Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Calgary Immigration Law Firm Blog

Kenney's bogus refugee bill

Two refugee experts excoriate Kenney's bogus refugee bill: Read the full article at the Toronto Star: http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/1135376--ottawa-s-bogus-refugee-bill Ottawa’s bogus refugee bill Toronto Star 2012/02/22 Audrey Macklin and Lorne Waldman Jason Kenney, the minister of Citizenship and Immigration, knows who the real refugees are. Or at least he knows which ones are “bogus”: refugee claimants from Mexico or Sri Lanka or Hungary are bogus. Bogus refugees include those who use smugglers to overcome the barriers to lawfully reaching countries like Canada which, by signing the refugee convention, have promised not to send back persons fleeing persecution. ... Kenney made his views clear to voters by highlighting the issue of “bogus claims” in the last election. And he made them known to the members of the Immigration and Refugee Board — the decision-makers who are tasked with determining individual cases based on the evidence, and whose reappointments depend on Kenney’s opinion of them. And just to be sure that his views were respected, he took the unprecedented step last year of telling the justices of the Federal Court to stop thwarting his efforts to reform refugee policy by holding government officials legally accountable for their actions. Now, with a majority government in... Read more →

News Release and Backgrounders re "Protecting Canada's Immigration System Act"

Here is the link to the news release and backgrounders on the new Bill, tabled this morning in the House. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/media/releases/2012/2012-02-16.asp Read more →

Link to text of Bill C-31

Here is the actual text, featuring the nasty surprises in the Backgrounders . . . http://www.cdp-hrc.uottawa.ca/projects/refugee-forum/links/documents/C-31.pdf Read more →

Message from the IRB Chair

Subject: Message from the IRB Chairperson regarding Bill C-31 As you know, the Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, tabled Bill C-31 on February 16, 2012 that would bring further changes to the Balanced Refugee Reform Act, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and other legislation that touches on immigration matters. The new legislation, as well as supporting material, can be accessed via the Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) website. You will also know that this legislation is being driven by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, and that, as an independent administrative tribunal, the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) does not develop policy. Any questions about the Bill should therefore be directed to CIC. We recognize that some of the proposed changes from the draft legislation could raise some concerns over timelines and processes. Please rest assured that the IRB, which has been recognized and served as a model to many other countries, will continue to meet its obligations in providing a fair process to all eligible refugee claimants who appear before it. Our personnel, who are extremely committed and devoted to our mission and mandate, are developing innovative measures to meet the new timelines and... Read more →

Refugee Reform: Expediency at the Cost of Fairness

“Protecting Refugees”: Expediency and Efficiency the New By Words in Immigration Henry Davis IV R.Psych Raj Sharma J.D. LL.M Jason Kenney is the most prolific Minister of Immigration this country has seen. Love him or hate him, he has fundamentally transformed his Department. Euphemistic legislative titles like the “Balanced Refugee Reform Act” and “Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act” have but one object and purpose – to elevate expediency and efficiency as the paramount considerations in immigration and refugee policy. It is true that reforms are necessary. Canada should not be receiving more refugee claims from Europe than from Africa; given the constraints imposed by the Supreme Court, everyone that claims refugee protection is granted a hearing. However, in his zeal to crack down on “bogus” refugee claimants, Mr. Kenney may inadvertently harm legitimate claims. The new time constraints imposed on every refugee claimant make it very unlikely that the most vulnerable – those suffering from PTSD or other severe mental or sexual trauma – will have a full and fair hearing before the re-constituted Refugee Protection Division. The new legislation aims to have refugee claims heard within 60 days. Individuals suffering from serious trauma will undoubtedly be prejudiced with such... Read more →

Tories move to curb 'bogus' refugees

New bill uses majority to roll back earlier concessions By Louise Elliott, CBC News Posted: Feb 15, 2012 9:03 PM ET Last Updated: Feb 15, 2012 11:52 PM ET The Conservative government is poised to change the refugee system yet again in an attempt to deter what it considers "bogus" claimants, CBC News has learned. The government will table a bill in the House of Commons on Wednesday that is expected to toughen the measures taken in the Balanced Refugee Reform Act. That bill — which passed a minority Parliament in June, 2010, after several concessions were made to the opposition — has yet to be implemented. It was due to be up and running by June 29 of this year. Sources familiar with the bill say it will reverse some fundamental compromises the government made to get it approved by opposition MPs. Most notably, it will eliminate a key appeal route for claimants from countries that are on a special "designated country of origin" or "safe country" list. It will also eliminate a committee of experts who were to advise the minister on which countries to place on that list. The list, which isn't yet up and running, is... Read more →

CBSA Assisted Voluntary Return program for rejected refugee claimants - pilot program in TO

