Changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

Earlier today, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) announced important changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that will come into effect immediately. According to HRSC, these changes are aimed at strengthening and improving the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

The changes announced today will only impact Canadian employers who need to apply for a Labour Market Opinion (LMO) from Service Canada before being able to hire a foreign worker. The changes are as follows:

• Employers who require an LMO will now be required to pay a $275 processing fee for each position requested;
• Employers will no longer be able to indicate a lanague other than English or French as a requirement unless they can demonstrate it is essential for the position;
• Beginning August 28, 2013, employers will have to advertise the position for a longer period of time and more extensively;
• Demonstrating that hiring a foreign worker will not negatively impact Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents by answering new questions added to the LMO form.

Changes Made to Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program

On Friday, September 13th, the Province of Alberta announced several changes to its Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP). These changes will help to facilitate immigration for certain categories of workers intending to settle in the province.

Food Services Industry Pilot Project – Additional Allocations

Until November 28th, 2013, Alberta employers with workers eligible for this pilot project may nominate up to 20% of their total workforce, per restaurant location, for immigration.

Strategic Recruitment Stream – Addition of Post-Graduate Category

The Strategic Recruitment Category of the AINP now includes a Post-Graduate Worker category.

International graduates of an eligible Canadian institution who are currently working in Alberta may be eligible to apply for nomination without an employer-supported application. Eligible applicants must be currently working in the province on a valid post-graduation work permit, and their occupation must be considered either skilled or semi-skilled.

Alberta Work Experience Category – New Eligible Occupations

Most skilled and semi-skilled occupations are now eligible for immigration through this category. The AINP has published a list of ineligible occupations, with the implication that those occupations not on the list are eligible.

In addition, targeted low-skilled occupations are now temporarily eligible. These are:

• Construction Trades Helpers and Labourers (NOC 7611)
• Other Trades Helpers and Labourers (NOC 7612)
• Light Duty Cleaners (NOC 6662)
• Specialized Cleaners (NOC 6661)
• Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superintendents (NOC 6663)

Skilled Worker Category – New Eligible Occupations

Plasterers, Drywallers, Upholsterers, and Managers /Supervisors in Service, Retail and Food service industries may now be eligible under the skilled worker criteria.

International Graduate Category – Streamlined Criteria

The Employer-Driven stream of this category has been amended. Employers must fulfill the following criteria:

• Be incorporated or registered by or under an act of the legislature of a province or the Parliament of Canada and operating as a business that has an established production capability, plant or place of business in Alberta.
• Provide a job offer to the Candidate for permanent, full-time employment an occupation that falls under an NOC 0, A, B, or C skill level.
• Provide a job offer to the Candidate that meets Alberta’s employment and wage standards.
• Provide a job offer to the Candidate that does not conflict with existing collective bargaining agreements.
• Show they are offering wages and benefits that meet industry standards.

Canada and US Will Share Information to Fight Foreign Criminals

Canada and the United States will be implementing a new information-sharing system aimed at decreasing the number of foreign criminals and ineligible refugee claimants to both countries. The plan, which is to be fully implemented by next fall, will include the sharing of basic information such as an individual’s date of birth, travel documentation and fingerprints.

Information on Canadian and American citizens or permanent residents would not be shared between the two countries.

According to Alexis Pavlich, a spokesperson for Canadian Immigration Minister Chris Alexander, the information-sharing plan “supports mutual efforts to facilitate legitimate travel and protect our common borders through improved screening of visitors before they enter our countries.”

Addressing questions that have been raised about privacy concerns, Ms. Pavilch responded:

“Privacy protection is a primary consideration for us, and the exchange will comply with all relevant Canadian laws, including the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, to ensure that Canadians’ privacy rights are protected.”

Ultimately, both governments anticipate a decrease in ineligible refugee claimants, crime committed by foreign criminals, and a decrease in detention and removal costs associated with sending criminals home. Instead, with the proper information these individuals will never be permitted entry into Canada or the US. In total, both countries anticipate saving approximately $42 million.

Canada’s Foreign Worker Intake on the Rise

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has released preliminary estimates of the country’s temporary foreign worker intake for 2013. According to its figures, the country has significantly raised its admissions this year.

From January to June this year, overall intake levels were 5 per cent higher than for the same time period last year and nearly 20 per cent higher than levels in 2011. In total, more than 125,000 new foreign workers entered Canada through June 2013, as opposed to 119,000 in 2012 and 100,000 in 2011.

