New Group Doubts Benefits of Immigration

September 29, 2010

Canada does not need that many immigrants, and the notion that immigration keeps Canada going is anything but a myth.

This is, in short, the message of a newly-formed immigration think-tank, The Centre for Immigration Policy Reform.

The Centre was formally launched on Sep. 28 in the Canadian capital Ottawa, and has notable diplomats, security analysts, academics and journalists on its board.

The Centre doubts the benefits of immigration to Canada. The Centre says that data shows the income of new immigrants has been steadily falling since the eighties, as compared to their Canadian-born counterparts. Besides, it also claims that that only 17-percent of the new immigrants allowed into Canada every year “are fully assessed on the basis of their employment and language skills”.

The Centre also claims that “it is estimated that recent immigrants receive billions of dollars a year more in benefits than they pay in taxes.”

It also says it is worried about the burden on the economy placed by the seniors of new Canadians who will be allowed into the country as part of family reunion program.

But more fundamentally, the group argues that there is no real benefit from continued high level of immigration.

The Centre is calling for a debate on immigration issues.

New centre seeks review of Canada’s immigration policy (theglobeandmail.com)
New lobby group aims to stir serious debate on immigration levels (calgaryherald.com)
Former ambassador lends support to new anti-immigration group (canada.com)
‘Mass arrival’ rule changes ‘plausible,’ says official (thestar.com)
Canada to increase ‘intake of skilled immigrants’ (globalnation.inquirer.net)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: benefits, canada, centre for immigration policy reform, Immigration

Canada Acts Against Immigration Marriage Fraud

September 29, 2010

The Canadian government is taking another step in its campaign against the so-called ‘marriage fraud’ or ‘marriages of convenience’ by immigrants. This step takes the form of an online consultation process to gather views on “impact of marriage fraud”, Canada’s Ministry of Citizenship & Immigration said.

The online consultation to gather views on the impact of marriage fraud will be done through a questionnaire which can be filled out online. The questionnaire seeks input on the scope of the problem with questions such as “do you think marriage fraud is a serious problem” to whether or not the processing times for spousal applications should be longer to allow investigations to prevent marriage fraud, as well as on suggestions on how to deal with it.

The online consultation follows a national ‘town-hall’ meeting that Minister of Citizenship & Immigration Jason Kenney launched early September in Canada.

These actions follow a number of reports of Canadians, or Canadian permanent residents, duped by fraudulent marriages where the sponsored spouses disappeared after coming to Canada.

In one high-profile case of alleged marriage fraud, a young polio-affected woman, went public claiming that her spouse left her as soon as he arrived at the airport in Toronto. Ashpreet Badwal says she sponsored her husband from India, but spent tens of thousands of dollars on the appeal process after the sponsorship was rejected. She won, but claims her husband simply walked away as soon as he reached Canada.

There is also a class action suit against the Canadian government. The Canadians Against Immigration Fraud (CAIF) group, which says it has more than 200 members across Canada, was started after Sam Benet’s son, Saranjeet Benet was reportedly abandoned by his wife shortly after she arrived in Canada after being sponsored by him.

The CAIF’s class action suit in 2009 was launched against the Canadian government for failing to investigate and take action against foreigners who cheat Canadians into fraudulent marriages.

But the government says there is also another type of marriage fraud – the so-called marriage of convenience, where both spouses engage in deceit in getting married just to get one person into Canada.

While both types of marriage fraud happens within all communities in Canada, some say the numbers are pretty high within the Chinese and Indian communities, partially because these are the two major sources of immigrants to Canada.

And Mr Kenney raised the issue of fraudulent marriages during his recent visit to China, India and the Philippines.

According to the ministry, almost 50,000 people applied for spousal sponsorship last year and about twenty percent of them were rejected, either because the visa officers concluded the marriage was not ‘genuine’ or because there were security or health reasons that warranted a rejection.

The current online questionnaire will be available until Oct. 27, this year.

How Countries Deal with Spousal Sponsorships

Sponsoring

Australia, New Zealand and the United States forbid a sponsored spouse or partner from sponsoring a new spouse or partner within the following five years.

In Canada, a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who has previously sponsored a spouse or partner may not sponsor a new spouse or partner until the end of the three-year period described before. However, there is currently no similar bar on the sponsored person.