News Release National CBSA expanding its pilot program aimed at increasing voluntary returns Ottawa, Ontario, February 15, 2012 - The CBSA announced today that it is expanding its Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration (AVRR) pilot program to encourage even more failed refugee claimants to voluntarily leave Canada. The program, which will be launched in the summer of 2012 in the Greater Toronto Area, will now be open to those in the current asylum system and to people wishing to return to any country. With the pilot's expansion, the CBSA has the potential to achieve up to 6,955 voluntary returns by providing reintegration assistance to those willing to return to their home countries. These voluntary returns will be managed by a trusted third party service provider. As a result, CBSA enforcement officers will be freed up to concentrate on more complex, higher priority removal cases, including those involving serious criminality and crimes against humanity. Assisted voluntary return and reintegration programs have been successfully adopted in countries throughout Europe, including the United Kingdom, as well as in Australia. Voluntary returns have proven to be more humane, timely and cost-effective than traditional enforced removals. Under the AVRR pilot program, the CBSA will work... Read more →

What is a dependent child?

Generally speaking, someone over 22 years of age cannot be sponsored as a dependent child. As Justice Harrington notes in his recent decision on one of our matters, there are exceptions. One of those exceptions occurs when the individual is over 22 years of age, has depended substantially on the financial support of a parents since before turning 22 and is unable to be financially self-supporting due to a physical or mental condition. In our case, our client (the sponsor) sponsored his parents and his disabled older brother to Canada. His brother was a survivor of polio and suffered from Post Polio Residual Paralysis affecting both his legs. The evidence before the immigration officer was uncontroverted: disabled children were viewed as a "curse from God" by 50% of Indian households; the disabled in India had a 62% unemployment rate; and, this individual had never worked. The immigration officer, however, preferred something called a "ADLR - Activities of Daily Living Report" which really determined mobility rather than employability. The immigration officer dismissed the affidavits provided by the sponsor's father and brother. Justice Harrington made short shrift of such reasoning. He found that there was "ample evidence of societal discrimination against individuals... Read more →

The Importance of Expertise

Do you consult your mechanic, barber or even dentist about your heart condition? It should go without saying that you should consult a cardiologist. If you need surgery, you want a highly experienced expert in the field who has done a large number of the proposed operations. In law, as in any area, reputations are based on knowledge and expertise. It appears that some individuals are not swayed by reputation or expertise. I am continually surprised by clients that rely on friends/family, unregistered consultants and inexperienced counsel for advice on their immigration matters. If you are seeking permanent residence in Canada, facing an immigration hearing or appeal or may lose your status in this country, you want a highly experienced lawyer who has done a large number of applications, and hearings/appeals. Read more →

Deferral of removals for regions of Somalia

Canada Border Services Agency has imposed an Administrative Deferral of Removals (ADR) on the regions of Somalia where famine has been officially declared by United Nations Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. These regions are: Middle Shabelle, Afgoye and Mogadishu. Removals to these regions are temporarily deferred, with the exception of individuals who are inadmissible for criminality. This Administrative Deferral of Removals was imposed on December 9, 2011. This Administrative Deferral of Removals is less than a moratorium, but at least it is something. CBSA is not publicizing this information, so it is important to circulate the news to any Somalis affected, so that they can be reassured that they do not face imminent removal. Read more →

Honour Killings and the Muslim Diaspora

I have previously written on the tendency of immigrants to bring with them hatreds, prejudices and conflicts prejudicing their country of origin. An op-ed on this issue was published in the Calgary Herald and can be found here. In that article, I talked about about religious fundamentalists and the doomed Air India flight. Unfortunately, the reality is that cultural belief systems are contributing to "honour killings" whereby women and girls are being killed in Canada for contravening out-dated norms of behaviour. Andy Hayher and I chose to speak on this topic last Tuesday, and found that the majority of callers were in agreement that these out-moded belief systems had to be changed. A link to the audio (mostly in Punjabi) can be found Download 20120103honourkilling. I was asked to speak on this matter on Alberta Primetime and discussed this matter with Ms. Karamali (a social worker from Edmonton) and Imam Syed Soharwardy, a controversial individual and (likely) self-appointed President of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada. In my view, religious and cultural views that contribute to women being viewed as property are foundational to the occurrence of honour killings. Regrettably, honour killings occur throughout South Asia (India, Pakistan) and the... Read more →

