Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

Immigration in the Time of COVID-19: Issues and Challenges

It was an honour to contribute to the study by the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) on the impact of COVID-19 on the immigration system. The final report can be found here; Download Immigration in the time of COVID-19 Report of the Standing Committee. There has been massive disruption to our immigration system. Disruption very often leads to change; it seems clear that IRCC and the other stakeholders within the immigration system will have to embrace the greater use of technology from application to adjudication. Chantal Desloges and I both touched upon the possibility of technology as an aid to both adjudication and administrative efficiency. Numerous witnesses support IRCC’s digitizing processing streams and use of virtual interviews and ceremonies, and support the IRB’s use of virtual hearings. They advocated keeping these innovations in place after the pandemic is finished.[13] Raj Sharma, Managing Partner, Stewart Sharma Harsanyi, commented on the IRB beginning to use remote refugee hearings and appeals after having delayed all cases: At the beginning of this pandemic, eligibility determinations, refugee hearings and appeals were cancelled and delayed … which added to the grief and anxiety of those affected by the pandemic. However, hearings have resumed, with... Read more →

Quoted -CBC article on the new pathway to PR

Raj Sharma, an immigration lawyer at the Calgary law firm Stewart Sharma Harsanyi, said his firm is working with about 40 clients to help them apply for one of the three streams. Sharma said that while a program for graduates and essential workers is welcome, the language requirement is causing unnecessary headaches, particularly for those who graduated in Canada from a post-secondary program taught in English. "The international graduates, for example, entered Canada on language testing," said Sharma. "It's unnecessarily strict to require a language test." Sharma said he expects the 90,000 spots to fill up within a matter of days. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/migrant-rights-temporary-immigration-pathway-1.6013141 Read more →

New Pilot Programs for International Students and those Working in Essential Occupations -RedFM Punjabi Media Interview

PR for International Graduates Working in Essential Occupations

More good news from IRCC. There is a new pathway for international graduates for those that work in essential occupations. The foreign national must: Have accumulated at least one (1) year of full-time work experience, or the equivalent in part-time experience (1,560 hours), in Canada, in an eligible occupation listed in Annex A or Annex B in the three (3) years preceding the date when the application for permanent residence is received. The one year of work experience must be obtained in one or more of the eligible occupations as follows: Stream A: the one year of work experience must have been acquired in one or more occupations listed in Annex A. Experience cannot be combined with Annex B occupations. Stream B: the one year of work experience must have been acquired in one or more occupations listed in Annex B, or a combination of occupations in Annexes A and B. Be employed in Canada in any occupation at the time that the application for permanent residence is received; The employment described in both a) and b) must meet the definition of work under subsection 73(2) of the Regulations, must have been authorized pursuant to the Act and Regulations and... Read more →

Immigration Predictions 2021

Ah January. The month of making resolutions and predictions. Perhaps neither exercise is of real value. If 2020 has taught us anything is the futility of making predictions or assuming that the year will unfold as other years that have passed. Yet humans are creatures of habit and tradition. 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. As employers recover, so will business immigration... Sponsors of spouses and common law partners have managed to get the attention of law makers. One can only hope that officers are facilitative towards visitor visas for long suffering partners awaiting reunification with their loved ones -of course if overall processing was... Read more →

Immigration Policy in the time of COVID-19 -November 6, 2020

Mr. Marc Serré: Great. Thank you very much. … Mr. Sharma, you mentioned modernization, digitalization and biometrics. The department has, especially with COVID now, realized the importance of this, but it's been an issue over the last 20 years, and I want to ask you, because you touched upon this a bit, in a minute or less here, what more we can be doing by IRCC to further digitize and modernize the system. Mr. Raj Sharma: There have been great strides by IRCC to digitize, so APRs, applications for permanent residence, and express entries are already electronic. As Mr. Waldman said, there are many applications that are not. We've already moved the TRVs, the temporary resident visas, online as well. We've moved most APRs online as well. There are still paper applications for spousal sponsorship, and for humanitarian and compassionate applications. There is probably a good 20% to 25% more that can be done here, but we've made good progress, I think, on digitization. … Mr. Marc Serré: I want to thank the witnesses for their balanced approach and their continued offer to work with the federal government to improve this. This is not an issue involving party lines. We... Read more →

