Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has a Labour Market Impact Assessment (“LMIA“) exemption for post-doctoral fellows awarded a Doctorate of Philosophy and research award recipients. The advantage of such an exemption is that a person can obtain a work permit without the need of the prospective employer to first test the Canadian labour market. Post-doctoral fellows holding a Ph.D. or its equivalent To qualify for a work permit under this LMIA exemption, the prospective foreign worker must: have completed, or be expecting to complete shortly, their doctorate; be working in a field related to that in which they earned, or are earning, their Ph.D.; be the direct recipient of the award involving work and remuneration; actively contribute to and benefit a Canadian research project; demonstrate academic excellence or expertise in a field related to the particular work to be undertaken; be working in a time-limited position that reflects the experience and expertise of the applicant and the role that they will play on the project; have a significant role to play or value to add to the research project. hold an official position or an affiliation or registration with a credible academic or educational institution or agency in their country … Read More
The Global Talent Stream
On June 12, 2017 Canada’s Department of Employment and Social Development introduced the Global Talent Stream. Companies applying for workers through the Global Talent Stream have access to a streamlined Labour Market Impact Assessment process that provides eligible employers with: priority processing of applications for the Global Talent Stream and a client-focused service for the development of the Labour Market Benefits Plan, with a service standard of 10 business days that is expected to be met 80% of that time; flexible recruitment requirements; and elgibility for workers to have their work permits processed in 10 business days by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Category A and B Employers Employers are eligible for the Global Talent Stream if they are hiring unique and specialized talent and if that talent has bent referred to the Global Talent Stream by one of ESDC’s designated partners. The list of designated referral partners for the Global Talent Stream includes the following organizations: Pan-Canadian Business Development Bank of Canada Council of Canadian Innovators Global Affairs Canada’s Trade Commissioner Service Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada – Accelerated Growth Service Invest in Canada National Research Council – Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP) Privy Council Office, Special Projects … Read More
National Documentation Packages
The Immigration and Refugee’s Board (“IRB“) National Documentation Package (“NDP“) is the starting point for compiling information for a refugee case. The NDP contains information on almost every country on earth. Each package contains a selection of documents on human rights, security conditions, and other issues that are relevant to the determination of refugee protection claims. They are regularly reviewed and updated. Each NDP is broken down into the following sections: General Information and Maps Human Rights Identification Documents and Citizenship Political Activists and Organizations Gender, Domestic Violence, and Children Sexual Orientation Criminality and Corruption Military Service Issues Judiciary, Legal, and Penal Systems Police and Security Forces Media Freedoms Religion Nationality, Ethnicity, and Race Exit/Entry and Freedom of Movement Labour, Employment, and Unions Other It is important that anyone with a case before the Refugee Protection Division familiarize themselves with the NDP for their country of origin. Related Jurisprudence Refugee Protection Division members do not have a duty to make themselves aware of information before it becomes vetted and becomes part of a country’s National Documentation Package. An exception is if an applicant directs the Member’s attention to the information in question prior to a decision being made. (Ramos v. … Read More
Determining Equivalency – Whether a Criminal Offence Will Make You Inadmissible to Canada
An individual who has been convicted of offense outside of Canada needs to determine what the equivalent offense would be in Canada.
Mootness
The doctrine of mootness is an aspect of a general policy that a court may decline to decide a case which raises merely a hypothetical or abstract question. It applies when the decision of a court will not have the effect of resolving a live controversy which affects or may affect the rights of the parties.
