Citizenship and Immigration Canada has removed 45 countries from the designated country or territory list, and added four. The countries removed include Iran, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore.
Environmental Overview – Abu Dhabi
The following is a summary of the Environmental Overview of the immigration functions at the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi (the “Environmental Overview”). The Environmental Overview was prepared as part of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2015-2016 planning exercise, and is current as of March 2015. Environment The Canadian High Embassy in Abu Dhabi (“CIC Abu Dhabi”) provides visa services to residents of Yemen and the six Gulf Cooperation Council (“GCC”) countries: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Due to continued unrest in Yemen, this office has not been able to conduct an area trip there since spring of 2010. We are unable to predict when we will be able to resume travel. This has created a large inventory of cases in Yemen, primarily refugees. Serving temporary resident applications from Yemen presents a challenge in itself. Yemeni citizens cannot easily travel outside the country, and they must provide biometrics. Getting documents in and out is also difficult because some couriers have suspended their services in Yemen. Area trips to Saudi Arabia are subject to all restrictions applicable to that country, such as that women must have their heads covered and must be accompanied by a man in all public places. Quality Assurance CIC Abu Dhabi shares … Read More
COVID-19 and Canadian Immigration
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian government has implemented several measures that impact immigration programs and the ability to enter Canada. These include: Prohibiting Symptomatic Individuals from Entering Canada Restricting who can Travel to Canada from the United States of America Restricting who can Travel to Canada Internationally Masks During Travel and Self-Isolation Upon Arrival into Canada Suspending the Processing of Certain Temporary Residence Applications Providing Flexibility for Students Introducing new Rules for Employers of Foreign Workers Introducing a new Ground of Inadmissibility for Failure to Self-Isolate Not Returning Incomplete Permanent Residence Applications Suspending the Collection of Biometrics Suspending Immigration and Refugee Board Hearings Suspending Federal Court Timelines Please note that the Canadian government is expected to amend its policies as needed in the coming weeks and months and as such we ask that you contact us for advice before relying on the information provided in this memo. Note also that validity of these orders may be extended or cancelled at any time. PROHIBITING SYMPTOMATIC INDIVIDUALS FROM ENTERING CANADA On April 17, 2020 Transport Canada enacted Interim Order to Prevent Certain Persons from Boarding Flights to Canada due to COVID-19, No. 6. It provides that any persons exhibiting … Read More
Temporary Resident Permits (Pre June 28, 2019)
People who do not meet the requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (the “IRPA“), and most commonly people who are criminally inadmissible to Canada and who are not eligible to apply for rehabilitation, require Temporary Resident Permits (“TRPs“) in order to enter or remain in Canada.
Psychological Reports
In John v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2016 FC 915, Justice Brown provided a helpful summary on how psychological reports are to be treated by the Immigration and Refugee Board and visa officers. He wrote: Having come to this conclusion, it is not necessary to deal with the other issues re the psychologist’s report and the Gender Guidelines. However, in connection with the psychologist’s report, the RPD appears to have rejected the psychologist’s report on grounds that were directly and recently criticized by the majority of the Supreme Court of Canada in Kanthasamy v Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2015 SCC 61 (Kanthasamy). The RPD states at paras 13-14 of the Decision: [13] The panel, however, does not find [the psychotherapist’s] assessment to be persuasive evidence and determines that [the psychotherapist] is in no position to state categorically that the PC’s mental and emotional state are the result of her alleged problems in Antigua. [14] (…) The panel finds that, although the PC may be suffering from anxiety and depression, this may or may not be related to the causes described by the PC in her evidence. Accordingly, the panel gives the psychological assessment, no weight. [emphasis added] In Kanthasamy at para … Read More
Religious Exemption to IRCC Photo Requirements
From requiring that foreign nationals have their photos taken as part of the biometrics process to visa applicants needing to provide headshots in their applications, many Canadian immigration programs have a photo requirement. There is no exemption from the photograph for religious reasons. Below is a memo that was prepared for the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada in 2013 confirming that there are no exemptions to the photograph requirements in response to a request for an exemption from the Amish community.
IRCC Application Refusal – Example of Internal Reasons for Study Permit Refusal
In a previous blog post I wrote about how IRCC’s internal reasons for refusal are often much more detailed than what is in the refusal letters that IRCC sends to refused applicants. The recent case of Aguilar v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2016 FC 947 illustrates this. There, the refusal letter stated: The checklist reasons for refusal further added that the reasons for refusal were “employment prospects of country of residence” and “current employment situation.” The internal reasons for refusal, which could only be obtained through filing an Access to Information Act request or going to Federal Court were much more detailed, and stated that: As you can see, it would be impossible for people who did not have the internal reasons to fully understand why their application was refused. It is for this reason that people with refusals should always seek to obtain the full reasons for refusal before re-applying.
DUIs to Become Serious Criminality
On June 21, 2018 Bill C-46, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (offences relating to conveyances) and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (“Bill C-46”) received Royal Assent. Bill C-46 is the companion legislation to Bill C-45, The Cannabis Act, which essentially legalized the possession of regulated marijuana for personal use in Canada. Bill C-46 reforms the transportation related offences in Canada’s Criminal Code including drinking and driving, dangerous driving, fleeing the scene of an accident, refusing to give a breathalyzer, fleeing the police and operating a vehicle while prohibited from doing so. Bill C-46 repeals all existing Criminal Code provisions regarding these offences and replaces them with offences that have slightly different wording and new maximum sentences. The changes in Bill C-46 will come into force 180 days after Royal Assent, which is December 21, 2018. On that day, as a result of the changes, many individuals who could previously travel to or stay in Canada will become inadmissible for serious criminality. People who could previously enter Canada will now instead be denied entry. Permanent residents who commit any of the above actions could be deported. While the Liberal government has indicated that it is aware that these harsh consequences … Read More
Summary of June 26 Changes to BC PNP Guide
On June 26, 2018 the British Columbia Provincial Nomination Program (the “BC PNP”) clarified and/or modified several aspects of its programs. Skilled Immigration The more significant revisions that applicants and practitioners should be aware of are: Previously, applicants to the BC PNP – Skilled Worker programs, and their spouses, could not have a combined ownership / equity stake of more than 10% in the British Columbia company that was offering them employment. Now, they cannot have held more than 10% ownership in the five pear period preceding the application and throughout the BC PNP application process. Applicants to the BC PNP Tech Pilot must now qualify under 1 out of 29 eligible occupations. The job offer must be at least one year in duration, and there must be at least 120 calendar days remaining on the job offer at the time of the application. The BC PNP previously would not nominate individuals if they were not lawfully admitted in their country of current residence. This requirement has been removed. Post nomination the BC PNP no longer wishes for employers to notify them of any promotions, and instead wants to be notified of demotions. The BC PNP has changed the wording … Read More
Canada’s Visa Office in Warsaw
Canada’s visa office in Warsaw processes permanent residence applications from Armenia, Belarus, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It processes temporary residence applications from Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland. Temporary Residency Processing From 2014 – 2016, the Warsaw visa office’s approval rates for temporary residence applications were as follows: Year Category Applications Received Approval Time 2016 Visitor 1625 63 Student 153 41 Worker 161 62 eTA 9 N/A 2015 Visitor 1693 66 Student 187 37 Worker 983 81 eTA 2014 Visitor 2515 69 Student 340 43 Worker 1225 82 The above statistics do not include the electronic applications from nationals of countries where IRCC-Warsaw has file processing agreements with local offices. Full Report A full copy of a report that IRCC’s Warsaw office sent can be found below. It was obtained through an Access to Information Act request.