Immigration Policy in the Time of COVID-19

It was an honour appearing before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration on November 6, 2020. As was the case in my previous appearance before this Parliamentary Committee (in 2017) I spoke just before Lorne Waldman -the Dean of Canadian immigration lawyers. Here are some of the responses from the first round of questioning (my opening statement can be found in an earlier post). Mr. Jasraj Singh Hallan (Calgary Forest Lawn, CPC): Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you to all of the witnesses for coming today and sharing your thoughts and experiences. I want to touch on some of the points that some speakers highlighted. We know this pandemic has brought many things to light. I was always taught that work is work. Work carries a lot of dignity and honour, and we should recognize people's work as such. Now, as to whether work is defined as “skilled” or not, we've seen throughout this pandemic that industries such as some of the ones that were listed—transport, caregiving, manufacturing and processing—carry so much importance. Before the pandemic, they sometimes weren't given the respect they deserved. We've learned that not only is this work important and considered front-line work, as... Read more →

Interview on RedFM -Challenge to the Safe Third Country (Punjabi)

Interview on the Danielle Smith Show - Discussing the Challenge to the Safe Third Country Agreement November 6, 2019

Danielle Smith: All right, I am prepared to have my mind changed on this one. My inclination is that the Safe Third Country Agreement is a good agreement; and that we are absolutely right when somebody arrives at our borders saying that they are from America, that they should be applying for refugee status in the United States first. My inclination is that genuine refugees fleeing hazardous conditions in war torn areas are going to have an equally fair process in the United States and Canada. Danielle Smith: My sense of it though is that there is this push on for economic migrants regardless of your reason of wanting to move to a different place, you should be accepted and there shouldn't be any additional process that you need to go through. I think that's problematic because we have an entire system on immigration that is built around identifying people who are going to be the best match for our particular economic circumstances. And the point system and giving precedence to those who can speak one of the two official languages so that they have an easier time into integrating into our economy. It's actually a pretty darn good system... Read more →

Interview on AM770 Danielle Smith on Immigration and Election 2019 September 20, 2019

Danielle Smith: We have been doing a series about immigration over the course of the last day, looking at where the parties stand on immigration. And I wanted to talk to Raj Sharma to see if he's seen anything out there that gives him some confidence that any of the political parties have the right answer for solving some of the problems he's spoken so eloquently about with us in the past. Danielle Smith: Raj Sharma, of course, is partner and immigration lawyer at Stewart Sharma Harsanyi, joins me now to talk about it. Raj, thanks so much for being with me today. Raj Sharma: My pleasure. Danielle Smith: When I talked with you in the past, you've been so excellent at just giving us a play by play of how the backlogs are growing and some of the consequences of that. You've talked about what some of the solutions are, and it seems like there are a lot of people putting a lot of minds to figuring this out. Is there any progress being made from your perspective? Raj Sharma: Well it's an interesting time that we're in right now. I honestly expected immigration, irregular migration to play a... Read more →

Interview on AM630CHED Discussing Trudeau Blackface and Immigration Process and Screening

J'lyn Nye: Mr Sharma, welcome to the show. Raj Sharma: It's a pleasure. J'lyn Nye: I'll start by asking you about this... We've been talking about it today over the last... Well, since the news broke yesterday afternoon. Want to start by asking you about liberal leader Justin Trudeau. I know on your, on your website, it's right there. "Every lawyer at this office, has a son or daughter of immigrants, the majority of our support staff choose to immigrate to this country." Given you know who you work with, your clients, your personal background, what is going through your mind when you've seen those pictures of Justin Trudeau in brown face and in black face? Raj Sharma: Well I was born in Canada. I was born in Hamilton, Ontario. I grew up in a small coal mining town and I myself have experienced incidents of racism. I remember older kids spitting on me in grade four. These things sort of stay with you. So I suppose the first reaction really was a truly deep feeling of profound disappointment. J'lyn Nye: What kind of impact do you think that this could have on immigrants wanting to come to Canada and... Read more →