Permanent Residence

In the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom, permanent residence is granted to recently married spouses and partners only after a probationary period. The length of the probationary period varies between countries and individual cases, but is generally about two years. Exceptions may be made for cases of domestic violence.

This kind of conditional status does not exist in Canada. This is partly due to concerns about placing sponsored spouses and partners in vulnerable situations and whether this practice would work in the Canadian context.

Stories On Marriage & Immigration Fraud

Canada Pushes India, China to Act Against Immigration Fraud

The case of the vanishing groom (thestar.com)
Fastest way to get to Canada – marriage (thestar.com)
Immigrant marriage fraud crackdown urged (cbc.ca)
Vanishing groom says he still loves wife (thestar.com)
Ottawa seeks international help in cracking down on ‘immigration fraudsters’ (theglobeandmail.com)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: canada, Immigration, marriage fraud, online consutation to gather views on impact of marriage fraud

North West Ontario Seeks Immigrants

September 22, 2010

One of the largest regions of Ontario province, in Canada, has started a new initiative to attract immigrants. The 32 cities, townships and villages that make up north-western Ontario have come together and set up a new portal, immigrationnorthwesternontario.ca, to send out invitations.

With an area of more than half a million square kilometres, north-western Ontario is larger than many countries but almost half of its 250,000 people live in one city, Thunder Bay.

Traditionally, the region has depended on natural resources such as forestry for its economic well-being, and while natural resources-based industries still dominate the landscape, the region also hopes to cash in on in the investments in the knowledge-based economy, such as bio-technology sector and other research companies as well as the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. Besides, it also hopes to cash in on the thousands of lakes that attract tourists from Canada and the neighbouring United States.

Officials say there is a demand for professionals in a number of sectors.

courtesy:northwestontario.ca

While the region lacks the hustle-bustle and the diversity of major cities such as Toronto or the Greater Toronto Area with their thousands of restaurants catering to every ethno-cultural group and a host of other multi-cultural facilities, life in north-western Ontario has its own attractions.

For example, it is very quite and people tend to be closer and helpful to each other. There also tends to be more facilities for families as they grow.

And one of the biggest advantages of the region is that it is open to welcoming immigrants, not just from Europe but from the around the world. The immigration portal, for example, runs in a number of languages, including Arabic, German, Japanese and Hindi.

OTHER LINKS

North-West Ontario.ca

Some Immigrant Stories

Filed Under: News Tagged With: canada, Immigration, north western ontario, ontario

One-Stop Application Site For Immigrant Doctors

September 19, 2010

Starting late 2012, immigrant doctors in Canada will be able to start their licencing process through a one-stop, and not thirteen separate, shopping websites.

This is possible through a joint initiative launched by the Medical Council of Canada and the Federation of Medical Regulatory Authorities of Canada, and through a 2.8 million dollar grant from the Canadian government’s Foreign Credentials Recognition Program.

At present a foreign-trained immigrant doctor has to apply to the Canada’s 13 provinces and territories to obtain a licence to practise in the country.

But new system foresees one form being used for all the different regulatory bodies.

The new system will also contain all the information about exams and certifications required by a province or territory’s licensing body.

But the individual regulatory bodies will still retain their own licensing systems.

Stories of Interest

Online Petition Demands More Residency Spots for Immigrant Doctors in Ontario

Foreign-trained doctors petition for restricted practice (thestar.com)
Feds aim to cut wait times for foreign-trained dentists (ctv.ca)

Filed Under: News, News/Articles Tagged With: canada, foreign credentials recognition program, immigrant doctors, medical council of canada, one stop shopping

New Program Helps Foreign-Trained Architects

September 16, 2010

Canada is rolling out a new program designed to help foreign-trained architects get necessary local accreditation and eventually jobs in their field.

The 1.6 million dollar foreign credentials program, titled Integration of Broadly Experienced Foreign Architects in Canada project, has two key components: the creation of a “fair, efficient and timely” national system to evaluate and licence immigrant architects with international education and work experience, and a new bridging course.

The bridging program to help the foreign-trained architects get necessary Canadian qualification and the much-wanted ‘Canadian experience’ will be developed by the Athabasca University, and is expected to start next September.

