A grandmother living in Toronto was deported to Sri Lanka earlier this month, accompanied by a Canada Border Services Agency officer on her flight.
The woman, who is 70 years old, has a Canadian daughter and granddaughter and no family in Sri Lanka – and currently, there’s barely anyone available to pick her up at the airport when she lands.
Bad immigration advice leads to deportation from Canada
The woman’s Canadian family says that they received bad immigration advice: they were told she should file a refugee claim rather than themselves sponsoring her as Canadians.
Even if Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney were to grant a stay to the woman on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, she would still have to get permission to enter Canada and considering her recent deportation that could be problematic.
The woman’s family say they could still sponsor her but so far have not been given the chance.
Will the immigration process for parents and grandparents only become more difficult?
In 2011, Canada decided to no longer accept applications for parents and grandparents to come to Canada in order to clear out a massive immigration visa, although there is the new Super Visa that allowed parents and grandparents to visit Canada multiple times over a period of 10 years. However, once someone is deported from Canada they will likely have a very difficult time applying to re-enter Canada again on any type of visa.
Let this be a lesson: take the advice of friends, family members and the internet with a grain of salt. If you do need Canadian immigration advice, consult with a licensed immigration lawyer who has your best interests at heart and knows the rules when immigrating to or staying Canada
President & CEO
Michael Niren
Mr. Niren is CEO of VisaPlace LLC and the President and Managing Partner of VisaPlace Legal Canada, an immigration law firm based in Toronto, and VisaPlace Legal US a law firm registered in The District of Columbia, USA. Mr. Niren is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Bar Association’s Citizenship and Immigration Section, American Lawyers Association, and an Associate Member of the American Bar Association.
