Filipiniana News - July
2012
Rhyme and
Reason
Amidst the ongoing
changes to Canada’s immigration laws and regulations in the past few years,
many individuals have been adversely affected to the point of losing their
status due to misinformation or even carelessness.
Those who may have
lost their status are understandably fearful of getting deported anytime soon
and thrown on the next flight back to their home country. However, misconceptions about the removal
process abound such that fears are raised even among temporary residents although they may
actually still have valid status in Canada.
For instance, there are those here as visitors, workers or students
whose initial permits have expired but whose extension applications are still
pending, who fear that they may just be picked up by the authorities and
detained since they could not show any proof of legal status. Such fears are misplaced if the temporary resident
has submitted an application to renew their temporary resident status before
the expiry of their current status in Canada and a decision on the application
is not yet received. Provided all legal
requisites are met, the temporary resident who has a pending renewal
application will have the benefit of “implied status” under the Immigration and
Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and its regulations. The implied status ends on the day that a
decision is received on the renewal application, granting or refusing the
extension requested. It is only when
the renewal application is refused, will the applicant technically lose
temporary legal status in Canada and may be well-advised to leave the country
as soon as possible so as not to prejudice any future applications to return to
Canada.
There is also the
option of applying for a restoration of status within 90 days of having lost
temporary resident status if there are reasonable legal bases for requesting
the restoration (e.g. justifiable reason for inability to request an extension
prior to expiry of previous status, compelling reason to extend visit, a
positive labour market opinion based on an existing job offer or continuing
studies, etc.). If the 90 days have
passed, the option of seeking a restoration will not anymore be available but
there may still be other options, depending on the circumstances.
A person who has
lost legal temporary status in Canada need not simply live in perpetual fear of
being “picked up” by enforcement officers and thrown on the next plane out of
Canada. If there are compelling reasons
or factors involved, it will be best to consult a trustworthy immigration
advisor to discuss possible options to legalize one’s status.
For instance, if
there are genuine risks to one’s life if returned to one’s home country, there
are applications that can be made to seek protection from any such harm. These remedies however, should never be
abused by agreeing to unscrupulous advice such as concocting stories to support
one’s application for permanent resident status in Canada. These unethical actions are not only morally
and legally wrong, but also prejudice the many other genuine stories of people
trying to escape various forms of persecution in their home countries. If a genuine refugee is refused simply
because the adjudicator has heard too many similar concocted stories, then a
travesty of justice has been perpetrated against those truly deserving of
Canada’s protection.
There are also
cases where other compelling humanitarian and compassionate considerations
exist (other than risk to one’s life) which could be raised in support of one’s
application to remain in Canada. These
include factors such as strong establishment in Canada, best interests of
children affected and other types of undue, undeserved and disproportionate
hardship that would result from a refusal.
It used to be that
a marriage or common-law relationship with a Canadian or permanent resident can
almost guarantee a stay of removal and eventual grant of permanent residence to
a foreign spouse who may have already lost status. However,
the proliferation of bad faith marriages or so-called marriages of
convenience have put even genuine relationships at a great disadvantage by also
being refused in some cases. Recently,
the IRPA regulation defining “bad faith marriages” was amended to include
non-genuine relationships or those which were primarily entered into for
immigration purposes. The old regulation
was less strict in that the marriage would have to be both non-genuine and
entered into primarily for immigration purposes to be considered a bad faith
marriage. Now, even if the marriage is
genuine, but if it was perceived by an immigration officer to have been entered
into primarily for immigration purposes, the sponsorship application can be
refused and the removal against the out-of-status spouse may proceed.
Once a removal
order is issued against a temporary resident, there are administrative and
judicial remedies that can be taken to stay the removal process. However, these procedures and their
effectiveness would depend on the specific circumstances in each case, as well
as the favorable (or unfavorable) perspectives of the decision-makers.
Thus, the removal
process does not simply mean that once a person loses status in Canada, he or
she is immediately arrested by the authorities, detained and thrown on the next
flight to the home country. There are
various criteria, legal processes and principles involved which could result in
varying treatments and outcomes.
It must be noted
as well, that even permanent residents may become the subject of removal
orders. However, that is already beyond
the scope of this article.
As always, the
above are meant for legal information purposes only. To obtain legal advice about your specific
legal situation, it is best to consult a trusted immigration counsel.
The author is an immigration lawyer in Canada and may be reached at deanna@santoslaw.ca.
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