Canadian Immigration Podcast

Have you ever wondered why the Canadian Immigration process can be so darn hard and unforgiving? In this episode I share a few of my own thoughts on Canadian Immigration from the many years I have spent working in the trenches. This episode came about quite spontaneously. As I was walking through the Cottonwood trees in our community wilderness park along the banks of the Old Man River near Lethbridge, I started think about my immigration practice and how much it had changed since I first decided to focus exclusively on immigration law back in 2003. To say that things have changed is an understatement. When I started practicing, I had just finished working on the border as an officer and completed a year of pro bono work with the hearings officers in Calgary, Alberta. I had tons of great relationships established within the various immigration departments and was well positioned to start my practice as an immigration lawyer. However, over time the landscape shifted and with that so too went officer discretio

Getting your immigration application refused sucks! Fortunately, you don't simply have to accept the rejection and live with it. In this episode, Rekha McNutt joins me in our first episode of our Special Series on Immigration Hearings and Appeals to pull back the curtain on Sponsorship Appeals at the Immigration Appeal Division. Rekha practices primarily in immigration law.  She has extensive experience with temporary resident visas, express entry, federal skilled workers, Canadian experience class, Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program, family class sponsorships, refugee claims, pre-removal risk assessments, and in-Canada humanitarian and compassionate permanent residence applications. Rekha has focused much of her practice on Federal Court Judicial Review applications of various types of negative immigration-related decisions. Rekha had appeared before the Alberta Provincial Court and the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta.  She has also appeared extensively before the Federal Court of Canada and Immigration Tr

One of the saddest things to see is for skilled immigrants and refugees to sacrifice so much to come to Canada and then not have the ability to continue working in their chosen profession once they get here. One of the more common barriers is the cost of applying for certification. Often newcomers are unable to afford the application fees upon arrival and end up working in lower paying positions which only leave them with enough income to survive...never being able to afford the application fees. So what's the solution? .....Windmill Microlending. Listen in to my interview with Onai Abote who shares the remarkable Windmill story and how it has helped countless immigrants realize their dream of working in their chosen profession in Canada. Onai Petra Abote, is the Community Relationship Specialist with Windmill Microlending (formerly Immigrant Access Fund) in Calgary. Onai joined Windmill Microlending from Postmedia, publishers of the Calgary Herald and Calgary Sun where she was part of the advertising manage

Whether you are a seasoned immigration practitioner or new to the caregiver world, a caregiver yourself looking to immigrate to Canada or someone currently working in Canada as a caregiver and wanting to become a permanent resident, this episode is for you. Quebec based immigration lawyer, Matthew Aronson joined me in this amazing episode filled with do's and dont's, tips and strategies and a virtual walkthrough of the new Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker Pilot programs. I think this episode ranks up there as one of the top "hands-on" episodes I have ever produced with an immigration lawyer to date. Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada has once again revamped the caregiver programs in this country. Whether or not the new Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker Pilot programs will succeed in accomplishing what they were designed to do, or doomed to fail, will play out in the coming years. Regardless, if you are considering accessing one of these programs, this episode is an abs

One of the most heartbreaking realities of practicing Canadian immigration law is the fact that not all applications submitted will get approved.There is nothing worse than having to inform a client that their application was rejected. Inevitably, the first question a client asks after being told about the refusal, is how can we appeal that refusal. Well, in this special series I will be releasing over the next couple of months, my good friend and colleague Rekha McNutt will join me to explore all of the ins and outs of the Canadian immigration appeal process and what happens in these hearings. Whether you are an immigration lawyer, consultant, or recently rejected applicant, this series is for you. This special series on immigration appeals came about when Rekha and I realized that it was really difficult to try to limit the scope of this topic to just one episode. As we discussed the possible areas of immigration appeal, it became readily apparent that a special series on immigration appeals would be far m

Another federal election has come and gone and after the dust has settled, Canada will have a minority Liberal government. The question is.....how will this impact Canadian immigration law, policy and practice? In this episode I invited my good friend and fellow immigration lawyer, Ravi Jain to join me to weigh in on where we think immigration policy is headed following this fall Federal election. Now that we now we will have a minority Liberal government for the next 4 years (or less), what impact will this really have on the future of Canadian immigration for us immigration lawyers, consultants and our clients? Although Ravi and I are both serving as table officers with the National Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association, all of the view expressed in this episode are ours alone and do not reflect those of the Canadian Bar Association and the National Immigration law section. This episode is just two friends sharing our thoughts on what we feel may be in store for Canadian immigration in th

