“Crooked immigration consultants victimize people who dream of immigrating to Canada,” said Minister of Immigration, Jason Kenney.

Those wishing to immigrate to Canada will soon be better protected against fraud and exploitation by “crooked consultants”. On June 8, 2010, Minister of Immigration Jason Kenney proposed a new law, the “Cracking Down on Crooked Consultants Act”, that will make it a criminal offense for unauthorized individuals to charge money to provide immigration advice and services. This new law will reinforce the integrity and fairness of Canada’s immigration system. “Crooked immigration consultants victimize people who dream of immigrating to Canada,” said Minister of Immigration, Jason Kenney. There had been stories of unscrupulous immigration consultants who took advantage of prospective immigrants. These underground, unauthorized consultants, referred to as “ghost consultants”, sell fraudulent advice, produce counterfeit documents, or encourage their clients to lie on the application forms. It had been reported also that “ghost consultants” were taking advantage of the system by taking payment from applicants without completing or submitting any paperwork. The “Cracking Down on Crooked Consultants Act” will both better protect prospective immigrants from “ghost consultants” and help protect our immigration system from fraud and abuse.Under this proposed new law, only lawyers, Quebec notaries, and authorized consultants will be able to charge fees to assist prospective immigrants with their applications to immigrate to Canada. The name of anyone who takes payment for assistance before or during the immigration application process must appear on the application form. Unauthorized individuals who provide immigration services for a fee will face criminal charges and be subject to a $50,000 fine or 2 years in jail, or both. The applicant’s visa will be refused or taken away if any false information is supplied. The law will also permit the Minister to designate a body to govern immigration consultants and establish measures to better oversee and regulate this organization. Unpaid third parties, such as family members, friends and not-for-profit community groups, who provide immigration services, would not be affected by the new law.

Canada’s current criteria for investors are the lowest in the world, and have not been changed since 1999. As a result the program draws a larger number of applicants than can be admitted every year under the immigration plan, and processing times are increasing. These proposed changes are designed to keep Canada’s investor program waiting times short.

On June 26, 2010, Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced that the Government of Canada temporarily closed applications for the immigrant investor program. Effective June 26, 2010, the Government of Canada announced that it will cease accepting new investor applications. This said, any application postmarked or received before June 26, 2010 will be considered.

The Government has stated that it wishes to prevent a flood of applications from being submitted in advance of newly proposed eligibility criteria for the immigrant investor program. Proposed regulatory changes will require new investors to have a personal net worth of $1.6M, up from $800,000, and make an investment of $800,000, up from $400,000.

Canada’s current criteria for investors are the lowest in the world, and have not been changed since 1999. As a result the program draws a larger number of applicants than can be admitted every year under the immigration plan, and processing times are increasing. These proposed changes are designed to keep Canada’s investor program waiting times short.

“Canada needs investor immigrants,” said Minister Kenney. “These changes are necessary to keep Canada’s program competitive with that of other countries, and keep pace with the changing economy.”

“This completely changes the nature of an application for a Federal Skilled Worker permanent resident visa,” commented Canadian immigration Attorney David Cohen.

On June 26, 2010, Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced that the Government of Canada has amended its current immigration procedures to put even greater emphasis on economic recovery and further reduce the Federal Skilled Worker application backlog.

The changes, effective immediately, concern the Federal Skilled Worker program, including:

1) a change in the occupations that are currently ‘open’ under this program,

2) the creation of a limit on the number of applications which will be considered by Canadian Immigration Visa Offices, and

3) a change in the documentation required for an application under this program.

These changes do not affect any applications received at the Central Intake Office before June 26, 2010.

Under these updated instructions, an application is eligible for processing if the applicant:

• has at least one year of continuous, full-time (or equivalent) paid work experience in the past decade in a qualifying occupation, which have been identified as the most in-demand occupations in Canada at this time; or
• qualifies for Arranged Employment with a full-time permanent job offer from a Canadian employer.

Applicants who formerly qualified because they had been living in Canada with legal status as a Temporary Foreign Worker or an international student will no longer be eligible under the Federal Skilled Worker program, but may still meet the eligibility criteria of the Canadian Experience Class program.

The former list of 38 qualifying occupations has been amended to include 11 new occupations with 20 previously listed occupations having been removed.

Effective immediately, the following occupations have been added to the list:

0811 Primary Production Managers (Except Agriculture)
1122 Professional Occupations in Business Services to Management
1233 Insurance Adjusters and Claims Examiners
2121 Biologists and Related Scientists
2151 Architects
3113 Dentists
3131 Pharmacists
3222 Dental Hygienists & Dental Therapists
4151 Psychologists
4152 Social Workers
7216 Contractors and Supervisors, Mechanic Trades

The following occupations remain on the list:

0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers
3111 Specialists in clinical medicine
3112 General practitioners and family physicians
3142 Physiotherapists
3152 General duty registered nurses
3215 Radiological technologists
3233 Licensed practical nurses
6241 Chefs
6242 Cooks
7215 Contractors and Supervisors, Carpentry Trades
7241 Electricians (Except Industrial & Power System)
7242 Industrial Electricians
7251 Plumbers
7265 Welders & Related Machine Operators
7312 Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics
7371 Crane Operators
7372 Drillers & Blasters – Surface Mining, Quarrying & Construction
8222 Supervisors, Oil and Gas Drilling and Service

For those skilled workers applying under the occupation list, the government will limit the number of applications considered for processing to 20,000 total per year. Within the 20,000 limit, a maximum of 1,000 applications per occupation will be considered. This limit does not apply to applicants with a job offer.

Candidates for the Federal Skilled Worker program and for the Canadian Experience Class Program will now be required to submit the results of a language proficiency assessment exam, along with a complete set of supporting documents (such as copies of passports, evidence of educational history, documentation of marital status, proof of settlement funds, police clearances, etc.) with their application forms. As such, the language proficiency results and additional documentation must be gathered to create an initial application.

