RHYME & REASON

Filipiniana News  -  August 2013 Rhyme and Reason Despite a number of changes to the Live-in Caregiver Program (LCP) in recent years that were meant to improve the situation of its participants, there are still many caregivers who  fail to complete the program or end up losing their temporary resident status.  This is partly due to the fact that many of these caregivers are either terribly misinformed or have no knowledge of even the most basic requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and its regulations that are relevant to maintaining their legal status in Canada. Hopefully, the following review of the most basic provisions of Canada’s immigration law and regulations as they relate to participants of the LCP will help avoid further instances of caregivers inadvertently losing their temporary resident status while in the program and/or awaiting the grant of their permanent resident status: The initial LCP work permit issued by ...

Filipiniana column - JULY 2013 RHYME & REASON In the morning of 15 July 2013, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced a major cabinet shuffle in which Ajax-Pickering MP Chris Alexander was named the new Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (C&I) while former C&I Minister Jason Kenney is named Minister of the newly created Ministry of Employment and Social Development (formerly Human Resources and Skills Development Canada).  It is interesting to note that Minister Kenney was moved to a department that is still closely related to the functions of his former portfolio, particularly in matters relating to offers of employment for temporary foreign workers and prospective immigrants to Canada.  This could mean a continuing slew of legislative and policy reforms consistent with those that he started in his previous posting and which could significantly affect the socio-economic landscape in this country.  It may be recalled that some four years ago, a...

Filipiniana News –  JUNE  2013 RHYME & REASON Citizenship and Immigration Canada recently posted a notice on its website which reads: “ June 11, 2013 — The Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO) union is currently taking strike action.  PAFSO union members responsible for processing visa applications have been walking out of offices in Canada and overseas. Posted processing times for both temporary and permanent resident visa applications do not take into account work stoppages. Anyone applying for a visa should anticipate delays and submit their application as far in advance as possible . Contingency plans are already in place to ensure all offices remain open and are providing at least a minimum level of service. Priority will be placed on urgent humanitarian applications. CIC continues to closely monitor the situation .” This notice serves to highlight once more the fact that Canada’s  immigration system is ...

Filipiniana News – MAY 2013 RHYME & REASON When I wrote last month’s column, the list of qualifying occupations for the new Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) class had not been released.  Just recently, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) announced the following list of occupations which may qualify an applicant under the FSW class even without a validated job offer from a Canadian employer: 0211   Engineering managers 1112   Financial and investment analysts 2113   Geoscientists and oceanographers 2131   Civil engineers 2132   Mechanical engineers 2134   Chemical engineers 2143   Mining engineers 2145   Petroleum engineers 2144   Geological engineers 2146   Aerospace engineers 2147   Computer engineers (except software engineers/designers) 2154   Land surveyors 2174   ...

Filipiniana News – April 2013 RHYME & REASON On 1 July 2012, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) temporarily stopped accepting applications for permanent residence under the Federal Skilled Worker category unless the applicant has a validated arranged employment offer from a Canadian employer,  is enrolled in good standing in a PhD program for the last two years or graduated from a PhD program within the last 12 months from a Canadian university.    Many have been waiting for CIC to announce when the Federal Skilled Worker Program will be reopened and to see what the new program will look like.  Recent announcements from CIC have given us a general idea of the changes, which are expected to include the following: ·          Language points will be given the biggest weight among all the selection factors for up to a maximum of 28 points (or 24 points for the first official language and 4 points for the sec...

Filipiniana News – March  2013 RHYME & REASON Since most immigration applications are submitted without legal representation, it is often only when these applications are refused that the applicants will decide to seek the legal services of an immigration lawyer.  The first question asked of the lawyer is, can we appeal the negative decision?  It must be noted that there are limited types of immigration decisions that can be appealed with the Immigration Appeal Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB).   Most immigration decisions however, can be elevated to the Federal Court via an application for leave and judicial review.  What is the difference between these two legal remedies?  Isn’t the Federal Court application also a form of appeal?   In the sense that it gives a further chance to be heard by another decision maker, yes, it may be considered a form of “appeal”.  Under Canadian immigration law howeve...

Filipiniana News – February 2013 RHYME & REASON A recent series of articles in the Toronto Star dealing with experiences of victims of spousal sponsorship fraud prompted me to revive this topic that I have discussed a few times in this column.  Sadly, these stories and even some comments from readers reveal a continuing lack of knowledge and/or misunderstanding of the complex and ever-changing immigration laws, including those involving spousal sponsorships.  There are two types of spousal sponsorship applications. The first is the outside Canada sponsorships that are initially submitted to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario and then forwarded to the visa office where the applicant spouse is a resident or citizen.  The second is the inland application under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada class that is submitted to the CIC Case Processing Centre in Vegreville, Alberta.  Depending on t...