Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

Working the Canadian Immigration System: How Liars, Criminals and Terrorists Get Here and Problems in Getting Rid of Them

The Canadian immigration system seeks firstly to bar criminals or terrorists entry. If these proclivities come to light after the fact, those tasked with enforcement seek to excise these individuals from our society. While they have formidable powers sometimes removal is stymied by the refusal, reluctance or intransigence of the country of origin or country of return. Jahanzeb Malik, a citizen of Pakistan came to Canada as an international student and was sponsored by his spouse and became a Permanent Resident. Canada sought to deport rather than try him for terrorism or other crimes in a criminal court. Had he obtained Canadian Citizenship, he would not be subject to the jurisdiction of the IRPA and the Immigration and Refugee Board. The standard of proof to strip a Permanent Resident of status under the IRPA is far lower than that of "beyond a reasonable doubt". He was found inadmissible by the Immigration Division under s.34 based on evidence that he was plotting to bomb the US Consulate and the financial district in Toronto. The decision is chilling, detailing Malik's commitment to his cause, his dedication to wreak destruction and seek the death of innocent Canadians. Malik and his lawyer didn't challenge... Read more →

The Residency Appeal

I was recently at the Immigration Appeal Division to deal with a negative residency determination made against my client. I wanted to provide an overview regarding the residency appeal procedure. After the appellant files an appeal against a negative residency appeal with the IRB they receive the Appeal Record. The hearing is then scheduled. In such appeals the appellant will receive a notice to appear indicating the address of the Immigration and Refugee Board (here in Calgary, at Suite 201-225 Manning Road NE). Such hearings are typically scheduled for two hours. The opposing party, the Minister, is represented by the hearings officer. Permanent Residents face a negative residency determination and such appeals when they don't comply with the residency obligation (s.28 of the IRPA). The first step of course is to seek exemption from the requirement and put your best foot forward to the responsible, however, if a negative determination has been made, then the PR has the right to seek relief at the IAD. Such matters are not a foregone conclusion. As they say, however, the devil is in the details, and if residency appeals were based solely on the fact of non-compliance or shortfall in terms of the... Read more →

Blogpost: My Kingdom For a Study Permit

We recently successfully obtained study permits for two students from the Middle East. One hailed from a country listed on the United States travel ban list while the other country is undergoing political turmoil and violence and our client is an ethnic minority in this country. Of course we prepared the files appropriately. Where we could show positive travel history we did. We showed family support and income in both cases. We provided statements from our clients indicating their "gameplan" in terms of why they wished to undertake these studies and why they would return home at the completion of studies. The reality is we file similar applications every day and even well prepared applications fail on the basis of a cursory review from a Visa Officer at a foreign consulate or Embassy. We have successfully challenged improper refusals to the Federal Court, but the inequities in the system remain obvious. Why are similar and sometimes even identical applications subject to different outcomes? The Liberal government discussed having an administrative appeals process instituted for visitor visa refusals. While this would be worthwhile, it seems like reforming the study permit process would result in more benefits to our programs and policies... Read more →

Consequences of Criminality

Here are my notes, such as they are, for my presentation today at the Legal Education Society of Alberta (LESA) Immigration Fundamentals Seminar. The consequences of criminality for refugees, foreign nationals, permanent residents and even citizens are manifold. Read more →

Working the Canadian Immigration System: How Liars, Criminals and Terrorists Get Here - Part 3 The Double Identity Gambit

Three can keep a secret, if two of them are dead - Benjamin Franklin The story of Farhan Mahmood urf/aka Muhammad Irfan (or vice versa?) reads like a 1970's Bollywood double-role masala flick. I've written in the past as to the apparent ease in circumventing our immigration laws. You don't need to be a criminal mastermind or Frank Abagnale to pull one over nice, polite Canada. I've written in the past how terrorists have entered this country and remained for decades. In this case, a foreign national was able to enter Canada and live here for years with a double identity. Not knowing who it is that we are allowing entry into Canada undermines the integrity of our immigration system and undermines the security of our society. All you need is the ability to get a another passport with a different name. It's harder to change the face that you were born with. Muhammad Irfan born on February 12, 1977 came to Canada in 2003 to work for Maharaja Sweets and Restaurant owned by Tariq Chaudhry in Edmonton, Alberta and after being denied subsequent work permits, he left Canada on September 23, 2003. Enter Farhan Mahmood born on January 10,... Read more →