This surge in foreign worker admissions has occurred despite recent crackdowns to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Permanent Residency for Parents and Grandparents, Live-In Caregivers to Increase in 2014

The Government of Canada has released some of its plans for immigration levels in 2014. Included in these plans are expected increases in the number of permanent residency visas issued to applicants through the Live-In Caregiver and Parent and Grandparent programs.

The Parent and Grandparent (PGP) sponsorship program, which is currently closed, is set to begin accepting applications again in January. In the meantime, the government has been working to quickly process backlogged applications. Its goal to admit 50,000 parents and grandparents over the past two years is set to be surpassed, and a further 20,000 are expected to be admitted in 2014. This will result in the largest number of new permanent residents through this program in nearly 20 years.

“The modernized PGP program will mean faster processing times and shorter waits,” said Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander. “It will also ensure that families have the financial means to support those they sponsor, while also protecting the interests of taxpayers.”

Meanwhile, the Live-In Caregiver Program will admit 17,500 new permanent residents next year. This represents almost double the number issued visas this year, and will be the highest number in the program’s history. The program helps qualified caregivers enter Canada to work for employers who have not found Canadians to fill their positions. After two years of work, they may apply for Canadian Permanent Residency.

Canada Launches “First of its Kind” Entrepreneur Start-Up Visa

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) announced today that it will launch a new program on April 1st, 2013, aimed at bringing the world’s best and brightest entrepreneurs to Canada. According to CIC, the program will be the first of its kind in any country. Its unique partnership model is intended to “position [Canada] as a destination of choice for start-ups”.

The Start-Up Visa Program will connect immigrant entrepreneurs to Canadian organizations with start-up expertise. These organizations will provide important guidance and resources for the new arrivals. It is anticipated that through these partnerships, immigrant entrepreneurs will maximize their business potential, as well as their positive impact on Canada’s labour market.

“Our new Start-Up Visa will help make Canada the destination of choice for the world’s best and brightest to launch their companies,” said Minister Kenney. “Recruiting dynamic entrepreneurs from around the world will help Canada remain competitive in the global economy.”

Prospective applicants to the program will have to first secure the support of a designated Canadian investor group or venture capital fund before they can apply to the Start-Up Visa Program. CIC has already targeted two groups for this role: Canada’s Venture Capital & Private Equity Association, and the National Angel Capital Organization. Each organization will determine which of their members may participate in the Start-Up Visa Program. In addition, CIC has begun working with the Canadian Association of Business Incubation to find businesses incubators that will be added to their list of designated organizations.

Federal Skilled Worker Program Will Include Occupation List

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has officially announced that the new Federal Skilled Worker program will include a list of designated occupations.

In an official announcement made late last Friday, CIC specified that three major announcements would be made in April regarding the Federal Skilled Worker Program. The announcements will concern the following:

1. A cap on the number of applications that will be accepted in the first year of intake;
2. A new list of eligible occupations; and
3. The list of designated educational assessment organizations

The new Federal Skilled Worker Program is scheduled to begin accepting applications on May 4th, 2013.

NEW UPDATES...Over 1,000 Super Visas Issued Monthly

Since its launch in December 2011, the new Parent and Grandparent Super Visa program has seen great success. To date, over 15,000 Super Visas have been issued to qualifying applicants. This translates to over 1,000 new Super Visa issuances each month.

The Super Visa program allows Canadian citizens and permanent residents to sponsor their parents or grandparents for long-term visitor status in Canada. Successful applicants receive a multiple entry visitor visa that is valid for up to 10 years. This visa allows parents or grandparents to remain in Canada for up to two years without the need to extend their status.

“The Parent and Grandparent Super Visa provides families with flexibility, and it is clearly growing in popularity,” said Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. “Our government is committed to family reunification. I am pleased to see that more and more parents and grandparents are getting the opportunity to spend longer periods of time with their loved ones in Canada.”

The Super Visa program has been well received in Canada and around the world for its straightforward application, short processing times, and high acceptance rate.

Government Set to Reform Temporary Foreign Worker Program

The Government of Canada has announced that it will be taking steps to reform the country’s temporary foreign worker program to ensure qualified Canadians are not passed up for jobs. This plan, announced in the 2013 budget this past Thursday, has outlined a number of new measures that will be taken to prioritize the hiring of Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

“Canada continues to experience major labour and skill shortages in many regions, and Canadians who are seeking jobs should always be first in line for these opportunities,” read one passage of the budget.