The Reasonableness of a Proposed Program of Study
One of the more common reasons for a study permit application to be refused is because a visa officer determines that an applicant’s proposed program of study in Canada is unreasonable given the applicant’s background. The wording of such refusals varies, but it typically includes statements about how an individual could study in a similar program for a cheaper cost in their country of residence, or that there is no logical academic progression given their previous studies. The following is an example of such a refusal. The Law Visa officers have the authority to determine whether a study permit applicant’s proposed program of study is reasonable. It is reasonable for an officer to find that an intended program does not accord with an applicant’s previous academic history. Officers can also question applicants who are abruptly changing career paths. However, the decisions of visa officers must demonstrate that all evidence of applicants was considered. Where they do not, the decisions will be unreasonable. For example, in Taiwo v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2018 FC 91, Justice Shore stated that: The Officer should not have doubted the Applicant’s explanations regarding his change of career path. The Applicant first studied in Sociology from … Read More
The 2021 NOC and TEERs
The following is a summary of a 2022 Memo to the Minister. In 2022 Canada is changing the National Occupational Classification (“NOC”). The new NOC is called NOC 2021. Among the changes in NOC 2021 is the replacement of NOC 2016’s five Skill Type / Level Groupings – used to determine eligibility for several Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada programs – with a new categorization of six TEER (representing the requisite Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities of each occupation). Transition The transition to the new NOC will work as follows. NOC 2016 NOC 2021 Skill Type 0 TEER 0 Skill Level A TEER 1 Skill Level TEER 2 and TEER 3 Skill Level C TEER 4 Skill Level D TEER 5 Occupations have moved throughout the classification to align with this methodology. This will result in minor changes for most programs (e.g., the use of new terminology), but more substantive changes are needed for programs with narrower occupational criteria where the current Skill Type/Level groupings are used, including those managed under Express Entry (i.e., Federal Skilled Workers Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program, Canadian Experience Class, and a portion of the Provincial Nominee Program) and the Atlantic Immigration Program. Changes to … Read More
Self-Employed Class – Becomming Economically Established
Regulation 100(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, SOR/2002-227 states: For the purposes of subsection 12(2) of the Act, the self-employed persons class is hereby prescribed as a class of persons who may become permanent residents on the basis of their ability to become economically established in Canada and who are self-employed persons within the meaning of subsection 88(1). Becomming Economically Established The IRCC Guidelines state the following about how officers should assess a person’s ability to become economically established in Canada. A self-employed applicant must demonstrate the intention and ability to create his/her own employment in Canada through cultural activities, athletics or the purchase and management of a farm. A person’s financial assets may be a measure of intent and ability to establish economically in Canada. There is no minimum investment level for a self-employed person. The capital required depends on the nature of the work. Applicants must have sufficient funds to create an employment opportunity for themselves and support themselves and their family members. This includes the ability to be self-supporting until the self-employment has been created. A demonstrated ability to support themselves and their family through their talents could be a good indicator of their ability … Read More
Regional Management Plan – Port of Spain
The following is a summary of the International Region Integrated Management Plan of the immigration functions at the Canadian Embassy in Port of Spain (the “Environmental Overview”). The Environmental Overview was prepared as part of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2014-2015 planning exercise, and is current as of January 2013. Environment The Canadian visa office in Port of Spain (“CIC Port of Spain”) provides visa services to residents of Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, French Guyana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, MarieGalante, Martinique, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Barthelemy, St. Eustatius, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, Saint Martin, St. Maarten, St. Vincent & Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad & Tobago. Area travel can be problematic between countries in the Caribbean as there are few direct links and some of the airlines are notoriously unreliable. Often travellers are required to transit through Miami or Panama. … Along with the pooling of PA resources, PR unit also pooled files so that all files are placed in the file location and whichever PA or officer gets it, must process it. For example, one officer may conduct the initial review of a file and then queue for interview, however, another officer may do the interview. This has created an equitable … Read More
Removal Orders in Absentia
The Federal Court of Appeal in Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) v. Mudalige Don has answered the following certified question: Does the Minister’s issuance of an exclusion order pursuant to subparagraph 228(1)(c)(v) of the [Regulations] before the member of a crew subject to the exclusion order has any contact with the immigration authorities constitute a breach of procedural fairness because it deprives the foreign national of the opportunity to make a refugee claim? Background and Facts Crew members may enter Canada without temporary resident visas, work permits, or even passports. They do not need to report individually at ports of entry. Their status as crew members enables them to disembark and circulate freely so long as they remain crew members and leave on the ship on which they came. However, pursuant to s. 184(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (“IRPR”), a foreign national who enters Canada as a member of a crew must leave Canada within 72 hours of ceasing to be a member of a crew. The refugee claimant in Mudalige Don was a Sri Lankan crew member aboard the foreign registered vessel M/V Lake Ontario. On November 27, 2011, the ship docked in Oshawa. On December 2, 2011, the ship’s agent filed … Read More