Many young people from certain countries around the world are able to come to Canada to work on open work permits for specified periods under the Working Holiday Program (“WHP“). The WHP is a part of the International Experience Canada (“IEC“) program. The IEC also includes other programs such as the Young Professionals Program which require that applicants have pre-arranged employment. What many people don’t realize is that the WHP rules for specific countries vary dramatically. As well, they are changing constantly. So if you see you’re country on the list below, and you notice that the rules for your country are much more stringent than other countries, you may want to lobby your government to negotiate more flexible terms with Canada. Country Age Eligibility Maximum Validity (Months) Frequency of Participation Quota Australia 18-30 24 No limit 8,900 Belgium 18-30 12 Once 750 Chile 18-35 12 Once 725 Costa Rica 18-35 12 Twice in IEC, Once in WHP 70 Croatia 18-35 12 Twice 275 Czech Republic 18-35 12 Twice in IEC, Once in WHP 1,000 Denmark 18-35 12 Once 300 Estonia 18-35 12 Twice in IEC, Once in WHP 80 France 18-35 12 Twice in IEC, Once in WHP … Read More
Applying for a Work Permit at the Port of Entry
Many individuals know that people who are exempt from the requirement to obtain a Temporary Resident Visa can apply for a Work Permit at a Canadian Port of Entry. What many do not realize is that this extends to people from any country who are returning to Canada after a trip to the United States. Specifically, r. 190 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations states that: (3) A foreign national is exempt from the requirement to obtain a temporary resident visa if they are seeking to enter and remain in Canada solely (f) to re-enter Canada following a visit solely to the United States or St. Pierre and Miquelon, if they (i) held a study permit or a work permit that was issued before they left Canada on such a visit or were authorized to enter and remain in Canada as a temporary resident, and (ii) return to Canada by the end of the period initially authorized for their stay or any extension to it; We have made available for purchase on this blog an internal CBSA Memorandum from March 8, 2007, addressing this issue. The price for this document, which was obtained through an Access to Information and Privacy Act request, is $6.95. Our … Read More
Reliability of CIC Cap Figures
Many immigration programs, including the newly enacted Federal Skilled Trades Program, contain caps on the number of people who can apply. Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC“) generally advises people that they should check the CIC website before submitting applications to make sure that the cap has not been exceeded. Unfortunately, CIC has also (successfully) argued in court that the information on their website is not reliable, and that the CIC website stating that the cap is unfilled does not create a legitimate expectation for applicants that the cap is in fact unfilled. In Agama v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2013 FC 135, an applicant was denied a permanent resident visa under the Skilled Workers Class (the “FSWC“). Under the FSWC, CIC considered a maximum of 500 applications in National Occupation Classification 0631 (“NOC 0631“) during the relevant year. CIC posted the following information on its website regarding how many NOC 0631 applications it had received: September 28, 2011 – 209 applications October 10, 2011 – 229 applications November 3, 2011 – 330 applications November 8, 2011 – 335 applications December 1, 2011 – 458 applications The applicant filed her application on November 14, 2011. Considering that the CIC website on December 1 … Read More
Should I Do BC PNP or CEC?
After the work experience requirement for the Canadian Experience Class went from two-years to one, many people have been asking whether they should apply for the BC PNP – Strategic Occupations – Skilled Workers program or the Canadian Experience Class. The following table shows some of the issues that applicants should be aware with each application. It was part of a larger table comparing the BC PNP to many federal economic immigration programs which I wrote in a paper for the 2013 Canadian Bar Association – British Columbia Branch Annual Immigration Conference. Issue BC PNP – Skilled Workers CEC Is a job offer required as part of the application? Yes, and the employer must have at least 3-5 employees depending on its location. No. In fact, there is no requirement that the applicant be employed during the processing of the application. If a job offer is required, can the applicant change employers? Not until after nomination, and the BC PNP may withdraw nomination if the new position does not meet program requirements. N/A If a job offer is required, does the employer have to do recruitment? Yes, although if the employee is a TFW the original recruitment is sufficient. N/A … Read More
Voluntary Departures
Fresh off of last week’s report on people who were declared in 2011 to be inadmissible to Canada when they arrived at the Vancouver International Airport, the following chart obtained through an Access to Information and Privacy Act request shows the source countries of people who were voluntarily allowed to leave YVR without being declared inadmissible to Canada. The top 10 countries were: Citizenship 2011 United States 207 Korea 144 China 109 Hong Kong 49 Taiwan 49 Philippines 37 Japan 34 Mexico 28 Australia 26 Germany 30 Israel 18 British 17 India 14 France 11
Top Source Countries for A44 Reports at YVR
In 2011, 1,108 people were declared inadmissible to Canada when they arrived at the Vancouver International Airport. The following chart obtained through an Access to Information and Privacy Act request shows these individuals’ source countries. The top 10 countries were: Citizenship 2011 United States 247 South Korea 137 Hungary 83 China 72 Taiwan 49 British 40 Australia 35 Iran 30 Hong Kong 26 India 26 Japan 26 Germany 20 Mexico 19
The Residency Test for Citizenship
Confusion exists regarding what the residency test for citizenship is. Bill C-37 provides that someone must be physically present in Canada for three out of the four years before applying for citizenship. However, this Bill is not yet in force. The Koo test therefore still applies.