In order to help Canadians are given the first chance in finding available jobs, the government will take the following actions:

• Work with employers to make sure foreign workers are not relied upon in place of qualified Canadians;
• Increase the recruitment efforts that employers must make before hiring a temporary foreign worker, including increasing the ‘length and reach’ of advertising;
• Help employers who currently rely on foreign workers to transition to employing a Canadian workforce;
• Restrict language requirements of foreign workers to only Canada’s official languages (English/French); and
• Introduce fees for the processing of Labour Market Opinions (LMOs)

Last year, over 200,000 temporary foreign workers entered Canada.

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New language rules for Canada citizenship become effective 

 

Canada, 17th November: Canada’s new language rules for Canada citizenship have come into effect from 1st November onwards. 

So, all aspirants of Canada citizenship will have to fulfill new requirements for language proficiency in Canada.

New Canada citizenship requirements effective November—As per the announcement made by Canada immigration minister Jason Kenney on 28th September this year, Canada will have new stricter requirements for aspiring Canadian citizens.

All applicants from 1st November onwards will have to fulfill following to become Canada citizens

The new language requirements for Canada citizenship applicants will be required to--

• Possess adequate knowledge of either French;

•Or English (i.e. any of the two official languages of Canada).

So, applicants will be required to furnish evidence or proof of their language abilities in English or French at the time of applying for Canada citizenship.

Any application not submitting the required proof or evidence of language ability along with Canada citizenship application will get his or her application rejected. The requirement is meant for applicants aged 18 and 54 years.

What is adequate knowledge?—Adequate knowledge of official language means the applicant must be able to understand as well as speak basic questions and statements in either English or French, states Paragraph 5(!)(D) of the Citizenship Act(R.S.C., 1985, c. C-29).

Prior to the changes becoming effective 1st November this year, applicants for Canada citizenship were selected on the basis of a written Canada citizenship test.

In case of failing to clear the Canada citizenship written test, applicant was required to clear an oral interview held with any Canada citizenship judge.

It may be worth mentioned that for the knowledge of the applicants for Canada citizenship, some basic information is mentioned on the application form for Canada citizenship itself.

Such information is provided by Canada immigration department-CIC(Citizenship and Immigration Canada) for the benefit of Canada citizenship applicants.

Which are the acceptable proofs of language abilities for Canada citizenship applicants—

These include any of the following—

• Proof of completion of a post-secondary or secondary education in French or English; or

• Proof of getting appropriate language level in any language training programs funded by government; or

• Any CIC (Citizenship and Immigration Canada)-approved test conducted by third-party.

 

New Criteria for Canadian Experience Class to be launched in January 2013

changes in Canadian Experience Class would favor the temporary workers

   

Jason Kenney, Immigration Minister has announced the proposed changes in the criteria of Canadian Experience Class and Federal Skilled Worker Program.

The changes in Canadian Experience Class

The changes in this class would reduce the work experience for a temporary foreign worker from 24 months to 12 months.

This would be the criteria for the temporary foreign workers applying for permanent resident-ship.

The other requirements for CEC

The applicant must have a work experience of at least 37.5 paid hours per week.

The applicant should be a graduate. He should also fulfill the criteria of language. In fact, the proficiency of language will be very important criteria for giving weight to his application.

The intention of the changes

The changes are made with the intention of giving a fair chance to the temporary immigrants who hold a working experience in Canada rather than preferring those who would be coming from outside. The Department feels that they would be able to integrate with the society more than a new comer.

Information from the Minister

The Minister, Jason Kenney has informed that the micro details of the reached program would be published in the first half of the coming year.

Also, the New Year would accept a very few number of applications.

He says, “We have been making a lot of changes to our economic immigration system. We will take next few months to do a lot of the heavy lifting to get us closer to a fast and flexible immigration system.”

The past story

The world remembers the announcement in July of 2012 about returning the applications made post February 2008 wherein it was decided to refund the processing fee to the applicants too. The attempt was to clear the backlog as soon as possible.

Even now, the Department seems to be in a mood of accepting a fewer number of applications than they did before.

Canadian Experience Class is the category of Immigration which can attract the best talents across the world. Hence making it effective and fast as well flexible is a great measure to boost the economy of the nation too. This would invite more and more skilled people from the other nations to be a part of development process in the country.

30000 Canada Immigration Applications Rejected

Canadian Government Rejected 30000 applications filed under Federal Skilled Worker Programs before February 27, 2008

Eliminate the backlog:

 To reduce the massive backlog of 2, 85,000 Federal Skilled Worker applications, Canadian Government in the month of March 2012 announced that all the applications made before February 27, 2008 will be rejected. According to the government all these pending application were preventing them from making any kind of major reforms in the Canadian immigration system.