Failed refugee judges given second chance - toronto Star 20 Dec 2011

Failed refugee judges given second chance Published On Tue Dec 20 2011 Nicholas Keung Immigration Reporter Refugee judges who failed an exam and screening for their same jobs in a revamped asylum system are being given a second chance to redeem themselves, the Star has learned. Last summer the federal government sought to fill 105 new civil servant positions, which will replace the current system of independent adjudicators who decide whether a person's claim for asylum in Canada is valid. After more than half of 63 current tribunal judges who applied for the civil servant jobs failed, the Immigration and Refugee Board in late November launched a new round of screening and exams. The previous competition was open to all federal civil servants, including refugee judges, as well as the general public. This latest round, however, will only be open to those currently on the federal government payroll, including judges who previously failed. The board's decision to reopen the competition has raised questions about the fairness of the process, where individuals who have been doing the job for years and failed are given a second chance while members of the public are not. Under the old system judges were typically... Read more →

Immigration Wrap Up: 2011

Minister Kenney has moved decisively and dramatically on a number of fronts, from coldly ending the family class for parents and grandparents, to addressing marriage fraud and citizenship fraud, he is Canada's most prolific Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. Read more →

Spousal sponsorship appeal - financial inadmissibility

I attended for a spousal sponsorship appeal in Vancouver a couple of months ago. The refusal was both on genuineness/s.4 of the Regulations as well as financial inadmissibility. A refusal based on financial inadmissibility appears to be unique to the Beijing visa office. I have not seen that ground of refusal for a spousal sponsorship used in other offices. Here are my notes, hopefully they will be helpful to anyone trying to distinguish the IAD decision in Debaba: Download Notes on financial inadm spousal sponsorship Read more →

Minister Kenneys comments having a 'Chilling effect' on IRB decisions

Another critical piece by Mr Butler on whether refugees have the deck stacked against them in Canada. To the best of my knowledge Mr Kenney is the only Minister that has made sweeping comments regarding the merits (or lack thereof) of refugee claims from particular countries. Comments from the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration carry weight. Remember that Members of the IRB are appointed by the GIC and are reappointed at the governments pleasure. It is no great stretch to imagine some influence by the Minister on a supposedly independent Board Member. ******************* Chill of ministerial comments erodes independence of Immigration and Refugee Board, former chair says By Don Butler, The Ottawa Citizen November 29, 2011 University of Ottawa law professor and former Immigration and Refugee Board chair Peter Showler says the ‘IRB and some of its members have discreetly deferred to negative comments by Immigration Minister Jason Kenny, and the Federal Court has not held the minister nor the board accountable.’ OTTAWA — The Immigration and Refugee Board describes itself as Canada’s largest independent administrative tribunal. But according to a former IRB chair, the board’s independence appears to be eroding. ... ...in the past couple of years, the board... Read more →

An ideological Federal Court and why it matters

The following is an excellent article by Don Butler. Unfortunately, Butlers article is not news to refugee lawyers. For refugees, justice depends on the identity of their adjudicator, not necessarily the merits of their case. Sean Rehaag, an academic, has also studied refusal rates of Refugee Board Members. In Calgary there are 2 Board Members that can be characterized as ideological. Refugee claimants will usually lose when they appear before this duo in this city. It's unfortunate that refugees face ideological barriers in addition to everything else. ****************************** Is there an ideological divide in immigration and refugee system? Research hints judges' decisions correlate with the party that appointed them By Don Butler, Postmedia News November 26, 2011 - Vancouver Sun Federal Court of Canada judges appointed by Conservatives are significantly less likely to overturn decisions by government officers and tribunals, to deny refugee claims or deport non-citizens, than are judges appointed by past Liberal administrations. And an applicant's likelihood of success diminishes even further if the appeal or review of their case is heard by judges named to the court in the past three years by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The findings come from an Ottawa Citizen analysis of 480... Read more →

Language Proficiency Requirements for Citizens

Raj Sharma debates Conservative Government MP Deepak Obhrai who supports additional requirement to be imposed on all applicants for Canadian Citizenship, even though available data indicates that it would be unnecessary. Read more →

4 Ways to Lose Your Permanent Residency/4 Formas de Perder la Categoría de Residente Permanente en Canadá

4 Ways on How to Lose your Permanent Residency in Canada. Read more →

One final excerpt from twitter on the family class moratorium

@immlawyercanada Raj Sharma JD LLM @kenneyjason do you have the stats for how many parents & grandparents have died while their sponsorship has been in process to Canada? 2 hours ago via Twitter for BlackBerry® Favorite Reply Delete replies ↓ » GregJohannson Gregory Johannson @ @immlawyercanada @kenneyjason Excellent question. 1 hour ago Favorite Retweet Reply Retweeted by ahayher and 1 other Read more →

More twitter discussion on the spin from Minister Kenney about increased family reunification

kenneyjason Jason Kenney @ @immlawyercanada Actually, more reunification by increasing admissions by 60%, from 15K to 25K. That + pause in new apps=huge cut in backlog 3 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply in reply to ↑ @immlawyercanada Raj Sharma JD LLM @kenneyjason but u're preventing reunification with ur moratorium. u can spin it but its definitely not = 'more reunification' Read more →