Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

Blog Posting - Failed Refugees - How to Return to Canada

Individuals who make claims for protection in Canada are diverted to a parallel process of immigration and removal, which often does not apply to other foreign nationals or prospective immigrants. As a result, if a failed refugee wishes to return to Canada there are a number of steps they may need to take in order to return. We have summarized some of the relevant considerations below: (1) Determine whether the removal order issued against you is a deportation order: As soon as anyone makes a claim for protection in Canada a conditional removal order is issued against them. This removal order becomes unconditional as soon as a claim for protection is refused. However, the removal order may not be enforceable at this time. For instance of the refusal is challenged to the Refugee Appeal Division and subsequently refused and this refusal is challenged to the Federal Court, the removal order is not enforceable, and is stayed, until the final negative determination of that body. This is important because an individual has 30 days to depart Canada from the date the removal order becomes enforceable. The removal order could also be stayed if the individual has the right to a Pre... Read more →

SSHLaw Podcast Profile Series: An Interview with Toronto Immigration Lawyer Jennifer Pollock

I've been writing of my experience in attending the most recent CBA National Immigration Law Conference in Vancouver this spring; I got the opportunity to chat with a few lawyers and I found that inspiring. Despite the different paths that we all took in the process of becoming immigration advocates, the same themes kept popping up. The desire to assist others; the early exposure to injustice and an appreciation of the obstacles that newcomers face; the rewards of guiding someone through a difficult, labyrinthine process. All of the lawyers were asked the same basic questions; to introduce themselves, how they came to the practice of immigration law, what they find most rewarding and finally what advice they would give to their younger selves or to lawyers just starting out. Here, I caught up with Jennifer Pollock, an immigration lawyer in Toronto. I met Jennifer I think through Twitter. I've been on Twitter more or less from the beginning, and while I'm aware of the dangers of social media (largely being a time sink), there are some advantages as well, such as meeting (usually) young, driven lawyers from across the country who share many of my concerns regarding the immigrant experience... Read more →

Our First Immigration Blog Post in Punjabi!

Many thanks to my friend, Mr. Rishi K. Nagar for translating a recent post into Punjabi. ਆਖ਼ਰ ਮਾਸੂਮ ਬੱਚੀ ਨੂੰ ਨਾਨਾ-ਨਾਨੀ ਨਾਲ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਆਉਣ ਦੀ ਆਗਿਆ ਮਿਲ ਹੀ ਗਈ! ਇਕ ਸਾਲ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਮੇਰੀਆਂ ਸੇਵਾਵਾਂ ਲਈ ਇਕ ਮਿਹਨਤੀ ਕੈਨੇਡੀਅਨ ਨੇ ਮੇਰੇ ਤੀਕ ਪਹੁੰਚ ਕੀਤੀ। ਉਹ ਪਿਛਲੇ ਕਈ ਸਾਲਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਆਪਣੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਨੂੰ ਕੈਨੇਡਾ ਲਿਆਉਣਾ ਚਾਹੁੰਦਾ ਸੀ ਅਤੇ ਉਸਦੀ ਦਰਖਾਸਤ ਲਗਪਗ ਮੁਕੰਮਲ ਹੋ ਗਈ ਸੀ। ਵੀਜ਼ਾ ਅਫ਼ਸਰ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਬਜ਼ੁਰਗ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਨੂੰ ਵੀਜ਼ਾ ਦੇਣ ਲਈ ਤਿਆਰ ਸੀ। ਫਿਰ ਇਕ ਸਮੱਸਿਆ ਆ ਗਈ। ਉਸ ਦੀ ਭੈਣ ਦੀ ਅਚਾਨਕ ਮੌਤ ਹੋ ਗਈ। ਉਹ ਆਪਣੇ ਪਤੀ ਤੋਂ ਕਈ ਸਾਲਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਵੱਖ ਰਹਿ ਰਹੀ ਸੀ। ਉਸ ਨਾਲ ਮਾਰ-ਕੁਟਾਈ ਹੁੰਦੀ ਸੀ ਤੇ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਪਤੀ ਨੇ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਆਪਣੇ ਘਰੋਂ ਕੱਢ ਬਾਹਰ ਕੀਤਾ ਸੀ। ਉਹ ਆਪਣੇ ਪੇਕੇ ਆ ਗਈ ਤੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਕੋਲ ਰਹਿਣ ਲੱਗ ਪਈ ਸੀ। ਉਸ ਦੀ 6 ਮਹੀਨੇ ਦੀ ਛੋਟੀ ਬੇਟੀ ਵੀ ਸੀ। ਉਸ ਦੀ ਮੁੜ ਕਿਸੇ ਹੋਰ ਥਾਂ ਸ਼ਾਦੀ ਕੀਤੀ ਗਈ ਪਰ ਨਵੇਂ ਪਤੀ ਨੇ ਛੋਟੀ ਬੇਟੀ ਨੂੰ ਸਵੀਕਾਰ ਕਰਨ ਤੋਂ ਨਾਂਹ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਸੀ ਅਤੇ ਇਸ ਕਾਰਨ ਇਹ ਛੋਟੀ ਬੱਚੀ ਆਪਣੇ ਨਾਨਾ-ਨਾਨੀ ਕੋਲ ਰਹਿ ਰਹੀ ਸੀ। ਹੁਣ ਇਸ ਬੱਚੀ ਦਾ ਆਪਣੇ ਜਨਮ ਦੇਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਪਿਤਾਨਾਲ ਕੋਈ ਸੰਪਰਕ ਨਹੀ ਸੀ ਅਤੇ ਮਾਂ ਦੀ ਮੌਤ ਹੋ ਗਈ। ਉਸ ਦੀ ਮਾਂ ਦੀ ਮੌਤ ਸੜ ਜਾਣ ਕਾਰਨ... Read more →