The Canadian government announced via local press note that they will refund the processing fees to all the permanent residence applications received before February, 272008. By rejecting 285000 applications the government will have to refund approximately $140 million to these rejected applications.

Re-apply: All the rejected applicants will get their refund from the permanent residency application with a communication note that if they wish to apply then they will have to go through the entire processes again.

Immigrants who want to work in Canada will have to file their application under the new Federal Skilled Worker Immigration program announced after February 27, 2008. They can apply under Canadian Experience Class program or Provincial Nominee Program.

There is discontent among the people who have been waiting for last 7 to 8 years to get their application approved. Many of them will not be able to qualify as per the new rules announced by the Canadian Government.

Lawsuit filed : Nearly 890 skilled professionals had taken legal action against the Minister of Immigration and the Canadian Government for going against the pledge to assess and for delayed response.

In a decision released on Thursday June 14th 2012, Justice Donald Rennie rejected the minister’s reasoningthat the pending backlog is correct and he has the authority to make policies. The broadcasting reports stated that the government has hit a dead end in this case of reducing the backlog.

The media reported that Ottawa has suffered a major setback in reducing the backlog after the federal court saidthat the government has to process all these applications in decent time frame.

The court also said that ministers can set directives by which he can reject some applications without taking it forward at all and there is no further going in case of those applications.

All the applicants who are eligible for processing as the new changes after 27th February 2012 should be assessed judiciously within a justified time frame.

Applicants for Federal Skilled Worker Program will get their fee refunded

Federal Skilled Worker Applicants have been asked by the CIC to confirm their contact information for the fee to be refunded

Citizenship Immigration Canada has estimated that they will be refunding the application processing fee to the applicants applying under Federal Skilled Worker Category. 

The back ground of refund

Way back in June 2012, CIC had cancelled the processing of Federal Skilled Worker applications which were submitted before February 2008. Till March 2012, CIC looked indecisive about the way or process of making the refund to the applicants.

The step was taken after a much debated announcement was made by the Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, wherein he had announced that the country needs to clear the backlog of applications coming under various categories of aspiring immigrants.

The Minister had also announced that along with the returning of applications the “processing fee” would also be returned back to the applicants. 

The latest development

In a recent announcement, CIC has made it clear that it would be refunding the application processing fee to as many as 100,000 applicants who had submitted their applications under Federal Skilled Worker Category.

The first and foremost step the applicants need to make is to confirm their contact information.

The formalities for the Applicants

This can be done by filling up the form return of Processing Fee, Right of Permanent Residence Fee or Right of Landing Fee Form to CIC.

The most important to be noted here, is that there refund will not include any kind of interest on it.
FSW applicants who are not sure of the fate of their applications are free to write to the CIC to understand the status of the same.

Those applicants, who had experienced their applications standing rejected before the introduction of the new law, will not get a second consideration. Hence, CIC suggests them to not get their applications status evaluated. Also, they wold not get their processing fee, because their application did not get rejected due to the enforcement of law, rather there might have been other reasons to it. 

The fate of the refund

CIC further announces that they will refund the processing fee to the applicants, but, the same cannot be adjusted with a new set of application, in case an applicant wishes so. This clearly indicates that if an applicant is interested in making a fresh application, he has to submit the form and the fee all over again.
As a matter of fact, CIC has not made any announcement on the new date or criteria to submit the applications afresh.

One-year extension to Canada Super Visa program

Canada, 13th December: Here’s some great news for parents and grandparents wanting to meet their children living in Canada.

Canada Super Visa program extended—The government of Canada has decided to extend Canada Super Visa program for another year. This is being done in response to increased number of applications received under Canada Super Visa program since its launch about a year ago.

Canada government has announced a one-year extension to its immigration program named Canada Super Visa.

Canada Super Visa program has been a super hit with immigrants, especially those hailing from India’s Punjab state, says consul general of Canada, Scot Slessor.

This becomes evident from the fact that nearly 7,000 Canada Super Visa applications were received by consulate office of Canada immigration department-CIC(Citizenship and Immigration Canada) within a period of 12 months since the program’s launch. In the short span of one month, the consulate received a whopping 1,000 applications for Canada Super visas in December 2011.

Canada Super Visas—Canadian immigration department announced launch of Parent and Grandparent Super Visa for foreigners wanting to visit their children or grandchildren living in Canada. Such parents or grandparents need to make an application for Canada Super Visas.