Regulation 117(9)(d) Consequences of Failing to Disclose a Family Member

The Minister of IRCC, Mr. Ahmed Hussen, recently announced a two-year pilot program which allows some immigrants to sponsor their undeclared, non-accompanying family members. These individuals would have been previously barred under the family class sponsorship pursuant to section 117(9)(d) of the IRPR. This pilot is significant as it shows the government’s changing mindset towards giving more flexibility to the current harsh regime set out in 117(9)(d). Announcing this new pilot, Minister Hussen said that the “federal government recognizes that the regulation was unfair” and that, “newcomers who failed to declare immediate family members as they first came to Canada were barred to sponsor them. Today, we right that wrong.” The new policy applies to sponsors that came as refugees or as accompanying family members. However, the policy leaves others out in the cold. One class gets to sponsor even previously undisclosed family members; the other class face potential misrepresentation and removal from Canada. This entails the writing and referral of a s.44 report; a hearing at the ID and thereafter an appeal to the IAD. The new policy obviates much of s.117(9)(d) -and so it makes little sense to take enforcement action against sponsors given that, on the other... Read more →

Exploitation, Abuse and False Promises

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." -Edmund Burke A recent Globe and Mail article about the exploitation of foreign workers and the "industry" that has sprung up to take advantage of these vulnerable individuals is not terribly shocking; and, now, after so many years bearing witness to it all, it fills me with weary resignation rather than anger. I discussed some of these transgressions during my testimony before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Immigration (CIMM) two years ago. Unlike the CBA, I did not argue for the elimination of immigration consultants altogether and restrict the practice of immigration services to lawyers alone. My position was, in fact, almost entirely endorsed by Lorne Waldman, the next witness, and perhaps the most respected immigration lawyer these last couple of decades. I suggested that regulation and oversight be improved, with additional training for consultants that sought to appear before the Immigration and Refugee Board. Going back to the the Globe article. It discusses nefarious actors like Kuldeep Bansal -there are many others but he perhaps exemplifies the apex (nadir?) of that sordid industry that preys on the hopes and dreams of migrants and workers.... Read more →

Albertaprime Time Interview on Jason Kenney and the #UCP Immigration Plan for Alberta March 1, 2019

Michael Higgins: An immigration plan to help reverse shrinking populations in rural Alberta. Jason Kenney's Alberta Advantage Immigration Strategy would speed up processing and end large backlogs with an aim of bringing 10,000 newcomers to rural Alberta communities, giving priority to committed entrepreneurs ... Jason Kenney: ... who take big risks to turn a dream into reality, which creates jobs and produces prosperity for all of us. Michael Higgins: To get some perspective on what the UCP plan might involve and its degree of potential, we're joined now by Raj Sharma, an immigration lawyer in Calgary. Michael Higgins: Mr. Sharma, before we get to the UCP proposal, many of us understand immigration to be a federal responsibility, so to what degree do the provinces factor into the equation? Raj Sharma: Thanks, Michael. Immigration is a federal legislation, but the responsibility is a bit shared between the federal government and the provinces. Raj Sharma: I'll leave Quebec aside; Quebec has its own sort of deal in immigration just like they have their own deal on other matters. Other provinces have been sort of clamoring for more say in terms of immigration, and so each province has their own provincial nominee program,... Read more →

Update - Venezuela added to Administrative Deferral of Removal List (ADR)

CBSA has sent the following message: As a result of the political unrest and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, please be advised that an Administrative Deferral of Removal (ADR) is immediately imposed to that country pursuant to section 230 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. All removals to Venezuela are temporarily deferred except for the removal of persons who are: inadmissible under subsection 34(1) of the Act on security grounds; inadmissible under subsection 35(1) of the Act on grounds of violating human or international rights; inadmissible under subsection 36(1) of the Act on grounds of serious criminality or under subsection 36(2) of the Act on grounds of criminality; inadmissible under subsection 37(1) of the Act on grounds of organized criminality; referred to in section F of Article 1 of the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention; consenting to their removal. Read more →

Blog Posting - Parental Sponsorship Reopens January 4, 2016

The Family Class Sponsorship of Parents and Grandparents will re-open as of January 4, 2016. Based on our experience if you wish to sponsor under this category, applications should be prepared and couriered out so CPC-Mississauga receives them on January 4, 2016 itself. The program is so popular that last year there were courier trucks lined up outside their office on the first morning of processing in 2015. Please note, that Canada Revenue Agency documents are the only acceptable form of proof of income for these applications. Family size includes the sponsors, their dependents and any and all family members included in the sponsorship (including age eligible children of the applicants). Employer letters, bank statements and T4s for 2015 will not be acceptable evidence of income. If you are planning on applying for sponsorship, then call the CRA at 18009598281 and obtain all relevant Option C Notices of Assessment for each sponsor for the years: 2012, 2013 and 2014. Evidence of income in 2015 will not be considered. The relevant minimum sponsorship income chart is attached below: Federal Income Table for sponsors of parents and grandparents The following table applies to residents of all provinces except Quebec. For each of... Read more →