Working the Canadian Immigration System: How Liars, Terrorists & Criminals Get Here and Stay Here Part 2

As I've previously written, Canada is a land of immigrants and it is a testament to our immigration system and safeguards that immigrants that choose this country don't increase crime and may in fact suppress it. The jury is still out on the economic costs to welcoming immigrants and it's clear that we need to improve the outcomes of those that come to this country because it's getting longer for them to achieve parity with native born Canadians. That being said, recent immigrants are still holding their own, and in the words of John Ivison of the National Post: The employment rate for foreign-born men was higher than for native-born men, a statistic that gives the lie to the popular image of the immigrant welfare scrounger. But, despite the positive impact immigrants have made to this country, the fact of the matter is that some have been able to circumvent the safeguards in our immigration system meant to keep liars, criminals and terrorists out. Our system is not perfect and many are obtaining status that they don't deserve. A recent auditor general's report which reviewed a tiny sample of grants of citizenship outlined the shortcomings of one part of our... Read more →

Working the Canadian Immigration System: How Liars, Terrorists & Criminals Get Here and Stay Here

It's a provocative title, but let's be clear about a few points before anyone conflates what I'm trying to say and their own personal views on immigrants. The reality of the Canadian experience - more so than any other similar country - is that Canada is a land of immigrants. Indeed, the number of Canadians born abroad is more than ever, and that proportion is a little more than a fifth of the population. Further, immigrants do not increase crime. A bevy of criminologists have undermined that fallacy. Immigrants not only do not increase crime, it appears they may well suppress it. It is true that the jury is still out on the economic benefit of immigration - or, put another way, the true cost of immigration. Generally speaking, our immigration safeguards are working. Despite that, Kellie Leitch, a leadership aspirant for the Conservative Party, has raised the question of whether we do enough to screen the immigrants that do come to this country. She notes, correctly, that most are not interviewed by Canadian immigration officers. Despite the letters appearing after her name, she appears to possess a very simplistic notion of the process, but her concerns do appear to... Read more →

Visa Office Stereotypes: Indians are Desperate to Leave

Each Visa Office is unique. Some are facilitative, others not so much. Individuals - particularly those that are seeking visitor visas - seeking to come to Canada are supplicants; there is no right of entry to foreign nationals. Visa Officers hold the key and decide whether or not to let someone into Canada. The decision making process is opaque. Applicants send in their application and supporting documents and the result is somewhat akin to shaking a Magic 8 Ball. Many bona fide visitors are refused because of generalizations and stereotypes, particularly if they come from poor countries. A recent refusal at our office involved a middle aged couple from India. They were well established in that country, owning property, filing taxes, running a business. They had more than sufficient funds and were seeking to visit the wife's three siblings in Canada, all citizens. Most importantly, they were leaving behind their only son, a 12 year old attending school there. The visitor visa was refused, the only reasons: Given economic conditions, employment prospects, considering your travel history, economic establishment and family ties, I am not satisfied that you would respect the terms of your admission as a temporary resident in Canada.... Read more →

Keep Calm and Carry On - There is no Refugee Crisis in Canada

Over the past few weeks, Canadians have been inundated with media reports of desperate migrants trekking over rugged, snow-covered terrain in freezing temperatures into Canada from the United States to claim asylum. The image of an RCMP officer joyfully welcoming a child migrant has likely appeared on your social media feed, along with a caption proudly proclaiming that refugees are welcome in Canada. This narrative of Canada as a shining castle on a hill and that its gates have been flung open for refugees is deeply flawed and does not reflect the enormous obstacles migrants face in obtaining asylum in Canada. The improbable election of Donald J. Trump has caused many journalists to heed to the wisdom of Jeet Heer: take Trump and his campaign promises both literally and seriously. The Executive Order banning immigration from seven Muslim majority countries and refugees for a 120-day period was the clearest indication that this U.S. administration would be unlike any other. And with Trump’s aggressive crackdown on asylum seekers and undocumented migrants, it’s apparent that the impacts will be felt around the world, including Canada. Given the situation, it’s hard to blame Canadians looking for an uplifting narrative against the dark, dystopian,... Read more →