilot programs were introduced for caregivers with two years of full-time Canadian work experience in eligible occupations, including registered nurses and licensed practical nurses. The pilots required specific language and education qualifications and were closed to new applications in June 2019, with existing applications processed by October 2019. Interim Pathway for Caregivers (March 4 to July 8, 2019): This temporary pathway allowed caregivers who were already in Canada and met specific criteria—including work experience and language proficiency—to apply for … Read More
Spousal Sponsorship and Social Assistance
Section 133 of Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (the “Regulations“) prohibits a Canadian citizen or permanent resident from sponsoring a foreign family member (generally a spouse, common-law partner, parent or grandparent) if the Canadian is in receipt of social assistance for a reason other than a disability. The Regulations define social assistance as being any benefit, whether money, goods or services, provided to or on behalf of a person by a province under a program of social assistance. It includes assistance for food, shelter, clothing, fuel, utilities, household supplies, personal requirements and health care not provided by public health care. Pursuant to the internal Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC“) e-mails below, it is important to note that IRCC does not consider subsidized housing to be social assistance. Section 133(1)(k) of the Regulations explicitly provides that a person can still sponsor a foreign family member to immigrate to Canada if the sponsor receives the social assistance because of a disability. Previous Receipt of Social Assistance Depending on the circumstances, the previous receipt of social assistance can render a sponsor ineligible. Section 133(1)(b) of the Regulations provides that a sponsor must intend to fulfil the obligations in the sponsorship undertaking. In Alriyati … Read More
Espionage and Immigrating to Canada
Section 34(1) of Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act provides, amongst other things, that a foreign national or Canadian permanent resident is inadmissible to Canada for engaging in an act of espionage that is against Canada or that is contrary to Canada’s interests, or being a member of an organization that there are reasonable grounds to believe engages, has engaged or will engage in espionage against Canada or that is contrary to Canada’s interests. It is one of the most serious inadmissibilities in Canadian immigration law. Guidelines Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (“IRCC”) Enforcement Manual 2 – Inadmissibilities contains the following definitions and guidance to officers regarding how immigration officials are to determine whether someone is inadmisisble to Canada for espionage. Espionage is defined as a method of information gathering by spying; that is, the gathering of information in a surreptitious manner, secretly seeking out information usually from a hostile country to benefit one’s own country. Paragraph A34(1)(a) contains two possible allegations that could render a permanent resident or foreign national inadmissible to Canada for acts of espionage: 1. if the act of espionage is against Canada, or 2. if the act of espionage is contrary to Canada’s interests. Espionage “against Canada” … Read More
Humanitarian & Compassionate Applications
People who would not normally be eligible to become permanent residents of Canada may be able to apply on humanitarian and compassionate (“H&C“) grounds. Humanitarian and compassionate grounds apply to people with exceptional cases. Here are 2020 approval statistics for humanitarian & compassionate class applications. Here are approval statistics for 2018 – 2023 (January – August). Sample Decisions Below are sample H&C decisions that were used in an Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada training session. For each example, IRCC provided a chat to show a portion of the officer’s decision-making steps to describe context of the application. As can be seen, a big deficiency in many H&C applications is the applicant not providing documentary examples to substantiate their assertions in claim. The H&C requests were based on the following situations: Domestic violence in Mexico from two former partners Discrimination in Japan Criminal gangs in Honduras Members of a drug cartel Land dispute Adverse country conditions in Bulgaria Membership in a political party Adverse country conditions in China Adverse country conditions in Fiji Religious discrimination in Bangladesh COVID-19 In the following years there will likely be many humanitarian & compassionate consideration applications filed by people who worked as front-line workers during … Read More
A37 – Inadmissibility for Organized Crime
Section 37 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (the “IRPA“) provides that a permanent resident or foreign national is inadmissible to Canada for organized criminality. It states: 37. (1) A permanent resident or a foreign national is inadmissible on grounds of organized criminality for (a) being a member of an organization that is believed on reasonable grounds to be or to have been engaged in activity that is part of a pattern of criminal activity planned and organized by a number of persons acting in concert in furtherance of the commission of an offence punishable under an Act of Parliament by way of indictment, or in furtherance of the commission of an offence outside Canada that, if committed in Canada, would constitute such an offence, or engaging in activity that is part of such a pattern; or (b) engaging, in the context of transnational crime, in activities such as people smuggling, trafficking in persons or laundering of money or other proceeds of crime. Application (2) Paragraph (1)(a) does not lead to a determination of inadmissibility by reason only of the fact that the permanent resident or foreign national entered Canada with the assistance of a person who is involved in organized … Read More
Withdrawing a Spousal Sponsorship
The first question on the Application to Sponsor and Undertaking form asks…1) If you are found ineligible to sponsor, indicate whether you want to withdraw your sponsorship. All processing fees less $75 will be repaid OR to proceed with the application for permanent residence.
Borderlines Podcast #52 – Ranking Economic Immigrants and Listener Q&A, with Asha Kaushal
A discussion of the philosophy behind economic immigration, how Canada ranks economic immigrants, Ministerial Instructions and listener Q&A. Ashal Kaushal is an Assistant Professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law, where she teaches, amongst other courses, Immigration Law. 6:00 An introduction to Canada’s points system, how Express Entry changed it and Ministerial Instructions. 14:30 The three models of economic immigration. The Human Capital Model, the Demand-Driven Model and the Neo-Corporatist Model 22:00 How the same job offer can be worth different points depending on the immigration program. 28:30 Is it possible to qualify the value of a prospective economic immigrant through their job? 32:00 Why are the points what they are? Why would a job offer go from 600 to 200 / 50, for example? How did the change from Conservative to Liberal government change? 37:30 A ranking system based on wage. 44:00 Ministerial Instructions Listener Questions 55:30 How long will Express Entry last before they bring in a whole new system? 1:00 Should there be country caps on economic immigration? Will India remain the top source country of immigrants? 1:06 What, if anything, should be done about how the federal and provincial governments have … Read More