Canadians of Convenience or Canada is not a hotel

There are individuals that come to Canada just to obtain Canadian citizenship and all of its commensurate benefits, including a passport that can be used to travel visa free to over 150 countries. Some spend the requisite period of time in Canada and then leave (so called "Canadians of convenience" that refer to their sojourn in Canada, "immigration jail"), sometimes leaving family members here: "The United Nations Global Commission on International Migration has caught the scope of this staggering shift. It details how the migration story today is generally not the traditional one of arrival, settlement and integration. Instead, migration, especially for the affluent, has turned into a globalized trend of unprecedented mobility, porous national borders, weak loyalties, opportunism and fragmented families." Others commit residency fraud, exaggerating their time in Canada while living elsewhere. Justice Ann Mactavish recently found a family had committed residency fraud and awarded costs to the government over $63,000.00 (MCI v. Houchaine 2014 FC 342). At this time, over 10,000 individuals are being investigated for possible residency fraud. Good. The solution? There are some individuals that will always seek to maximize their personal benefits. That's fine, but not when it comes at the cost of undermining... Read more →

Alan Kurdi's Family Will be Coming to Canada

Alan Kurdi's family will be coming to Canada. During Election 42 disturbing news came to light in the wake of Alan's lifeless body washing up on a Turkish shore. It emerged that Alan's aunt had applied for but was encountering roadblocks in bringing Alan's uncle's family to Canada. Chris Alexander, the then Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, claimed that his hands were tied; that he couldn't intervene and that the lack of a UNHCR document was fatal to the application. We learned later that this was, at best a half-truth, and more likely, complete obfuscation. The Prime Minister's Office had intervened months prior, and for political reasons in UNHCR referred refugee files. Alexander's statements, and the PMO actions is a circle that cannot be squared. I wrote about the political chicanery involving the most vulnerable in October. Thinking the path to Canada was foreclosed, it appears that Alan's father made the fateful decision to try to reach Greece via boat. It resulted in the tragic loss of his wife and two young boys. Those deaths likely contributed to opening Canada's door for thousands of others. This fact appears to be of some solace to Alan's father. Read more →

Blog Posting - "Status Checks" in the GTA

In interesting non Syrian refugee related news, a recent report has indicated that Toronto police often contact the Canada Border Services Agency for a "status check" on individuals they have detained or are questioning: http://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/2015/11/24/toronto-police-urged-to-stop-immigration-status-checks.html This practice is interesting on several levels. As indicated in the article, it would be interesting to note the racial or ethnic origins of the individuals having their status checked. It would not surprise anyone if most of the individuals having their status checked are visible minorities. Constitutional questions also are engaged by this practice. For instance anyone being investigated must, at some point in the process, be advised of what they are being investigated for. Are Toronto police advising these individuals that in addition to whatever criminal matter they are being questioned about that they are also having their immigration status looked into? Is this even within the remit of the police? If not, should it be and be legislated as such? Important legal and societal questions that beg explanation and clarification from the police and well as discussion and contemplation by the rest of us. Given the bright spotlight being placed on newcomers as security risks it is incumbent on the government to... Read more →

Blog Posting - The Man in the Middle: John McCallum - the new Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

Apologies in advance for the misleading title! The biographic details for Mr. McCallum are readily available. In short, he is a very well experienced economist who has held high positions in both academia and the business world. He is also an experienced politician having been a Member of Parliament for many years and also holding cabinet experience with previous Liberal governments in other portfolios. Prior to his appointment, he served as the main opposition Liberal critic on the Conservative government's immigration policy. In terms of what we can expect from him in the short term, based on government announcements and interviews we would expect he will play an active role in helping the resettlement of 25,000 Syrian refugees in Canada. He is also on record as indicating the government would not pursue its appeal of the Federal Court decision restoring healthcare coverage to refugee claimants, regardless of the status of their claims or the country they claimed against. In the long term, his positions are less well articulated. What can we expect? As mentioned previously, Liberal platforms and campaign promises regarding immigration policy, in addition to the above, have been that: -They would double the quota for selection for parents... Read more →