Express Entry is one of the most volatile, scary, and stressful applications that can be submitted to Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada. In this episode I share with you some of my best insights and tips on navigating the Express Entry process safely. In the first few years of Express Entry, when I received an email from IRCC related to a file starting with the letter "E", my stomach started to churn and my stress levels started to rise. I hesitated going to my Rep Portal to check to see what this notification could mean. Was it just a simple request for Passports, or was it the dreaded refusal letter for having failed to upload some innocuous document? Although I don't feel that way now, I know that many of you fellow practitioners likely do....or if you don't, it's likely because you haven't yet filed many Express Entry applications.  So in order to help reduce the stress level and increase the satisfaction level, I pull back the curtain and share some insight on the whole process and some t

People preparing to emigrate to Canada often have one or more of the following misconceptions about the Canadian healthcare system: “Medicare works the same across the country,” or  “Coverage is immediate upon arrival,” or “Emergency medical care is covered even if I have a waiting period”. In this episode Jason Cummings joins me to debunk these common misconceptions and set the record straight for all newcomers to Canada. These misconceptions can be costly to a newcomer.  For instance, each year tens of thousands of new residents of Canada settle in a Province or Territory that has a waiting period for public health coverage (Medicare).  During a Medicare waiting period, “un-insured residents” are responsible to pay for hospital and medical services, even in an emergency, and costs can be very high, even catastrophic.  The same risk can arise when a temporary resident loses Medicare eligibility due to the expiry of a work or study permit. In this episode Canadian health insurance broker Jason Cummings, Gen

With the increasing numbers of refugee claimants crossing into Canada via the US border, the topic of refugees has become extremely polarizing in our country. As we approach another election year, political divisiveness and rhetoric from all parties will continue to dominate the media. What we are left with is a lot of misinformation being spread that only exacerbates the confusion the average Canadian has regarding the refugee issue. In this episode Canadian immigration lawyer Hart Kaminker joined me to help shed some light on this topic and provide some great insight from a refugee lawyer perspective. Tune in to this episode and get rid of your pre-conceived ideas about refugees once and for all.   Hart Kaminker has extensive experience in all facets of Immigration and Citizenship law with focused knowledge in litigation, the processing of permanent and temporary applications, and reviewing decisions of Immigration tribunals and international visa officers. Hart has represented clients before the Federal

Quebec has gone through some fairly significant changes to it's immigration programs. If you want to know how these changes may impact on Quebec based work permits and immigration, you've come to the right place. Canadian Immigration Lawyer Genna Evelyn joined me to share some insight on some of the significant changes that have been launched and some fantastic employment opportunities that exist for foreign nationals destined for Quebec. Genna Evelyn practices immigration law from the small border city of Saint-Georges de Beauce in Quebec. Originally from Ontario, she has practiced in numerous areas of law in both Ontario and New Brunswick since 2007 before joining the BB Immigration team in 2017. Ms. Evelyn has a Bachelor’s of Law from the University of New Brunswick and a Masters of Law from Université Laval with a research focus on immigration law. She offers services in both her English and French and is a member of both the Barreau du Québec and the Law Society of Ontario. In addition to practicing im

www.CanadianImmigrationPodcast.com With the legalization of marijuana in Canada on October 17, 2018, there continues to exist tremendous confusion on how this will impact Canadian marijuana users travelling to the US and American's coming to Canada for a little "marijuana tourism". The issue is complex for individuals, but down right maddening for multinational companies sending employees back and forth across the Canada/US border on a daily basis. In this episode, I was joined by Canadian and US Immigration Attorney Henry Chang who shared some great advice on the real dangers that exist for users of marijuana seeking to travel cross border between Canada and the US and some great tips for employees of Canadian marijuana companies travelling to the US. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3E9.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] Henry Chang, a partner with the law firm of Blaney McMurtry in

For the past 15 years, I have routinely requested that my business immigration clients provide business plans to support the various business class applications I seek on their behalf in Canada. I never gave a thought to recommending the services of a business plan writing company....that is until I learned how great an impact they can have on the approval of a business immigration application. In this episode, I was joined by Mariannella Manzur, Vice President at Joorney Business Plans who shared some great insight and opened my eyes to how outsourcing this essential component of a business immigration application can make all the difference in its success or failure. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3E8.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] Normally, I don't invite 3rd party vendors to join me on my Podcast. I tend to invite other practitioners to talk about the nuts and bolts of variou

The renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) created a fair amount of anxiety for us immigration lawyers. What would they change? Would caps be put in place on renewals? Would certain professions be removed? Would the work permit options simply be scrapped? With all of the posturing of President Trump, these were all possible outcomes. On September 30, 2018, we learned the fate that awaited NAFTA.... [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E7.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] Fortunately, all parties were able to recognize that the free flow of business personnel was in the best interest of all three member countries. When the dust settled, Chapter 16 of the newly branded United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) was left untouched. We can expect the USMCA to become law some time in early 2020. Most business immigration lawyers, such as myself (and our clients)

www.CanadianImmigrationPodcast.com So... IRCC is asking you to provide a police clearance. No problem...right? WRONG! Although obtaining police clearances for Canadian immigration purposes can seem like a pretty straightforward thing to do, if taken lightly, it can mean the difference between getting your application approved or rejected. In this episode, Canadian immigration lawyer Shirish Chotalia joins me to discuss the ins and outs of the volatile area of police clearances and security screening. If you are involved in filing immigration applications, to any degree, you will not want to proceed any further before listening to this Episode. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E6.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] In this episode Shirish and I discuss some of our craziest client experiences trying to get police clearances to satisfy IRCC's requirements. When it comes to pretty much an

Visa processing can be tricky business. Although IRCC has taken significant measures to streamline the process and make it easier for us to file applications online and through the various processing centres, inevitably efficiency of process runs into a wall.....for some of our clients, it can be a BRICK WALL. In this episode, Canadian immigration lawyer Christy Jones joins me to discuss some of the more challenging scenarios she has had to work through and together we share some strategies for helping you navigate those quirky cases we all seem to get from time to time. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E5.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] As a young immigration lawyer, the best decision I ever made was to join the Canadian Bar Association's National Immigration section. Why? Because it is probably the most collegial group of professionals in the country. There was always someone wi

Are you an Alberta based foreign worker frustrated with how high the CRS has climbed for Express Entry? Are you beginning to think you will never get an ITA? If this is you, the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program's new Alberta Opportunity Stream may just be the solution for you.  [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E4.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] In this Episode I am flying solo to waste no time in demystifying the recent changes to the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program. I love to share information about immigration that affects my dear Province of Alberta. Finally, I have something to share that is actually a pretty big deal. The Alberta Opportunity Stream was previously announced back in 2017 with a proposed launch date of January 2018. However, there was a fairly huge push back when stakeholders realized that anyone on an open work permit was going to be left in the dust when it

Do you need to get documents translated quickly for your immigration application? Are you struggling with who to choose and how to know if the person doing the translation is worth their salt? Tune in to this Episode where I interview the owner of one of the most respected translation and interpreter companies in Alberta. Not only will you come away with essential tips on how to choose a translator, but greater insight on how difficult it actually is to translate properly. Join me as we pull the curtains back on the mysterious world of document translation and interpretation. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E3.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ]   In this episode of the Canadian Immigration Podcast, I caught up with Monica De Maria, the Owner and President of Giovanni Translation and Interpretation located in Calgary, Alberta. Giovanni Translation & Interpretation was formed 37

Are you considering sending one of your clients to a Canadian port of entry to benefit from faster processing? STOP! Listen to this Episode before you even think about doing this. Yes.....you will get faster processing - however, you may not be as thrilled with the decision you get on that application. Join me in this Episode where I share some of my own x-immigration officer insight on navigating Canadian ports of entry. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E2.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] For the last couple of years, I have always followed an interview format on my Canadian Immigration Podcast. There has always been an awesome guest who joins me to discuss the various topics I cover on Canadian immigration. However, in this episode I decided to "go solo" for a change. In the summer of 2002 (wow....it's hard to believe so much time as passed), this  young fellow had the opportuni

At some point in July 2018, the recreational use of Marijuana will become legal in Canada....however, Prime Minister Trudeau has confirmed it WILL NOT be Canada Day (July 1, 2018). With the explosion of this new industry, there is going to be a significant need for Marijuana Professionals to fill labour shortages and skill gaps within this industry in Canada. Immigration Lawyer, Betsy Kane and I discuss some of the existing work permit options that may be available to secure work authorization for these specialized marijuana workers in Canada. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S3_E1.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] Betsy joined me once again to tackle this brand new topic that has not received too much coverage within Canadian immigration to date. However, it is clear that once recreational use of marijuana becomes legal in Canada, there is going to be a significant need for people wi

The Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program recently announced some pretty sweeping changes to come into effect in 2018. As the pioneer of PNP programs across Canada, the Province of Manitoba has always been a trend setter in developing creative ways to encourage settlement in their province. In this episode I invited back Canadian immigration lawyer Alastair Clarke to join me to talk about these changes. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/canadianimmigrationpodcast/CIP_S2_E17.mp3" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" ] Alastair began working with immigration issues as a student leader at the University of Victoria in 1996. For almost 20 years, Alastair has been active with immigrant communities. Alastair’s current legal practice encompasses all areas of immigration and refugee law. Alastair joined my previously in Season 1 Episode 25 where we talked about his background and how he got into immigration in the first place. If you'd