This Canada visas enables them to stay in Canada for a period of up to 24 months at a stretch. So, such Canada visa category is aimed to allow longer period of stay in Canada(Canada visitor visa allows a maximum stay of up to six months after which foreigners need to apply again for getting extension of their stay in Canada) at much lesser cost.

Parent and Grandparent Super Visa does not require any renewal of immigration status for a stay of up to 24 months in Canada. And the best thing is that it’s a multiple entry Canada visa having validity for a period of up to ten years.

Eligibility for Canada Super Visa—Any applicant needs to —

• Provide evidence of parent/grandparent relation to the Canadian permanent resident or Canadian citizen;

• Provide a proof of private medical insurance from any Canadian insurance firm and this should be valid for a minimum of one year from the entry date;

• Have undergone a medical checkup and must be admissible on the basis of health;

• Provide a written promise duly signed with regard to financial or monetary support(it can be an invitation letter from the child or the grandchild in Canada hosting them for the duration of their stay in Canada).

Skilled Worker Immigration Program to be re-launched by the mid of 2013

Jason Kenney announces the re-launch of Skilled Worker Immigration Program in May, 2013  May, 2013 is likely to bring “good news” for the immigrants, as this is the time scheduled for the announcement of re-launching “Skilled Worker Immigrant Program”.      The federal Government will be re-launching the program and there is an assurance from immigration Minister Jason Kenney that this time well qualified professionals will not land up serving as a “driver” in order to survive in Canada.   The program which was halted sometime in June this year will now be launched with a change in the selection criteria.  The changes in the selection criteria  • Preference will be given to younger applicants and also to those who are proficient in the official languages of the nation. • An applicant should be well conversed with either French or English for standing a better chance for getting the visa. • Also, the spouse of any applicant will also be judged on the basis of language proficiency. • An applicant holding Canadian Work Experience will be scoring more points than the one with no Canadian Work Experience. • The credentials earned by an applicant will be cross verified and checked against the Canadian standards.  The suggested outcome of the changes  Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says, “The reforms are designed to dramatically improve the economic outcome of newcomers and to help the productivity of the country.” He also adds that the workforce in the nation has been shrinking due to an aging population.  He assures that “an Engineer will be working as an Engineer and a Doctor as the same; this will help the country to meet its national goals too.”  He also informs that steps would be taken to ensure that the earnings made by the immigrants are quite close to the native burns, even if it can’t be made the same.  He is aware of the fact that the ultimate decision to employ and pay an immigrant will be taken by the regulatory agencies, yet every effort will be taken to place the immigrants in the right kind of jobs within a year of their arrival.  The scores earned by an applicant will also decide his or her eligibility for becoming “permanent resident” of the country.  The impact of freezing the application process  Ever since the applications under this category have been frozen, the Department could clear as many as 100,000 backlogged applications. Apart from this, the Government had already returned as many as 280,000 applications submitted before February 2008. Along with this, the government had to make a refund of more than $1 Million in the form of application fee which was submitted by eh applicants.

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NEW IMPORTANT UPDATES

Important Updates on the Federal Skilled Worker Backlog Court Case

As many readers of CIC News are aware, recent changes to Canada’s immigration legislation have called for the closure of Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) files submitted before February 28, 2008. Campbell Cohen law firm has been at the forefront of challenging the legality of these changes. Currently, Campbell Cohen is representing 897 pre-February 2008 applicants and their dependents, and along with other lawyers has brought this issue before the Federal Court of Canada.

If you submitted an application to the FSW program before February 28th, 2008, it is not too late to join. 

A Quick Background

In an effort to better select Canadian Permanent Residents and reduce immigration backlogs, in February 2008 the Canadian government amended the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The amendments granted the Canadian Immigration Minister the authority to take action (issue instructions) such as establishing application intake quotas, new application requirements, and new immigration categories. The changes in this amendment apply only to applications submitted on or after February 28, 2008.

The Immigration Minister, under the amendments, made changes to the FSW that included restricting the number of eligible occupations and introducing an intake cap of 20,000 (later reduced to 10,000) applications a year.

These new instructions created a hierarchy within the files waiting to be processed. Newer files were processed faster than those submitted before February 28, 2008. As of March 2012, there was still a significant application backlog. The Immigration Minister therefore made the decision on March 20th, 2012 to eliminate those applications submitted to the FSW program before February 28, 2008. This amounts to the return of approximately 280,000 immigration applications.

A more detailed background can be found in CIC News’ earlier article on the subject.

