More than 1,000 Super Visas Issued each Month

Ottawa, March 6, 2013 — More than 15,000 Parent and Grandparent Super Visas have been issued since the program’s launch in December 2011, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today.

“The Parent and Grandparent Super Visa provides families with flexibility, and it is clearly growing in popularity,” said Minister 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.”

With over 1,000 Super Visas issued monthly, approval rates remain high at 86 percent.

The Super Visa—a multiple entry visa valid for up to 10 years—allows parents and grandparents to visit Canada for up to two years at a time. This Super Visa gives visiting parents and grandparents the freedom to travel back and forth between Canada and their home country without long waits.

Applicants for the Super Visa must provide proof that the host child or grandchild meets a minimum income level, demonstrate that they have purchased comprehensive Canadian medical insurance and undergo the immigration medical examination. Almost 99 percent of Super Visa applicants who met these requirements also went on to meet all other standard admissibility criteria.

However, future FSWP applicants should be aware that CIC expects to announce three important elements of the FSWP in April that will have an impact on the application process, including:

• a cap on the number of applications that will be accepted in the first year;
• a new list of priority occupations; and
• the organizations that will be designated to conduct educational assessments.

Applicants who prepare their application before this information is announced do so at their own risk. Applications that do not meet the criteria that will be announced in April will not be processed.

On December 19, 2012, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced significant changes to the FSWP. In addition, the Minister announced that the new FSWP would be opened up for applications on May 4, 2013. A pause on applications, except for those from certain PhD students and those supported by a qualifying job offer, has been in place since July 1, 2012.

The number of visas issued in 2012 represents an increase of almost 40% since 2004. This steady increase over the last few years reaffirms the fact that Canada continues to be a destination of choice for visitors.

“Welcoming more international travelers to Canada creates jobs and growth in our country,” added Minister of State Maxime Bernier. “Receiving a visa in a timely and efficient manner is important to our visitors, and helps position Canada competitively as a destination of choice in the world.”

The Government has employed several new tools to attract visitors to Canada and facilitate their travel. For example, in July 2011, the duration of multiple-entry visas was extended from five years to 10 years. This allows visitors to enter and exit Canada for up to six months at a time over 10 years. In addition, parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens and permanent residents are eligible to apply for the new Parent and Grandparent Super Visa, which is also valid for up to 10 years and allows parents and grandparents to remain in Canada for up to 24 months at a time.

Ottawa, January 2, 2013 — The brand-new Federal Skilled Trades Program begins accepting applications today, announced Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney.

“The new Skilled Trades Program will address serious labour shortages that some regions of the country are facing, and will help grow Canada’s economy,” said Minister Kenney. “These long-overdue changes are part of the government’s plan to build a fast and flexible immigration system that is responsive to the needs of Canada’s economy. Canadian employers have long been asking for ways to get the skilled tradespeople they need to meet demands in many industries across the country. We’ve listened to their concerns and created this program in response.”

In the program’s first year, CIC will accept applications from up to 3,000 people in specific trades. The occupation list was designed to reflect current labour market needs and ensure the program delivers a diverse range of skilled tradespeople to fuel Canada’s economy. Within the 3,000, there will be no limit on 26 in-demand occupations, while 17 occupations will be subject to sub-limits of 100 applications each. In total, there are 43 occupations eligible for the Federal Skilled Trades Program. Applications are expected to be processed within 12 months.

In addition to being qualified for an eligible occupation, Federal Skilled Trades Program applicants must demonstrate basic language proficiency in either English or French at the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 5 for speaking and listening, and CLB 4 for reading and writing. This is due to the overall importance of language as a determinant of immigrant success and general health and safety reasons. CLB 4 is considered basic proficiency while those with CLB 5 can more effectively participate in and understand routine conversations.

Other criteria include: a valid offer of employment in Canada or a certificate of qualification from a province or territory in a qualifying skilled trade; at least two years of work experience in the occupation within the last five years; and meeting the employment requirements set out in the National Occupational Classification system, with the exception of licensing requirements, which are addressed separately.

“The Federal Skilled Trades Program is yet another tool in the Canadian employer’s toolkit to find the workers they need to build Canada’s future economy,” said Minister Kenney. “This new program, along with all other changes we are introducing, will help us move towards an immigration system that better supports Canada’s economic growth and long-term prosperity.”

