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©Gregory James, August 2006 I have recently returned from my trip to Pakistan where I met with clients in Lahore and Islamabad. Everyone I met was extremely gracious and even generous to me. Pakistanis have a very well deserved reputation for hospitality. I don’t believe I have ever been treated so well. In the meantime, back in Canada the Canadian government made an announcement that has attracted a lot of notice. It has changed the way it receives application from skilled worker and business class candidates. It has not changed the requirements, but it has simplified the original documentation that needs to be filed to get into the queue. Most supporting documents will now be filed later in the process. I have seen some advertising about this process that is quite misleading. First, this new process will not reduce processing times. The only thing that will reduce processing times is more resources at Canadian visa offices. Second, and this is very important, the candidate still needs to be able to prove that he or she qualified on the day that the application was filed. That means the same proof still needs to be collected even if it doesn’t need to be filed until later. For example, proof of language proficiency needs to be dated the date the application was filed, not the later date the proof is filed. This means that people will not be able to file now, and then improve their language skills afterwards. Those that cannot show proof of language skills relevant to the date they filed their application will likely be rejected later on. I encourage all candidates to collect the proof as early as possible. Otherwise old employers might go out of business or otherwise be unavailable to provide proof later etc. Most importantly proof of language proficiency still needs to be prepared at the time of filing so that candidates can prove that they had good language skills when they filed. The main advantage in the new process is that visa offices will not need as much storage space to shelve new applications, because the original applications will be thinner. In some visa offices they have had to rent additional space just to hold files. This is a cost saving move for the government. I am not convinced that this process really benefits immigration candidates who still need to do all the same things they did before. This move should be recognized for what it is: it is designed to make life easier for the visa office, not for the applicants or their counsel.
IN BRIEF
Crisis in Lebanon The immigration department has also tried to respond to the crisis in Lebanon by speeding up the processing of permanent resident applications made by immediate family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents. “Immediate family members” are limited to children, spouses, common-law partners and parents of Canadians. The recent ceasefire arrangements may affect this program, but at time of writing the ceasefire has only just come into effect. Consumer protection Last time I wrote about whether or not applicants should hire counsel to assist them. Of course, I wrote that it is a good idea for a number of reasons. But here are a couple of consumer protection items you should keep in mind. First, make sure the person you hire is either a lawyer or a member of the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants (CSIC). No-one else is allowed to represent immigrants to Canada. Second, non-lawyers are not competent to provide legal advice for the obvious reason that they are not trained in the law. They may be competent to provide advice about immigration procedures but be careful if they start telling you about the law. Third, make sure whoever you hire pays close attention to the forms they are completing. Sloppy mistakes on those forms can result in cases being rejected. You are turning your future over to someone else who claims to have expertise. Make sure you hire someone who conducts him or herself in a professional way.
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