A study released a few weeks ago by Seneca College in Ontario found that skilled immigrants will be desperately needed sooner rather than later due to the impending retirement of baby boomers and a general skills shortage in the province that is leaving many Ontarians without the skills to find adequate jobs. The focus of the study was primarily the situation in the province of Ontario, but other studies have found the same problems across the country.

The Canadian Government has a Priority Occupation List, and if a skilled immigrant’s occupation is included they can be fast-tracked into the country for work without some of the requirements for other workers, such as a standing job offer from a Canadian employer. Some of the jobs considered in demand by the Canadian Government that are on the Priority Occupation List include financial managers, mining engineers, accountants, geophysicists, petroleum engineers, family physicians, chefs, registered nurses, college instructors, crane operators and food service managers.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada even more recently announced that they are planning on creating a system to fast-track the recognition of foreign credentials to increase the number of skilled immigrants entering the country who have been educated outside of Canada. Some of the occupations included in this program currently are pharmacists, occupational therapists, medical laboratory technicians and accountants, who are expected to be granted access to the system by the end of 2010. The end of 2012 may see a total of 15 occupations added possibly including doctors, teachers, nurses and engineers.

In a statement in early February, Canadian Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney said, “The reality is that immigration could account for virtually all labour force growth in Canada within the next decade.”

A report like this and rational policy responses from the Canadian government are what is needed to meet the needs of our changing labor force. As immigration lawyers we try to do our part in bringing skilled workers to Ontario and other provinces in Canada.

Immigration to Quebec made easier for Haitians

Last week, the Province of Quebec stated that it was preparing to open its door to welcome more Haitian immigrants affected by the recent earthquake despite federal government protocols

90 per cent of the 135,000 members of the Canadian Haitian population currently reside in the province of Quebec. Quebec Minister of Immigration and Cultural Communities Yolande James has said she is prepared to use the “power of selection”, a clause in the federal and provincial immigration agreement, for allowing an implementation of the expanded definition of family to increase the amount of eligible Haitian immigration sponsorships by Canadians. This particular clause is very rarely used.

But the Federal Government is still refusing to expand the Family Class for Immigrants

Canada’s Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney has firmly maintained that the Canadian government will not change the definition of family with regards to whom Canadians can sponsor for citizenship from Haiti. The definition of the Family Class for Immigrants is limited to spouses, parents, grandparents and dependent children and does not include other family members such as aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.

Kenney’s main argument for the lack of flexibility with this rule is that it would be unfair to others who have experienced massive events of destruction in their home countries whom Canada has provided assistance for, using the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami as a prime example. It is estimated that over 200,000 people were killed or washed away during the tsunami, which was the result of the second largest earthquake ever recorded. The devastation caused by the tsunami was significant, destroying many coastal regions in several countries

However, in the case of the Haitian earthquake, an entire country, its infrastructure, its population and its means of survival may have been irreparably destroyed. The total death toll, numbers of Haitians left homeless or critically injured may never be known. Further, in my view, two wrongs don’t make a right. The Feds should have expanded the Family Class for Tsunami crises. Now they have an opportunity to correct their mistakes but it does not look like they will.

On Christmas Eve of last year, several Toronto-area families were torn apart when four men died and one was critically injured after the scaffolding they were working on collapsed, the worst construction accident in the city in five decades.

Now, the North York family of one man, Vladimir Korostin, faces deportation from Canada while they continue to try to come to terms with the loss of a father. Korostin and his wife, Irina Cherniakova, obtained a divorce while living in Canada but remained amicable in raising their two daughters, seven-year-old Daniela and 14-year old Inna.

Korostin’s family came to Canada as refugees, being uncomfortable as Orthodox Christians in a mainly Jewish country and in an attempt to avoid having their daughters forced into the Israeli army after high school, which is mandatory by law. Canada seemed like the ideal country for the family, who according to Cherniakova were told by friends that, “If you’re Muslim, Christian or Jewish, you can find your place in Canada,” and that, “you will be respected for who you are as a human being.”

The family has a hearing in February 2010, at which Cherniakova can try to convince the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) that they will either face torture, cruel and unusual punishment or a risk to their lives if they are deported. If they do not win the hearing, the family will have to leave their home of three years as well as their father and ex-husband’s grave. They can also make a humanitarian and compassionate application to stay as a last resort.

The chances of Israeli refugee claims being accepted in Canada are quite low, and only five and six per cent have been successful in the last two years.  It would be a double tragedy for this family should they be removed from Canada. But Israel, unlike many of its surrounding neighbor countries, is democratic and is not a generally considered to be refugee producing country. Therefore the family’s best bet would their humanitarian and compassionate application for Canadian permanent residence. Given the recent accident, I think they have a good case for success.

New Rules for Haitian Immigrants

As has been reported, the Canadian government has introduced new rules to ease the immigration of Haitians affected by the tragic earthquake. The earthquake, which was over 7.0 on the Richter scale, has left the country with devastation that was “instant, utter and widespread,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper said last Saturday.

Priorities for Family Class Immigrants

Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney has said that priority will be given to Canadians wishing to sponsor protected persons, family members and immigrants from Haiti.

