Borders Law Firm

Skilled Worker Quota Filled

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Citizenship and Immigration Canada just announced that they have reached their annual quota of 10,000 applicants u...

Proposed Changes to CEC and Skilled Worker Applications

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Immigration Minister Kenney has recently announced changes to the work requirements for CEC applicants under the F...

CIC Forces Hundreds of Thousands of Would-Be Immigrants to Reapply

Tue, 3 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Hopeful would-be immigrants who filed applications under the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) program prior to Februar...

Ottawa Proposes New Procedure for Assessing Foreign Credentials

Tue, 3 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Immigration Minister Kenney has proposed a new system whereby applicants intending to apply under the Federal Skil...

New Five Year Sponsorship Restriction

Mon, 5 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0500

Ottawa has introduced regulations in which sponsored spouses or partners will have to wait five years from the d...

Work Permit Blues

Mon, 6 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

Citizenship & Immigration Canada's polices are placing thousands of foreign workers in jeopardy, thanks to an ...

First Super Visa

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0500

As discussed in our previous blogs, CIC began offering the new Parent and Grandparent Super Visa on December 1, 20...

Live-In Caregiver Changes

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0500

Thanks to a new initiative from CIC, Live-in Caregivers (LICs) will now be able to obtain open work permits much s...

Super Visas and More

Fri, 2 Dec 2011 00:00:00 -0500

New Parent and Grandparent Super Visa

As discusse...

CIC puts the freeze on Parental Sponsorships

Mon, 7 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0500

Minister Kenney announced on November 4^th that CIC is freezing the Parental sponsorship stream (parents and grandparents) for an initial 24 month period, beginning on November 5^th, 2011. In other words, no new applications from immigrants to Canada hoping to bring their elderly parents or grandparents will be accepted. The ramifications are obvious: for elderly parents living on their own, without proper care or access to medicine, new immigrants to Canada who counted on being able to sponsor their parents are in for a rude awakening.

On the other hand, to compensate for slamming the door shut, CIC has promised to expedite the backlog of 165,000 applications that are sitting in the cue, some waiting up to 8 years to be finalized. This is welcome relief for those with parents who cannot afford to wait any longer. The government also extended another olive branch by announcing the creation of a “Parent and Grandparent Super Visa”, which allows the parents to obtain long multiple entry visas that allow them to remain in Canada for up to 24 months (instead of 6 months per visit) without having to be renewed. This is in fact a major step forward, as many of those parents languishing with applications that are collecting dust will now be able to hop on a plane and arrive in Canada for a happy two year stay.

Finally, the entire parental sponsorship program will be reinvented, though there is no word on what the new criteria will look like. Going forward, it seems that the government is keen to restrict the arrival of elderly people as new immigrants, so I do not foresee a generous program in the future. In this sense, those who have current applications in cue are the ones who stand to benefit. New immigrants hoping to bring their parents to Canada may be left standing in the cold. Many of them will return to their countries of origin as a result, further eroding Canada’s ability to compete with other commonwealth countries to attract the “best and the brightest.”

Ottawa Cracking Down on Marriage Fraud

Tue, 1 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0400

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is expected to introduce new regulations later this year focused on curbing marriage fraud, commonly referred to as “marriages of convenience” meant to circumvent Canada’s immigration laws.

The proposed regulations will introduce a new “conditional” immigration status where couples must prove that they have lived together for a specific period of time before the sponsored spouse becomes a permanent resident of Canada. Ottawa has stated that the probationary period will be at least two years, although the exact duration is currently unknown. In order to protect victims of abuse, the rules are also expected to include an exemption to the conditional status in cases where domestic violence has occurred. As well, Ottawa plans to implement a five-year ban on sponsors being able turn around and sponsor a new spouse to Canada. Conditional periods of this type are already in place in the United States and Australia.

It is both refreshing and welcome to see that CIC is cracking down on marriage fraud. A conditional status, so long as it is restricted to two years, is not particularly burdensome. However, it will go a long way in exposing and deterring fraudulent applicants. As well, the five-year ban will help make sure that sponsors are truly genuine in their intentions before taking the step of sponsoring a spouse. It has to be remembered that sponsored spouses are obtaining a very important benefit – the ability to permanently live, study and work in Canada - and therefore it is fair to expect sponsors to bear responsibility for those they choose to sponsor to Canada.