The Minister of Immigration announced recently that Canada will launch a new visa aimed at helping immigrant entrepreneuers comes to Canada to launch their businesses.  This is the first visa of its kind ever introduced in the world.  I applaud this government’s focus on business-based immigration.  I am hopeful that this new visa will enable talented business people from around the world to more easily move to Canada to launch a business.  The economic spin-off from this visa could be significant and in an age of global economic uncertainty, any advantage Canada can take over competing nations should be welcomed.  The CIC press release follows:

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Toronto, January 24, 2013 — Canada will launch a brand new program on April 1 to recruit innovative immigrant entrepreneurs who will create new jobs and spur economic growth, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today.

“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.”

The Start-Up Visa Program will link immigrant entrepreneurs with private sector organizations in Canada that have experience working with start-ups and who can provide essential resources. The Program is part of a series of transformational changes to Canada’s immigration system that will make it faster, more flexible and focused on Canada’s economic needs.

As a way to help these in-demand entrepreneurs fulfil their potential and maximize their impact on the Canadian labour market, they will require the support of a Canadian angel investor group or venture capital fund before they can apply to the Start-Up Visa Program. Initially, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will collaborate with two umbrella groups: Canada’s Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) and the National Angel Capital Organization (NACO). These groups will identify which members of their associations will be eligible to participate in the Program. CIC is also working with the Canadian Association of Business Incubation to include business incubators in the list of eligible organizations as soon as feasible.

“CVCA is honoured to partner with the Government of Canada in the launch of the Start-Up Visa Program,” said Peter van der Velden, President of the CVCA and Managing General Partner of Lumira Capital. “Through this Program, we want to attract high-quality entrepreneurs from around the globe and help build best-in-class companies in Canada.”

“We’re excited to be a part of the Start-Up Visa Program,” said Michelle Scarborough, Board Chair of NACO. “Working with CIC and angel groups across the country, this initiative will create Canadian jobs and position Canada as a leader in innovation.”

The Start-Up Visa is the first of its kind and will be a powerful incentive to attract individuals with great potential who will have a real impact on the Canadian economy. By providing sought-after immigrant entrepreneurs with permanent residency and immediate access to a wide range of business partners, Canada will position itself as a destination of choice for start-ups. Linking forward-thinking immigrant entrepreneurs with established private sector organizations is essential to the success of both investors and entrepreneurs in building companies that will compete globally and create Canadian jobs.

“Jobs, growth and long-term prosperity remain priorities for the Government of Canada, and this new Start-Up Visa Program underscores our commitment to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship in the Canadian labour market,” Minister Kenney concluded.

USCIS has been attempting to improve immigration review services provided in business visa cases including the popular L1 and E2 visa categories.  Officers are being better trained with a view toward encouraging businesses to expand their operations into the U.S..  The current adjudication of business case system has been criticized as far too rigid and complex.  High rates of business case denials and Requests for Evidence have served to discourage business expansion by immigrants in the U.S..

Lets hope that EIR actually produces tangible results and program changes for immigrant entrepreneurs and investors.

Siskinds processes all types of U.S. business visa cases….both permanent and temporary.  We would be pleased to assist you or your company with its business immigration needs. Contact Group Leader Glenn Matthews on glenn.matthews@siskindsimmigration.com for assistance.

The USCIS press release on this topic follows:

USCIS Entrepreneurs in Residence

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Tomich Center

111 Massachusetts Ave, NW

Washington, DC 20529

1:30 – 3:00 p.m. (Eastern)

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) invites you to join a stakeholder engagement with the USCIS Entrepreneurs in Residence (EIR) team. The engagement will serve as a forum to update stakeholders on the accomplishments of the EIR initiative to date, including the newly launched publicfacing Entrepreneur Pathways webbsite and the comprehensive internal training for USCIS immigration officers on the business realities of early-stage companies. USCIS will also discuss the EIR initiative’s new focus on more permanent visa pathways for entrepreneurs, as well as its continued work on the development of policies and practices relevant to the entrepreneurial community. EIR team members will share their experiences working together this year, and discuss upcoming opportunities for further collaboration with stakeholders.

To Participate in the Session

You may participate in this event in person or by telephone. To respond to this invitation, please contact the Public Engagement Division at Public.Engagement@uscis.dhs.gov by Tuesday, December 11, 2012 , and reference the following in the subject line of your email:

If you plan to attend in person, please reference “EIR – In Person”

If you plan to attend by phone, please reference “EIR – Phone”

Please also include your full name and the organization you represent, if any, in the body of the email. If you are attending in person, please be sure to bring photo identification and plan to arrive at least 15 minutes early to allow extra time to complete the security process.

*Space is limited and will be filled on a first come first serve basis until capacity is reached.