The Maze that is Canadian Immigration Law or It's Always Darkest Before Dawn

More than a year ago, I was retained by a hard working Canadian. He had sought to bring his parents here for years and the application was almost finalized. The visa office was ready to issue visas to his elderly mother and father. There was a problem. His young niece, his sister's daughter, lost her mother. His sister had separated from her first husband, the father of the child years ago. She had been beaten and thrown out of her husband and his family home; she returned to her parents home along with her daughter, only 6 months old. She divorced and remarried; but the new husband didn't want her to bring along her daughter; so the little girl remained with her maternal grandparents. This little girl, who has no contact with her biological father, then lost her mother - who died after suffering burns over her entire body. This is, sadly, an all too common fate and an 'accident' that happens all too frequently for women in India. It was in these circumstances that her uncle came to us; he had sponsored his parents years ago, before all of these issues; and the one constant in this little girls... Read more →

Blog Posting - 5 Things For Refugee Claimants to Know When Making a Claim in Canada

#1. Ensure that you are eligible to make a claim for protection. While most individuals from foreign countries are able to make claims for protection in Canada, some claimants will not be eligible to make a claim to the Refugee Protection Division ("RPD") and the most common reason is that they do not have an exemption from the Safe Third Country Agreement between Canada and the United States. Essentially, this agreement stipulates that if a claimant transits through the United States and makes a claim for protection at a land border crossing; by train or at airports, then the claimant will be ineligible to make a claim for protection in Canada. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/laws-policy/menu-safethird.asp#family The Agreement does not apply to U.S Citizens or stateless persons in the United States. It also would not apply to an individual who transited through the United States, entered Canada irregularly and then made their claim for protection at an inland immigration office in Canada rather than at a border. There are also exemptions to the applicability of the agreement. For instance any claimant who has a child, spouse, common law partner, sibling, grandparents, grandchild, uncle or aunt, or nephew or niece in Canada who is a... Read more →

Interview with CPC Leadership Candidate Deepak Obhrai Discussing Canadian Values and Kellie Leitch