The authority for the changes, known as ministerial instructions, comes from amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act approved by Parliament in 2008 as part of the Action Plan for Faster Immigration.

The instructions are meant as a flexible tool to allow the government to keep the intake of applications for economic immigration in line with the number and types of jobs available in Canada, as well as reduce application backlogs and processing times.

Since the first instructions were issued in November 2008, the backlog of federal skilled worker applicants in process prior to the legislation has dropped from 640,000 to 380,000. The majority of decisions on new applications are being made in six to 12 months, compared with up to six years prior to the changes. But in the first quarter of 2010, the number of new applications rose significantly beyond the department’s ability to process them in a timely way, leading to the recognition that a more refined approach is necessary.

“These changes bring Canada in line with the practices of the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, our main competitors for skilled immigrants,” said Immigration Minister Kenney. “They help match the supply of applicants to our processing capacity and today’s post-recession job market needs. This is the only responsible way to manage our immigration system.”

“This completely changes the nature of an application for a Federal Skilled Worker permanent resident visa,” commented Canadian immigration Attorney David Cohen.

“Under these new rules, there are between 680 and 1000 visas to be issued for each occupation on the list and those spots will fill up very quickly. As the expression goes, ‘the early birds are going to get those worms’,” said Cohen.

Attorney Cohen went on to explain that these new rules favour the fastest and most organized applicants. “The reality of these new rules is that an applicant has only one try to get his or her application accepted. If an application has even a tiny error, it risks being returned without processing, and by the time that error is corrected, the odds of the occupation category being closed are that much greater.”

The new rules and the closure of some of the Federal Skilled Worker occupations should not discourage potential immigrations from considering Canada as a destination. Attorney Cohen encourages potential immigrants:

“Remember that there are 60 immigration programs across Canada from which to choose. If the Federal Skilled Worker program is no longer an option, I’ll advise my clients to explore other alternatives.”

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One such alternative is the Quebec Skilled Worker program, which uses completely different criteria for selecting applicants. The Quebec selection model relies on the concept of “human capital”, and tries to select candidates based on the likelihood of successful economic and social integration.

The project named HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Pre-School Youngsters) will encourage young women immigrants integrate successfully in their communities and begin their new life in Canadian society.

A new project by Canada immigration department aims to help in settlement of women immigrants in Vancouver.

The project named HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Pre-School Youngsters) will encourage young women immigrants integrate successfully in their communities and begin their new life in Canadian society.

The funding for the Vancouver-area project is being provided by Canada immigration, stated Member of Parliament for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country, John Weston. Mr. Weston was speaking on behalf of Jason Kenney, Canadian immigration minister.

The project by Canada immigration will enable newcomers and new Canada visa arrivals engage themselves in Canadian society and way of life. This will help in making a strong Canadian society, added Mr. Weston.

The Practicing Citizenship project seeks to ensure the participation of women belonging to ethno-cultural minority in the society of Canada by providing them with knowledge regarding history and democracy of Canada. Also, such women will also be imparted literacy training, mentoring and lessons on practical experiences in their new community.

Contribution of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has helped in establishment of the new Practicing Citizenship project titled HIPPY. The project will help in giving required confidence and knowledge to nearly 50 new women immigrant arrivals in Canada which will equip them to engage themselves in their respective communities.

There have a number of new women immigrants in Canada who have been found to be struggling to adjust and integrate themselves in their new societies in Canada. The result was that many felt themselves as isolated and cut off from people in Canada.

Hence, the primary motive of this project by Canadian government is to help such women immigrants in Canada, stated Executive Director of HIPPY Canada, Debbie Bell. HIPPY Canada has formed alliances with Multicultural Helping House Society and MOSAIC to promote Practicing Citizenship program while keeping concerns of such new immigrant arrivals in Canada, Bell added.

Canada is a multicultural and diverse nation and this is proved by CIC’s Multiculturalism Program to extend equal opportunities and understanding of cultures of each other’s nation to people hailing from different faiths and cultures.

“The Government of Canada wants more foreign students to choose Canada and we want to help them succeed,”- Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship

Vancouver, April 21, 2008 — The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, today announced changes to work permits for international students who graduate from eligible programs at certain Canadian post-secondary institutions, making it easier to attract foreign students to Canada.

Effective immediately, and for the first time, these international students would be able to obtain an open work permit under the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program, with no restrictions on the type of employment and no requirement for a job offer. In addition, the duration of the work permit has been extended to three years across the country. Previously, the program only allowed international students to work for one or two years, depending on location.

“The Government of Canada wants more foreign students to choose Canada and we want to help them succeed,” said Minister Finley. “Open and longer work permits provide international students with more opportunities for Canadian work experience and skills development. This will, in turn, help make Canada a destination of choice, and help us keep international students already studying in Canada.”

The increased flexibility offered by the expanded program will benefit graduates and employers alike as the program will help international students get important work experience while responding to Canada’s labour market needs. Canada will benefit in the long run as the professional experience gained will help graduates meet the requirements to stay permanently in Canada.

“As we move toward the implementation of the Canadian Experience Class, these changes will help create a pool of individuals who, with work experience, will find it easier to apply to immigrate to Canada,” added Minister Finley. “Our ability to retain international graduates with Canadian qualifications, work experience and familiarity with Canadian society, will help increase our competitiveness and benefit Canada as a whole.”,

The Post-Graduation Work Permit Program allows students who have graduated from an eligible program at a post-secondary institution to gain valuable Canadian work experience. Preliminary 2007 data indicate that 63,673 international students came to Canada that year, representing a 4.6 percent increase over the previous year.

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