We hope you will be able to join us and we look forward to engaging with you.

A full link to the Minister’s Press Release can be found here:  http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/media/releases/2012/2012-11-30.asp

Ottawa, November 30, 2012 – Canada’s new asylum system, which was included in the Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act, will come into force on December 15, 2012, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today.

“Our changes will make Canada’s asylum system faster and fairer,” said Minister Kenney. “For too long, Canada’s generous asylum system has been vulnerable to abuse. Under the new asylum system, genuine refugees fleeing persecution will receive protection more quickly. At the same time, bogus asylum claimants and those who abuse our generous system at great expense to taxpayers, will be removed much faster.”

All eligible asylum claimants will continue to receive a hearing at the independent Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) based on their individual circumstances.

Under the new system, asylum claimants will receive a hearing within 60 days after their claim is referred to the IRB. In contrast, claimants currently wait, on average, close to 600 days to receive a hearing.

For the first time in Canadian history, most applicants will have access to a newly-created Refugee Appeal Division (RAD). Failed asylum claimants from countries that have a history of producing genuine refugees will have the benefit of this full fact-based appeal. The new RAD will have the authority to reverse a negative decision by the IRB, if the evidence compels it.

For claimants from countries that do not normally produce refugees, their claims will be expedited, but they will still receive the same individualized hearing that all asylum claimants currently receive. Following the example of most democratic countries, the new measures allow the government to identify designated countries of origin (DCOs). Asylum claims from these presumptively “safe” countries, which respect human rights and offer state protection, will be processed on an accelerated basis.

This means that, for DCO claimants, hearings will be held within 30 or 45 days, depending on whether the asylum claim was made at an inland CIC office or at a port of entry.

“Last year alone, nearly a quarter of all asylum claims in Canada were made by people from democratic European Union nations – that’s more claims than Canada received from Africa or Asia,” said Minister Kenney. “We’re spending far too much time and taxpayers’ money on bogus claims, and on generous tax-funded health and social benefits for claimants from liberal democracies.”

The Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act is expected to save provinces and territories $1.6 billion over five years in social assistance and education costs.

Under the new system, failed asylum claimants will be removed from Canada within a year of their final IRB decision, compared to the current situation in which it generally takes 4.5 years to exhaust all recourses and remove a failed asylum claimant. Faster removal of failed claimants will help discourage individuals from using the asylum system to try to jump the immigration queue to enter Canada.

The new asylum system also expands provisions that bar serious criminals from even being able to make asylum claims.

“Sixty-two percent of all asylum claims – and virtually all asylum claims for the European Union – were either abandoned or withdrawn by the claimants themselves or rejected by the IRB last year,” said Minister Kenney. “It became abundantly clear that our system needed to be changed. These changes will move our asylum system from one that allows bogus claimants to rely on loopholes and redundant appeals to delay their removals for several years, to a system that hears claims quickly and removes bogus claimants faster. That is in the best interest of Canada, and of legitimate refugees. Canada’s asylum system is one of the most generous in the world and will continue to be under the new and improved system.”

Canada’s new asylum system is the result of two laws passed by Parliament — the Balanced Refugee Reform Act (June 2010) and the Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act (June 2012).

Joe Friesen – The Globe and Mail

November 16, 2012

Ontario tried to assert its place in Confederation at a meeting of immigration ministers Friday, flexing its muscles as provinces jockeyed for more immigrants under Canada’s new selection system.

Ontario Immigration Minister Michael Chan said he wants to “put the federal government on notice” that Canada’s largest province by population will demand a fair allocation under the new Expression of Interest system to be established over the next two years.

Mr. Chan wants more economic immigrants for his province, which has seen its once-dominant share of immigration decline over the last decade. Ontario is also seeking a doubling of its quota under the Provincial Nominee stream, a program that has been used primarily to direct immigrants to the Prairies and Atlantic Canada.

At the conclusion of Friday’s federal-provincial meetings, federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenney told reporters that he plans to hold immigration levels steady at about 260,000 a year for now, although the meeting did consider new research that suggested raising levels to about 317,000 annually in five or six years, he said.

Several other provinces are seeking more immigrants and more control over their selection. Mr. Kenney responded by saying that the Conservative government has already overseen a significant increase in the provincial immigration stream.

“Speaking for the federal government, we don’t want to completely cede our role in selecting immigrants. We believe immigration is not just about addressing regional labour-market needs, it’s also about nation building,” Mr. Kenney said.

Mr. Kenney was under public pressure not only from Ontario but from Saskatchewan, which is asking for an increase of 50 per cent in its provincial nominee program to keep up with the labour needs of its booming economy.