Under the program, Architecture Canada, which is the national regulating body for architects, will evaluate the training and experience of the applicants, and then assign them academic programs at Athabasca University.

Programs to Integrate Foreign-Trained Professionals

The program for architects is one of the eight professions that come under the Canadian government’s Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications program, which seeks to accelerate the integration of foreign-trained trained professionals.

The other professions are engineers, registered nurses, financial auditors and accountants, medical lab technologists, occupational therapists, pharmacists and physiotherapists. Starting end of this year, those from these professions can have it confirmed whether or not their qualifications are valid in Canada, within a year of applying.

Links

The Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications Program

SmartCanadian Links

Ontario’s Handling of Foreign-Trained Professionals Rapped

Employers’s Roadmap to Hiring Skilled Immigrants

Filed Under: News, News/Articles Tagged With: architects, athabaska university, canada, Immigration, Integration of Broadly Experienced Foreign Architects in Canada, Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications

Online Petition Demands Licences for Foreign-Trained Doctors

September 15, 2010

The Ontario provincial government and the province’s medical profession’s regulatory body are being taken to task to resolve the long-simmering issue of insufficient residency spots for foreign-trained doctors.

Mitra Arjang and Parampal Ghoshal, who are Iran- and India-trained doctors, respectively, are using the Internet for their campaign. They have started an online petition, asking the Ontario provincial government and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) to grant transitional licences for foreign-trained doctors who have passed the necessary Canadian exams.

Arjang and Ghoshal say the ‘transitional’ licences should allow them to work them in a restricted capacity under supervision until they are qualified to work on their own. This way, they suggest to be able to bypass the residency requirement, which is the stumbling block for most foreign-trained doctors wishing to practise in the province.

In their petition, the two doctors say the CPSO, “without convincing clear reasons or explanations, and in defiance of the law, is unfairly denying licenses to highly qualified immigrant medical doctors.”

The Association of International Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, which is a non-governmental group lobbing on behalf of the foreign-trained doctors, says there are about 7,500 immigrant doctors living in Canada’s largest province which attracts the most number of the 250,000 immigrants who come to Canada every year.

About 2,000 of them have reportedly passed all the qualifying exams – which range from the Canadian Medical Exams and received the Licentiate of Medical Council of Canada, the Ontario Clinical Assessment Exams, English Language Exams – and had many interviews but are struck without a residency.

Issues Faced by Foreign-Trained Doctors

The problems faced by foreign-trained doctors in Canada are well documented, and many have pointed out the disconnect between the country’s immigration policies and the practises of regulatory bodies. Under the points-based immigration system, they get extra points for the reported need for doctors in Canada, but practising in provinces like Ontario is a whole different story. Thousands of them give up the hope of resuming their practise and end up doing jobs totally different.

In fact, there is even a joke that if one is sick, he or she should take a cab, because the chance of meeting an unemployed doctor driving the taxi is pretty high.

But for many, this is a waste of resource of both the country that trained them, and for the doctors who want to work but cannot.

But the CPSO is defending itself, saying there has been progress in resolving the issue. For example, it points out that more than 40-percent of the just over 3,600 licences issued last year were issued to foreign-trained doctors. The agency also says that it has increased the residencies available for foreign doctors from 24 to 200 during the past ten years, and is citing lack of resources as the key reason for not being able to issue all qualified foreign doctors a residency.

And the federal and provincial levels of government have indeed taken note of the issue, and have been funding special projects to help the foreign-trained doctors.

Just earlier this month, the government gave an almost three-million dollar grant to the Medical Council of Canada to create a centralized online system for the foreign-trained doctors to apply for medical licences in any of the provinces or territories. At present, applications have to be made to the respective province or territory.

The system is expected to be go online in two years time.

But for foreign-trained doctors, the problem is not about applying. It is about being able to practise once t hey pass all the needed exams.

And as for Arjang and Ghoshal’s petition, there are already 175 signatures.

Foreign-trained doctors petition for restricted practice (thestar.com)
Oxford-trained doctor shut out of B.C. (cbc.ca)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: canada, college of physicians and surgeons of ontario, foreign-trained doctors, Immigration, medical council of canada, ontario, residency.