However, the federal government’s definition of “family” is causing protest from much of Canada’s Haitian community. While Canadians can sponsor Haitian family members such as grandparents, parents, children and spouses, this does not extend to other relatives, including cousins, uncles and aunts.

“Immigration Canada will respond on a priority basis to those directly affected by the disaster,” he said, “we will prioritize processing of new sponsorship applications made by Canadian citizens.” While the applications have been expedited, it is unclear how much faster the process will actually be. Minister Kenney also assured that the applicants must identify themselves as being significantly and directly affected by the earthquake, as well as meet standard admissibility requirements.

Rules for Haitian Temporary Residents to Canada Relaxed

Other ways Immigration Canada is planning on helping immigrants from Haiti include allowing temporary residents to apply to extend their stay without additional fees, granting temporary reprieve to Haitian nationals who are in the process of being removed from Canada, as well as offering implied status to those who have previously applied to prolong their status in Canada but have not yet been approved. Canada has also opened up a satellite immigration office in the Dominican Republic.

Immigration to Quebec for Haitians

The province of Quebec has since stated that they would try to open their door to more Haitian immigrants, but an agreement with the federal government will make it difficult to increase the quota for permanent residents, which is currently between 52,000 and 55,000 this year. Minister Kenney has addressed these suggestions, saying that Ottawa will neither increase the quota nor alter the definition of family, and he said this would be unfair to all other groups faced with hardship or disasters in their home countries, and even in an attempt to be more flexible, the government must abide by immigration law.

On Thursday, January 21, Quebec Immigration and Cultural Communities Minister Yolande James said, “I think when something like this happens it is important to be as flexible as possible, there is an understanding that we are really under an exceptional situation.”

Fast Tracking Canadian Adoptions

Another way the government of Canada is attempting to help the people of Haiti is by fast-tracking the adoption process for Haitian orphans and other children that were already in advanced stages when the earthquake hit, and the first group of children is expected to make it to Canada by this weekend.

We applaud the Canadian government and Canada Immigration for taking decisive action for Haitians and their families in Canada.

As our ongoing effort to inform the pubic about Airport Security, we have learned that along with the introduction of controversial full-body scanners and other new security regulations, Canadian airports will now include specially trained officers who “spot “suspicious individuals based on their behaviour and how they look or dress.

The new behavioural security program is called SPOT, which stands for Screening Passengers by Observation Technique. SPOT has already been introduced in airports in the United States and other countries around the world are currently considering using it.

The implementation of SPOT was announced last week by Transport Minister John Baird, and some of the behaviours that would raise alarm are sweating, facial micro-expressions, obvious nervousness or wearing heavy or baggy clothing on warmer days. Baird also admitted that these security procedures would cause even more delays.

While passengers have the choice between going through the body scanners or getting a manual pat-down, people exhibiting the suspicious behaviours will be forced to undergo the scanning.

The organization that represents thousands of Canadian pilots, Air Line Pilots Association International, had requested that SPOT be implemented in 2008 according to an article the Calgary Herald published. The article also described a scene that detailed some of the queues the program looks at, for example: a bad dye job can also be interpreted as a consequence of exposure to dangerous chemicals, as can burns on the hands, and the men exhibiting these qualities were being watched by a security agent – in plainclothes – and were flagged for questioning.

Along with targeting certain landed immigrants to Canada and Canadian Citizens from a list of certain countries, airport security will now be further screening you by what you wear or how you act. This can lead to delays, missed flights, or intense and stressful questioning because you’re told you look a little bit sweaty after spending hours in a packed airport terminal.

Obviously there are  human rights issues associated with the SPOT approach. Arbitrary and subjective denials of entry to the US and other countries would likely increase.  We will have to see how this all plays out. Air travel is becoming increasingly challenging for visitors and for people applying for Visas to Work or Study.

The Canadian Government has created a system for online visa applications. In late December, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced that those seeking Canadian work permits or visitor extensions can now utilize the online system.

The online application system is supposed to  eliminate some of the costly and time consuming problems that arise when relying on mail applications, including incomplete forms or errors. The online forms can only be submitted once they are complete.

The government advises that doing it this way  makes accidentally missing part of the forms or incorrectly filling them out a non-issue. However,  this is far from the case.  The online software may indeed prevent you from missing your birth date or some other information on the form. But no software will  guide you as to the content you have to enter on them. And in our experience, most visa application refusals are due to content errors.

While as Kenny says “extending our online services to more temporary residents will significantly facilitate the application process by providing faster, more accessible and efficient services,” you should beware of the pitfalls of such online convenience. Once you submit your application online, you are committed to what you state in your application. Therefore it is always advisable to consult with a qualified immigration lawyer before sending in any immigration or visa applications online or by mail. Online applications may guarantee a paperless process but certainly not an approval.

Previously, only international students were able to apply online. In the future, CIC intends to make it possible for all types of applications to be made online. The service is available to all temporary residents, with the exception of applicants who want to work in Canada through co-op work permits.

Call Niren and Associates Immigration Lawyers at 1-866-929-0991 or info@visaplace.com for any questions on Canadian or US Visas.