The following is a summary of the Environmental Overview of the immigration functions at the Canadian Embassy in Lagos (the “Environmental Overview”). The Environmental Overview was prepared as part of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2013-2014 planning exercise, and is current as of January 2013. The quoted areas below are all copy/paste from the Environmental Overview. Environment The Canadian Embassy in Lagos (“CIC Lagos”) provides temporary resident visa services to citizens of Nigeria. The Canadian High Commission in Accra is responsible for processing permanent resident applications from Nigeria. Relationships with the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) were quite strained due to lengthy visa processing times in the fall of 2012. The recent announcement of biometric imposition for Nigeria effective October 2013 has not improved the bilateral relationship. Modernization As of January 2013, CIC Lagos appeared to be experiencing significant resource issues. Although the LES and ELES staff are able to navigate through GCMS to get the work done, There is an urgent requirement for more in-depth training on best practices and streamlining of various processing steps so to increase efficiency and capacity in this office. At the moment, planning and scheduling for training is extremely difficult due to the current ongoing backlog of applications in … Read More
Service Canada Significantly Changes Labour Market Opinion Program
On July 31, 2013, the Ministry of Employment and Social Development Canada (“Service Canada“) introduced changes to the Labour Market Opinion (“LMO“) process which took affect immediately. Today’s changes, as well as previous, recent ones, greatly increase the burden for companies applying for LMOs. Today’s changes were comprehensive. We have provided a broad overview of the changes below, however, we encourage you to contact us, or check the website below, for further details. Today’s Changes LMO Application Fees Effective July 31, 2013, employers applying for LMOs must pay a processing fee of $275.00 for each position requested. The total payment must reflect the number of Temporary Foreign Workers (“TFW“) positions requested on the LMO application (e.g. $275 x number of positions = total payment). For example, a company requesting a bulk LMO for 25 positions will be required to pay a processing fee of $6,875.00. Employers who wish to increase the number of positions requested on a LMO application must submit a new LMO application for these positions, with the required documents and fees. There will be no refund in the event of a negative LMO or if the application is withdrawn or cancelled. Reconsideration requests will also require the … Read More
Sign at Canadian Embassy in Beijing Shows Impact of PAFSO Strike
A reader sent me a digital photograph of a sign allegedly posted at the Canadian Embassy in Beijing. As the PAFSO job action continues, the implications for prospective international students is become quite serious. I can’t even guess on how post-secondary institutions are preparing and mitigating.
PAFSO Strike Jeopardizing CIC Client Services
As many people know, the Professional Association of Foreign Services Officers (“PAFSO“) is currently taking strike action. According to the PAFSO Facebook page: [As of July 10] members who have not been identified as essential have withdrawn services in San Juan, Costa Rica,Sao Paulo. Guatemala, Brasilia, Moscow, Warsaw, Singapore,Manila, Islamabad,Chandigarh,Ankara, Hong Kong, and Delhi. Some instances involve trade and political officers as well. While this action does not mean that the entire visa office is closed, it does mean a significant increase in processing times. It is true that there is some processing going on at Canadian missions abroad. Yesterday, an immigration lawyer shared a letter which he had received from the Canadian High Commission in Istanbul. He has given me permission to reproduce it below. I have never seen a letter from Citizenship and Immigration Canada which contained as many typos as this. I don’t know if a PAFSO member wrote this, or if someone who is filling in for a PAFSO member did. What I do know is that this is embarrassing for Canada.