I'm updating this post with the audio; I think Mr. Obhrai's comments regarding Kellie Leitch, "Canadian Values", her dog-whistle politics; Chris Alexander; the desertion from the CPC of new Canadians; are going to be very much in play this year. Raj: It's November 11, 2016, and I am in my offices with I think maybe the longest sitting and perhaps … most widely traveled member of Parliament, Deepak Obhrai, who is running for the conservative leadership. Mr. Obhrai and I have some history together. We are, I think, friends. We had a bit of a run-in on Alberta Primetime when we were discussing the increased language requirements for new Canadians, but that being said, Mr. Obhrai has spoken his own mind and has stood his own ground in terms of policy that impacts new Canadians, including Bill C-24. Mr. Obhrai has a long storied career as a parliamentarian and it's my absolute, honor for him to join me today. Mr. Obhrai, welcome and thank you for coming to my office today. Mr. Obhrai: Thank you very much, Raj, and it's a great pleasure and honor to be here. Once more we are talking since the last time we talked on... Read more →

Options for Americans Fleeing the "Trumpocalypse"

Could - should - Americans make refugee claims fleeing the historic, election of Trumpian proportions, decided on November 8, 2016? What other options do they - and others living in that great country have? I discussed those options in my interview with Vice Canada, excerpts below; link to the full interview here. VICE: Could we see certain groups of people in the US claim refugee status in Canada due to the Trump presidency? Last year we saw a case where a black American man said he was fleeing police brutality in the United States, which was ultimately denied. Raj Sharma: I suppose so. We saw some refugee claims from Iraq War military deserters. There was the Jeremy Hinzman case a few years ago, and Randy Quaid. I used to be a refugee protection officer, ...The problem is this for a refugee claim: You need a personalized risk. It's got to be persecution, which is a significant interference with a core human right. Disagreement with Trump or being the victim of police brutality or profiling, that really comes more under the lines of discrimination and harassment, which is not covered by refugee definitions. There's two other hurdles. One would be internal... Read more →

Borderlines Podcast - Discussing Marriage Fraud

It was fun sitting down and having a conversation with my colleagues, immigration lawyers Steven Meurrens and Peter Edelmann in the beautiful city of Vancouver this summer. The main topic of discussion, now on their podcast, "Borderlines", was marriage fraud. This is a particularly pernicious problem in the Punjabi community; arranged marriages allow for both marriage fraud where both parties are complicit but also allow for one party to take advantage over a trusting spouse and sponsor. Sometimes sponsors move on; sometimes they seek legal redress for being taken advantage off. I've been approached many times by a sponsor; I'm very aware that narratives change after the breakdown of a relationship. It is possible that "marriage fraud" may exist only in the minds of some sponsors as a result. However, there are many other occasions when the marriage fraud is clear. For many years victims of marriage fraud had no recourse, no right to even know the status of any investigation or outcome of same against a spouse or partner that simply used them to come to Canada. A sponsor allegedly committed suicide here in the lower mainland; his community, and Canadians in general were incensed. Jason Kenney entered the... Read more →

Discussing Alberta Teacher's Association New Toolkit for LGBTQ Students on CBC Alberta at Noon

I was asked to discuss a new toolkit designed to assist teachers in Alberta to ensure an inclusive, welcoming environment for LGBTQ students. The discussion occurred on November 2, 2016 on CBC Radio Alberta At Noon with host Rob Brown. There are some concerns however as competing rights in a multicultural, pluralistic society inevitably need to be balanced. The link to the CBC article with audio is here; a transcript of that discussion follows. An article by CBC journalist Andrea Huncar can be found here. ... Rob Brown: ... should teachers be going to make sure all students feel comfortable in class, even if that might offend some parents. This is Alberta At Noon. I'm Rob Brown. We're asking that question today in light of new suggested guidelines designed to make classrooms more welcoming to LGBTQ students and to help raise awareness around issues of sexuality and gender. Some of the guidelines are creating controversy like the idea of staging drag shows as a teaching tool or referring to kids as comrades instead of boys and girls. We're going there today with a new feature on this program. It's 7 minutes past 12 o'clock, thanks for joining us today. An... Read more →