CIC Closes Seattle, Detroit, Seoul, and Caracas Visa Offices
On January 28 and 29, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC”) announced the closure of two overseas offices, and further restructured its North American Processing Network. The restructuring includes the closure of immigration sections of the Canadian consulates in Detroit and Seattle. Closure of Detroit and Seattle Visa Offices Effectively immediately, the visa offices in Seattle and Detroit are closed. As well, the visa office at Washington D.C. will be very limited in the services which it provides. New U.S. and Canada based Temporary Resident Visa, Study Permit, and Work Permit applications can now be submitted on-line, or to the appropriate visa office as described in the table below. In brief, study permits will be processed in Los Angeles, and work permits will be processed in New York. Individuals with applications in processing do not need to take any steps to ensure that the processing of their applications will continue, as their files are being transferred to their respective new offices. Online New York Los Angeles Washington D.C. Visitor Visas Visitor Visas Visitor Visas Services for diplomats, government officials, and their family members Work Permits Work Permits Study Permits Study Permits Temporary Resident Permits Temporary Resident Permits Rehabilitation Rehabilitation Authorizations to … Read More
PR Cards will no Longer be Mailed to Permanent Residents’ Representatives
On January 14, 2013, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC“) issued Operational Bulletin 491 – Mailing Permanent Resident Cards (“PR Cards“) to Representatives (“OB-491“). OB-491 is an update to the 2012 Pilot Project to mail permanent resident cards directly to applicants instead of having them attend at a CIC office. Many permanent residents have been requesting that CIC mail their PR Cards to their authorized representatives. This apparently caused CIC to be concerned that authorized representatives would forward the PR Cards to permanent residents overseas, which is (possibly) contrary to (the somewhat unclear) subsection 55 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (the “Regulations“), which states: DELIVERY 55. A permanent resident card shall only be provided or issued in Canada. OB-491 accordingly clarifies that CIC will mail PR Cards issued to new immigrants (also known as “Phase I Cards“) to third parties in Canada, including friends, relatives, service providers or paid representatives, in order to facilitate the processing and issuance of PR Cards to new immigrants as they may not yet have a permanent address in Canada. OB-491 also stipulates that CIC will only mail renewal or replacement PR Cards (also known as “Phase 2 Cards“) directly to applicants with permanent residential addresses … Read More
Due Process When Everything is a Crime: Court Strikes Down Human Smuggling Law
The British Columbia Supreme Court (“BCSC“) in R v. Appulonappa has struck down s. 117 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (“IRPA“). Section 117 theoretically prohibited human smuggling. Its exact wording was: 117. (1) No person shall knowingly organize, induce, aid or abet the coming into Canada of one or more persons who are not in possession of a visa, passport or other document required by this Act. (2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) with respect to fewer than 10 persons is guilty of an offence and liable (a) on conviction on indictment (i) for a first offence, to a fine of not more than $500,000 or to a term of imprisonment of not more than 10 years, or to both, or (ii) for a subsequent offence, to a fine of not more than $1,000,000 or to a term of imprisonment of not more than 14 years, or to both; and (b) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $100,000 or to a term of imprisonment of not more than two years, or to both. (3) A person who contravenes subsection (1) with respect to a group of 10 persons or more is guilty of an offence … Read More