The Court Case Today

The lawyers arguing the case before Federal Court have two primary objectives. Firstly, they are seeking their cases to be certified as a Class Action Lawsuit. To do this, the Court must be convinced that all applicants who are challenging the decision may be represented as a single unit, or class. If successful, these applicants will have their claims argued in a single Court hearing. The result of the hearing will apply to all applicants. The second objective goes to the merits of the case. The Court must first determine that there is a serious issue to rule on and if it does, then the Court must ultimately decide if the government’s action is legal or illegal. The Certification Hearing will be held in November 2012.

On September 18, 2012 a Stay Motion was presented to the Court wherein the lawyers requested an Order that would prevent the government from beginning the process of terminating applications and returning government processing fees. The Motion was dismissed, but all was not lost because:

• An agreement was reached with the Department of Justice on behalf of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to:
• not initiate communication with applicants to process termination of their applications;
• not issue refunds unless applicants directly wish a refund; and
• not destroy files until the outcome of the next step in the proceeding in November
• It is clear following this proceeding that based on fact and law individual applicants can challenge the termination of their applications in Federal Court, if necessary.

ANOTHER NEW RULES FOR YOU KABAYANS

New Rules for Family Class Spousal Sponsorship

Canada has a longstanding commitment to family values. This commitment is reflected in the government’s ongoing efforts to keep immigrant families together whenever possible.

One of the main avenues that Canadians use to bring their loved ones to Canada is the Family Class Sponsorship program. Thousands of family members have received Canadian Permanent Residency through this program. However, at times people have attempted to use the program as a way to sidestep standard Canadian immigration requirements. To encourage legitimate applications, new legislation has recently been implemented to ensure that the Family Class program continues to be a safe and effective way of bringing loved ones to Canada.

What is the Family Class Sponsorship Program?

The Family Class Sponsorship program allows Canadian citizens or permanent residents to sponsor their close family members for Canadian Permanent Residency. For Canadian immigration purposes, close family members are defined as the following:

• Spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner;
• Dependent child;
• Parent or Grandparent*;
• Brother, sister, nephew, niece, or grandchild
  • Must be orphaned, under 18 years of age, and not married or in a common-law partnership
• Intended adopted child under 18 years of age;
• Other relative, if the Canadian sponsor has no relative listed above and no relatives who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents

*At this time, no new applications for parent or grandparent sponsorship are being accepted. However, interested parties may apply for a Parent and Grandparent Super Visa.

Sponsors in Canada must agree to support their family member socially and financially upon their arrival in Canada. Both sponsors and their family members must be approved to apply through the Family Class program.

New Rules for Spousal Sponsorship

Two new rules have been added for cases of spouse/common-law partner sponsorship. They are the following:

1. 5-Year Restriction on Sponsorship (March 2nd, 2012)

• Canadian Permanent Residents who were sponsored as a spouse/common-law partner cannot become a sponsor themselves until they have been a Permanent Resident for 5 years.
• In this way, fraudulent applicants will not be able to manipulate the program and sponsor a partner living abroad.

2. Two-Year “Legitimate Relationship” Regulation (October 26th, 2012)

• This rule applies to spouses/partners who have been in a relationship for two years or less and who have no children in common with their sponsor at the time of application submission.
• Once in Canada, the sponsored individual will receive conditional Permanent Residency. They must live with their spouse/partner in a ‘legitimate relationship’ for two years, or face the possibility of having their Permanent Residency revoked.
• Exceptions will be made for sponsored spouses or partners who are suffering from abuse or neglect.

The Logic Behind the New Rules

Fraud is always a concern in spousal sponsorship applications because of the somewhat subjective nature of the relationship. Marriage fraud can take a number of forms. Sometimes, a Canadian citizen or Permanent Resident is duped by a foreigner who feigns romantic interest and convinces them to become a sponsor. Other times, intricate marriages of convenience will be undertaken, often with a cash incentive for the involved parties. Fraud disadvantages those who have applied in good faith and waited patiently to bring their loved ones to Canada.

“There are countless cases of marriage fraud across the country,” said Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. “I have consulted widely with Canadians, and especially with victims of marriage fraud, who have told me clearly that we must take action to stop this abuse of our immigration system.”

By placing restrictions on spousal sponsorship, it is hoped that incentives for committing fraud will be greatly reduced without discouraging genuine applicants. Other countries, such as Australia and the United Kingdom, have imposed similar restrictions with success. It is hoped that Canada will follow in their footsteps, and no longer be seen as a ‘soft target’ for fraudsters.