The bottom line: Canada has always prided itself on its multiculturalism and welcomed new immigrants from all parts of the world. However, those who seek to abuse Canada’s immigration system pose a threat to the integrity of the system and undermine its legitimacy. These regulations are a welcome development to limit what Minister Kenney has referred to as the “cat and mouse game” of immigration fraud.

CIC sought opinions on marriages of convenience through nationwide online consultations as well as in-person town hall meetings hosted by Minister Kenney Fall 2010. The new regulations also arise out of the intelligence on marriage fraud gathered by Canada Border Services Agency’s team of 62 “liaison officers” located in 48 missions across the globe.

The statistics show that attempts to improve overseas screening processes been ineffective. Marriages of convenience continue to be a significant issue, with about 16% of the 46,300 spousal sponsorship applications in 2010 refused for reasons including that the relationship was not genuine. In southern China, where a number of intricate schemes have been discovered, the refusal rate for spouses jumped to 50% in 2008 after Canada increased its focus on marriage fraud in the area.

As well, these regulations shift any new responsibilities for seeking out marriage fraud away from visa offices overseas, which will help ensure processing times for spousal sponsorships remain as unaffected as possible.

Long Term Multiple Entry Visas

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 00:00:00 -0400

CIC joins the civilized world by offering ten year multiple-entry visas

Further Squeeze on Skilled Worker, Investor and Entrepreneur Programs

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0400

More Restrictions Coming to Popular Immigration Programs

Processing Shifts Inland

Tue, 3 May 2011 00:00:00 -0400

CIC Slowly Shifting Processing Inland

Labour Market Opinions Made Difficult

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0400

New Documentary Requirements for Labour Market Opinions

Skilled Worker Changes

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0400

Consultation Period Extended

New Regulations Approaching

Mon, 7 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0500

Strict Regulations Affecting Work Permits Fast Approaching

CIC Moves to Make Skilled Worker Applications More Difficult

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0500

Restrictive Changes coming to the Skilled Worker Program

B.C. Study Pilot Project

Thu, 3 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0500

Launch of a Pilot Program to Expand the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program for International Students Graduating from Designated Private Post-Secondary Institutions in British Columbia

Skilled Worker Category 1 Update

Thu, 25 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Many Spots Vacant in the 29 Categories

Federal Investor Program Re-launches

Sat, 13 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Federal Investor Program back in Business

2011 Immigration Targets Released

Tue, 2 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0400

CIC Releases 2011 Immigration Targets

Visa Requirements Eased for Medical Students

Tue, 5 Oct 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Canada's government removes labour market approval requirements for foreign doctors.

Ontario's Provincial Nominee Program Expands

Mon, 20 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0400

The province of Ontario has added a new application stream for international students who have graduated with a Masters degree from an Ontario university.

Canada to Welcome more Indian Citizens

Thu, 9 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0400

More Indian Students Coming to Canada.

Sweeping Changes Affecting Foreign Workers and Live-in-Caregivers

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400

New changes coming into effect in April 2011 will affect employers, foreign workers and live-in caregivers

Labour Market Opinions

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Service Canada Tightening Rules

Official Launch

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Website Launched!

Major changes to Skilled Worker and Investor Class applications

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400

Important changes have been introduced to the Skilled Worker, Experience Class and Investor Class, effective June 26, 2010, published in the Canada Gazette.

Citizenship Rules Changing

Thu, 10 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400

Canada to tighten its citizenship legislation

Changes to Live-in-Caregiver Program

Thu, 3 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400

Service Canada implements changes to the Live-in Caregiver Program

Immigration numbers released

Wed, 2 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400

CIC releases 2009 immigration numbers

Website Re-launch

Tue, 1 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400

Borders Law Firm is Re-launching its Website

IT Work Permits Ending

Tue, 1 Jun 2010 01:00:00 -0400

Information Technology Facilitated Process Ending