The following is an IRCC one-pager on the major ceremonies of a Punjabi wedding.
Court Certifies Question on Judicial Review of 117(9)(d) Refusals
The Federal Court (the “Court“) in Habtenkiel v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), has certified a question that if answered in the affirmative would seem to pretty much shut the door on humanitarian & compassionate (“H&C“) appeals of s. 117(9)(d) refusals. The certified question is: In light of sections 72(2)(a), 63(1) and 65 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, S.C. 2001, c. 27, and the case of Somodi v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), 2009 FCA 288 (CanLII), [2010] 4 F.C.R. 26 (F.C.A.), where the applicant has made a family class sponsorship application and requested humanitarian and compassionate considerations within the application, is the applicant precluded from seeking judicial review by the Federal Court before exhausting their right of appeal to the Immigration Appeal Division where the right of appeal is limited pursuant to paragraph 117(9)(d) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, SOR/2002-227? That question is long and confusing, but lets break it down.
Borderlines Podcast #145 – Minister Miller Blackmails the Provinces on Immigration Levels, plus IRCC Refusals of Provincial Nominees
This episode answers a listener topic request about an increase in IRCC refusals of provincial nominees. As well, Steven offers his unimpressed thoughts on Marc Miller’s recent statement in response to complaints about huge decreases in provincial nominee quotas that “Provinces and Territories that are willing to work in a responsible manner with Canada, including playing a role in taking on asylum seekers, will have an opportunity to regain coveted Provincial Nominee spots.”
Borderlines Podcast #144 – Restricting Open Spousal Work Permits
<iframe src=”https://embed.acast.com/659f464c3f69070017409684/67991fb2a234f420da42816b?theme=light” frameBorder=”0″ width=”100%” height=”110px”></iframe> On January 21, 2025, IRCC restricted the availability of open spousal work permits to principal applicants working in certain “skilled” professions. Family open work permits are now limited to spouses of foreign workers who are employed in TEER 0 or 1 occupations, or select TEER 2 or 3 occupations in sectors with labour shortages or linked to government priorities such as natural and applied sciences, construction, health care, natural resources, education, sports and military sectors. The move more than reversed a December 2, 2022, announcement that IRCC would be allowing most spouses of workers in Canada to obtain open work permits because, according to the government, it would “improve the emotional well-being, physical health and financial stability of workers by keeping families together” and that the “worker will better integrate into their overall work environment and community.”
Cover Letters
In Sayekan v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2025 FC 97, the Court reiterated that a cover letter can create a presumption that a document was submitted.
Right to Counsel at Interviews
In Brar v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2025 FC 130, Justice Norris reiterated that the right to have counsel present at an interview has been recognized as an element of procedural fairness. While visa officers have the discretion to exclude counsel from an interview, that discretion must be exercised consistently with the duty of fairness and in light of the particular facts of the case. In order to demonstrate that there was a breach of procedural fairness, it must be demonstrated what would have been different had counsel been permitted to attend.
Borderlines Podcast #143 – The Economics of Deporting 1,000,000 Temporary Residents, with Christopher Worswick
Christopher Worswick is a Professor of Economics at Carleton University. We discuss the economics of Canada’s plan to reduce its population, and specifically that 1,000,000 – 2,000,000 foreign students and workers will leave Canada from 2025-2027. Topics include impacts on GDP per capita, unemployment, housing and more.
What Happens After a Judicial Review
The Federal Court of Canada (the “Federal Court“) has the jurisdiction to review immigration decisions, including those of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC“) and the Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA“). The Federal Court will not order a specific result. Rather, the Federal Court will order that the application be sent back for re-determination by a different officer. Many people often wonder how that process works. Jurisprudence In Canada (Commissioner of Competition) v. Superior Propane Inc. (C.A.), 2003 FCA 53, the Federal Court of Appeal stated: The principle of stare decisis is, of course, well known to lawyers and judges. Lower courts must follow the law as interpreted by a higher co-ordinate court. They cannot refuse to follow it: Canada Temperance Act (The), Re, 1939 CanLII 58 (ON CA), [1939] O.R. 570 (C.A.), at page 581, affd 1946 CanLII 351 (UK JCPC), [1946] 2 D.L.R. 1 (P.C.); Woods v. The King, 1951 CanLII 36 (SCC), [1951] S.C.R. 504, at page 515. This principle applies equally to tribunals having to follow the directions of a higher court as in this case. On redetermination, the duty of a tribunal is to follow the directions of the reviewing court. In Canada (Citizenship and … Read More
Borderlines Podcast #142 – Options for International Students Narrowing in 2025, Asylum Claims Increasing, with Lisa Brunner
Lisa Brunner is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of British Columbia (UBC) Centre for Migration Studies. We discuss the current situation international students are facing, the gaslighting over whether they were told that being a student would likely lead them to permanent residency, how post-graduate work permit holders in British Columbia are taking leaves of absence to study French, international students claiming asylum, and more.
Borderlines Podcsat #141 – A New Problem with Visitor Records and Leaving Canada
On this episode, Steve and Deanna discuss the effect of cross-border travel on the validity of a visitor record. The question is: do they become invalidated by travel outside Canada? The topic was raised by Tamara Mosher Kuczer in episode 140, in which she reported an uptick in visitor record extension refusals due to prior invalidation of the original visitor record. After that episode several listeners asked us to expand on the topic. The scenario, and what is occuring, is this. A family enters Canada, with the parents receiving three-year work permits and the children granted three-year visitor records. After one year, the family travels abroad for a month. Upon their return, the Canada Border Services Agency stamps the children’s passports but does not issue new visitor records or indicate an extended stay. Before the parents’ work permits and the children’s visitor records expire, the family applies to extend their status. IRCC approves the parents’ work permit extensions but informs the family that the children’s visitor records were automatically canceled when they left Canada. IRCC explains that upon re-entry, the children were only granted a six-month stay because CBSA did not issue new visitor records or mark an extended … Read More