Why the CBSA Enforces What it Does
The Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA“) in 2011 produced the Integrated Intelligence / Enforcement Priorities Report (the “Report“). The Report is interesting because it presents succinct descriptions of what CBSA considers to be areas of importance in the enforcement context related to immigration, and why it considers these issues important. Practitioners may find these summaries useful in explaining to clients why we ask some of the questions that we do. I have reproduced sections of the report below: Residence Fraud What Is It Canada’s immigration and citizenship legislation both contain residency obligations which must be met in order to be granted citizenship or maintain PR status in Canada. Section 28(1) of the IRPA requires that a PR be physically present in Canada for 730 days in a 5 year period. Failure to meet the residency obligation can result in the loss of PR status and removal from Canada. Furthermore, in order to be eligible for citizenship, section 5 the Citizenship Act requires that a PR accumulate at least 3 years of residence in Canada within the 4 years immediately preceding their application.In many instances, individuals who do not meet the residency requirements under the IRPA use fraudulent documentation or other means to … Read More
Procedural Fairness Owed by Provincial Nomination Programs to “Fraudulent” Consultants
The Saskatchewan Queen’s Bench (the “Court“) in Kaberwal v. Saskatchewan (Economy), 2013 SKQB 244 has released a decision clarifying the procedural fairness owed by provincial nomination programs to immigration representatives accused of fraud. To the best of my knowledge, it is the first decision on this issue. The Facts of the Case On December 31, 2012, Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Economy, Immigration Services (the “Ministry“) suspended an immigration consultant’s (the “Consultant“) right to submit applications to the Saskatchewan Immigration Nominee Program (“SINP“) for a period of two years. SINP officials accused the Consultant of fabricating job offers for employers who informed SINP that they never saw or signed the job offers that the Consultant submitted to SINP without their knowledge. The Ministry sent the Consultant a letter which, amongst other things, stated the following: We have reviewed seven job offers from Saskarc Industries that you submitted on behalf of seven applicants that have you listed as the third party representative. Part of the review of the application includes verifying the validity of the documents and information included in the application. As a representative, you have signed and agreed to the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP)’s Code of Conduct for Representatives which states that … Read More
Five Things I hope Jason Kenney Brings to the HRSDC Temporary Foreign Worker Program
On July 15, 2013, Prime Minister Stephen Harper shuffled his cabinet. From an immigration perspective, the important changes are: Steven Blaney replaces a retiring Vic Toews as the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness. Chris Alexander replaces Jason Kenney as the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. Jason Kenney replaces Diane Finley as the Minister of Employment and Social Development (formerly Human Resources and Skills Development Canada). The Ministry of Employment and Social Development is a huge ministry, responsible for developing, managing, and delivering social programs and services. In addition to overseeing the Labour Market Opinion aspect of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, Minister Kenney will also be responsible for Employment Insurance, the Canada Student Loans, the Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security, the national Homelessness Initiative, and more. He will be managing the delivery of over $87-billion in programs and services, and will oversee approximately 24,000 employees. In hindsight, Jason Kenney’s appointment to be Minister of Employment and Social Development is not that surprising. On April 29, 2013, he gave a press conference regarding changes to the Labour Market Opinion program. More recently, he gave Service Canada the power to issue what are in effect Ministerial Instructions, and he recently introduced regulatory amendments providing the … Read More
Partial Returns of Money under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act
The Government of Canada through the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, SC 2000, c 17 (the “PCMLTFA“), has enacted measures to increase the detection of money associated to the proceeds of crime at Ports of Entry. Part 2 of the PCMLTFA imposes on obligation on every person to report the importation or exportation of currency or monetary instruments of an equal value to or greater than the prescribed threshold of CAD $10,000. While there is no limitation on the total amount of currency or monetary instruments that may be brought into or taken out of Canada, every person has to report any amount exceeding $10,000. The Canada Border Services Agency (“CBSA“) may then question person regarding the possession of the currency. Levels of Seizure and Penalty CBSA officers who believe on reasonable grounds that the reporting requirement of the PCMLTFA has been violated may seize as forfeit currency or monetary instruments, and impose the prescribed penalty as terms of release. The Customs Enforcement Manual provides that the following terms of release are to be offered: Level 1 – $250 Where a person has not concealed the currency or monetary instruments; Where a person has made … Read More
HIV and Immigrating to Canada
Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, all foreign nationals applying for permanent residency, and certain foreign nationals applying for temporary residency, are requested to undergo an immigration medical examination (“IME“) to determine if they are inadmissible on health grounds. A person will be inadmissible to Canada on health grounds if they are a danger to public health, a danger to public safety, or if they are likely to pose an excessive demand on the health and social services (“Excessive Demand“). The current policies on HIV testing exist because Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC“) determined that people with HIV may pose a danger to public health. As well, based on CIC health data, migrants have at least 10 times the risk of being infected with HIV compared to the Canadian population. Finally, several high profile cases involving permanent residents who were criminally convicted for not informing their sponsor partners about their HIV positive status led to negative publicity for CIC. Indeed, the first Canadian convicted of first degree murder for having transmitted HIV to two persons who subsequently died from HIV was a former refugee. Notwithstanding the above, since CIC began introducing mandatory HIV testing in 2002, the key reason has been Excessive … Read More
The Jurisdiction of the IAD in Considering Procedural Fairness in 117(9)(d) Cases
On April 25, I blogged about how the Federal Court had certified the following question involving s. 117(9)(d) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (“R179(9)(d)”): 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? On June 11, 2013, in Fang v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) (“Fang“), VB2-00332, Member Mattu of the Immigration Appeal Division (the “IAD“) issued a decision which raises similarly broad issues. Andrew Wlodyka, the appellant’s counsel, has informed me that an Application for Leave to Commence Judicial Review is currently underway, as confirmed here, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the litigation resulted in a certified question. The issue is whether the IAD has the jurisdiction to determine whether an officer breached procedural fairness in determining humanitarian … Read More