Alberta, which has a similarly booming economy, sounded a more conciliatory note by playing down its demands, at least in public. Alberta’s Enterprise Minister Stephen Khan spoke about the need for national co-operation and took on a role that was once more closely associated with Ontario.

“We’re like everybody, we want more. But I think Minister Kenney has been very clear on where they sit on this issue, so we’re going to be good federal partners, good partners in Confederation, and we’ll find a way to meet our labour-market needs in the current framework,” Mr. Khan said.

The provincial ministers lent their support to the new Expression of Interest system that will reshape Canadian immigration once it is implemented in late 2014. The new process is modelled on that of New Zealand, which places immigration applications from skilled workers in a pool that can be searched by employers. If a person has the desired skills or attributes, he or she can be offered the chance to immigrate. The idea is to create a system that responds to the labour market rather than one that processes potential newcomers on a first-come, first-served basis.

November 16, 2012

Justine Hunter – Victoria

The Globe and Mail

Six months after the B.C. government called for more authority to boost its intake of skilled immigrants, officials have suspended a program that fast-tracked visas for business investors following a suspicious surge in applications.

British Columbia’s provincial nominee program saw an “extraordinary” increase in the number of business applicants for a category that promised a speedy visa in exchange for a $125,000 bond. The spike came after the federal government placed a moratorium on its own investor and entrepreneur visa programs.

The decision to suspend the program was announced while B.C. Jobs Minister Pat Bell was meeting in Toronto with federal, provincial and territorial immigration ministers this week to press British Columbia’s demand for more skilled immigrants.

The fast-track program, which provided speedy access to permanent residence status for investors who promised to start a business in B.C., was a potential embarrassment for the province’s capacity to handle immigration affairs.

A review sparked by the increase in applications found an uncomfortable result – few of those B.C. nominees who had put up a bond were actually running a business as promised. Mr. Bell told reporters Friday that the fast-track program has a “disappointing” success rate of under 20 per cent.

“It’s prudent for us to suspend it now that we have flagged what we think could be a problem,” he said.

Earlier in the day, government officials offered a background briefing to elaborate on the nature of that problem.

“We have seen a very large spike in applications to our business program over the last six months or so … possibly driven by people who really are passive investors,” said a senior government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“They no longer have access to the federal investor program, so they may be looking at the fast-track option as an alternative to that program. It really isn’t. We require people actually set up a business and actively manage it. You cannot just put up money and collect a permanent resident’s visa.”

Between April and September of this year, the business immigration stream under the province’s nominee program had 383 applications, a 120-per-cent increase compared to the volume in the previous six months. Most of the applicants were from China.

Last May, the B.C. government released a report calling on Ottawa to “grow and expand” the provincial nominee program, citing the need for more than 300,000 immigrants to fill new jobs in the coming decade. The same report from the Immigration Task Force warned that businesses may have to close or relocate if the province can’t immediately increase its immigration levels.

But in recent weeks, the skills shortage has created heat for Mr. Bell and his government, with an angry backlash over the temporary foreign worker program that saw a Canadian company obtain work permits for about 200 Chinese workers for a B.C. coal mine. Ottawa is now reviewing that case.

The full text of the press release appears below. You can visit www.cic.gc.ca to learn more. If you require assistance hiring a foreign worker or migrating to Canada permanently, feel free to contact me directly. glenn.matthews@siskinds.com

News Release — An Immigration Plan that works for Canada: More immigrants who are already working in Canada to be admitted through Canadian Experience Class

In particular, the 2013 Immigration Levels Plan makes room for the rapid growth in the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). The CEC, which was created in 2008, facilitates the transition from temporary to permanent residence for those with high-skilled work experience in Canada, including international students and temporary foreign workers. Admissions under the CEC have increased from about 2,500 people in 2009 to more than 6,000 in 2011, with more expected this year than ever before. In 2013, CIC intends to accept a record high of up to 10,000 permanent residents through this popular program.

“Immigration plays a vital role in our country’s long-term prosperity,” said Minister Kenney. “Our 2013 Immigration Plan will build on our economic success by bringing in more of the world’s top talent who already have a successful track record in Canada.”

Every year, CIC consults with provinces, territories and public stakeholders across Canada to develop a balanced immigration plan. Besides stakeholder consultations, the Canadian public is invited to participate through online consultations on immigration levels and mix. This year, for the first time in Canadian history, CIC consulted with key Aboriginal groups.

CIC’s 2013 planned admission ranges for other immigration programs will be released in the coming days.