Contradictory Reports on Action Against Fraudulent Consultants

September 14, 2010

There are conflicting reports about the scale of the problem of so-called fraudulent immigration consultants in the Indian state of Punjab, and what officials there are doing to tackle it.

As we have reported in a previous article, Canada’s immigration minister Jason Kenney went to Punjab as part of his recent Indian tour to talk to officials there.

Officials in Canada say the fake documentation business provides everything from fake birth and marriage certificates to educational certificates, and want India to crackdown on these.

In particular, the Canadians want India to crackdown on those ‘travel agents’ who facilitate movement of people from India to Canada without prior approval from consulate or high commission. Canada has also complained that there is not much coordination between Punjab officials and the Canadian consulate in the state capital Chandigarh.

In their bilateral talks, chief minister Badal reportedly told Mr Kenney that he has directed his police department to take these concerns seriously, and to liaise with the Canadian consulate on the issue.

But a few days after Kenney left India, the Toronto Star ran a story, quoting a top police official in Punjab claiming there is no problem with policing, and that fraud cases are efficiently handled.

This is perhaps one example of how tricky the issue is. While sovereign governments – irrespective of the fact they are sender or receiver nations – are against illegal immigration, sender countries often find it difficult to put a complete cap on it.

Previous Article on Jason Kenney’s Visit to Asia on Immigration Issues:

Canada Wants India to do More Against Illegal Immigration

Canada Pushes India, China & the Philippines for Action on Immigration Fraud

Canada to increase ‘intake of skilled immigrants’ (globalnation.inquirer.net)
Ottawa seeks international help in cracking down on ‘immigration fraudsters’ (theglobeandmail.com)
Kenney seeks human smuggling help from Asia (cbc.ca)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: canada, fraudulent consultants, illegal immigration, Immigration, india, punjab

List of Medical Exam Exemptions Updated

September 13, 2010

Canada has decided to allow most long-term visitors (those planning to stay for more than six-months) from 45 countries around the world enter the country without a medical exam.

Citizenship & Immigration Canada says that while agricultural workers from these countries and territories can also enter Canada without a medical exam, there will be exemptions for those in occupations in which protection of public health is essential. These professions include health sciences field and those working with children.

The decision will not also include permanent residents and refugees.

The decision follows the ministry’s regular three-year review of TB incidence rates around the world.

While Mexicans will benefit from this new directive, Indians and Chinese, from where more and more foreign students are coming, will not.

To get more information on the list of countries excluded from the medical exam, and to see whether you need a medical exam for your visit to Canada, visit this link.

Canada to increase ‘intake of skilled immigrants’ (globalnation.inquirer.net)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: canada, citizenship and immigration canada, Immigration, long-term visitors, medical exam

Canada Wants India to do More on Illegal Immigration

September 10, 2010

Canada is pushing India, particularly the state of Punjab, to do more to crackdown on what it calls the proliferation of fraudulent immigration consultants & travel agents.

During his three-day visit to India, Canada’s immigration minister Jason Kenney held a number of meetings with federal (central) and state officials, including the federal home minister P Chidambaram and Punjab’s chief minister Parkash Singh Badal.

Canada claims that the use of fake documents by applicants is one reason why standing at 52%, the rejection rate of visa applications is high in India.

Officials in Canada say the fake documentation business provides everything from fake birth and marriage certificates to educational certificates, and want India to crackdown on these.

In particular, the Canadians want India to crackdown on those ‘travel agents’ who facilitate movement of people from India to Canada without prior approval from consulate or high commission.

Canada, for its part, will reportedly be giving the Indian government a list of fake document providers and travel agents facilitating illegal migration, and wants India to go after them through the criminal justice system.

There are also reports that India has promised a new law to crackdown on outward bound illegal migration by the end of the year. One news report suggests that this might be the result of Mr Kenney promising more visas to Indians if New Delhi cracks down on the illegal migration.

Ottawa seeks international help in cracking down on ‘immigration fraudsters’ (theglobeandmail.com)
Canada seeks answers to immigration-fraud issues in Europe (theglobeandmail.com)

Filed Under: News Tagged With: canada, citizenship and immigration, fraudulent consultants, illegal migration, india, jason kenney

New Group Doubts Benefits of Immigration

Canada Acts Against Immigration Marriage Fraud