Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

2021: The Year in Review

2021 has been a momentous year for immigration. I had made some general predictions in January of this year. As I've said before in another forum, I am no soothsayer, but this statement turned out to be somewhat prescient: 2020 was like a storm that impacted every business line of immigration. 2021 will be the first year for rebuilding. However, it's not just systems and backlogs that need to be addressed: the government has set aggressive settlement targets -and it remains to be seen how those targets can be met with a still-hobbled system. One can only assume that CRS will drop and that will benefit the Canadian Experience Class. One can only hope that a pathway to PR will be created for essential (but low skill/wage) workers in Canada that have been on the front lines during the pandemic. That pathway for essential workers was in fact instituted (along with a modality for international graduates); the statement "it remains to be seen how those targets can be met with a still-hobbled system" is true today and applicable for 2022. Silver Linings Despite the challenges, there were some positives, one of which was the publication of a text written by... Read more →

RedFM Interview -Discussing the massive immigration backlog with Raj Sharma and MP Jasraj Hallan

Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Lawyers · RedFM Interview -Immigration Backlog Raj Sharma Audio With MP Jasraj Hallan RedFM News Director Rishi Nagar interviews immigration lawyer Raj Sharma and Member of Parliament Jasraj Hallan as to the recent news of a 1.8 million application/file backlog with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Raj Sharma Audio with Jasraj Hallan_mixdown Read more →

Discussing Inadmissibility: “Does one act define you for a lifetime?”

I had a fun time chatting with Chantal Desloges and Cathryn Sawicki on their new immigration podcast -Welcome Home. We talked about practicing in the complex area of inadmissibility law. Topics covered: The amount of discretion that remains in the hands of an Officer even when confronted with inadmissibility; The challenges and rewards inherent in practicing in this area; The consequences of inadmissibility and potential remedies; The increased reliance on section 37 -organized criminality by CBSA; and Jaskirat Sidhu and the intersection of criminal law and immigration enforcement. Speaker 1: This podcast is brought to you by the Immigration Law Series by Emond Publishing, Canada's leading independent legal publisher. Cathryn : Welcome Home everybody. This is a podcast about Canadian immigration law. If you are an immigration practitioner or a student looking to get into this area, this is a podcast for and about you. Chantal and I will tell you what you need to know, bring you expert guests and share their wisdom. And we will all have a lot of fun doing it. So sit back, enjoy and welcome home. And I will now serenade you with a song. Why are you cutting me off? What? Chantal: The... Read more →