In response to the December, 2004 Tsunami near Indonesia, Citizenship and Immigration Canada enacted temporary measures to speed-up reunification of sponsored immigrants with their families in Canada. CIC staff waived fees and granted priority processing to affected applicants. As of June 7, 2005, CIC’s humanitarian efforts had resulted in 366 permanent resident visas being […]
The post Update – Canada’s Tsunami Disaster Response first appeared on CIC News.
Before May 5, 2005 individuals who lost or renounced their Canadian citizenship as minors were unable to resume this citizenship without fulfilling several requirements, such as obtaining permanent residency, living in Canada for at least a year, and taking citizenship tests. Now, those who lost citizenship while under the age of eighteen and between 1947 […]
The post Regaining Canadian Citizenship first appeared on CIC News.
Question: What happens if I get married after I have submitted my application for a permanent resident visa? Answer: You must immediately notify the Canadian Visa Office in charge of your file. What happens next depends upon the stage you are at in the application process. If your application has not yet been finalized (visa […]
The post Question & Answer first appeared on CIC News.
Off-Campus Work Since announcing expansion of the off-campus work program, which allows foreign students to work off-campus while completing their studies at public post-secondary institutions, many individuals have been wondering how the Government will implement the program. In last month’s announcement, CIC and HRSDC promised to build upon the existing program, which applies to students […]
The post Update: Foreign Student work initiatives first appeared on CIC News.
On May 17, 2005, Belinda Stronach was made Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, a department responsible for working with Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) on a number of issues related to immigration. Since her election to the House of Commons in 2004, the Honourable Belinda Stronach has been a member of the […]
The post New Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada first appeared on CIC News.
Question: Does immigrating lead to Canadian citizenship? Answer: Immigrating to Canada is the first step to becoming a Canadian citizen. For many, becoming a Canadian citizen is the eventual goal of the immigration process. When an individual first lands in Canada as a permanent resident, he has already been accepted to live and work within […]
The post Question & Answer first appeared on CIC News.
Question: What does ‘Conjugal Partner’ mean for Sponsorship? Answer: The category of Conjugal Partnership was established by Citizenship and Immigration Canada in an effort to make spousal sponsorship possible for couples in exceptional circumstances. Canadians can sponsor a partner to become a permanent resident who is either their married spouse or their common-law spouse. In […]
The post Question & Answer first appeared on CIC News.
As one of many initiatives announced on April 18, 2005, the Honourable Joe Volpe, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, declared a two-pronged initiative to improve the situation for international students in Canada. The first initiative will permit international students at public post-secondary schools to work off-campus during their studies. Previously, Citizenship and Immigration policy has […]
The post International students made even more welcome first appeared on CIC News.
Also announced this month, Citizenship and Immigration Canada is introducing measures to speed up the processing of family sponsorship applications for parents and grandparents. The measures are intended to break through the backlog of applications in this class of immigrants. It is now estimated that 18 000 parents and grandparents will immigrate in 2005, up […]
The post Reuniting families a CIC priority first appeared on CIC News.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced further spending on April 18, 2005, this time directed toward improving the processing of applications for citizenship. The new expenditures will be an additional $69 million over two years to speed up processing. Additionally, the language and knowledge of Canada requirements will now be waived for applicants aged 55 years […]
The post Citizenship sooner first appeared on CIC News.
Fulfilling its earlier promise, the Government of Canada launched The Internationally Trained Workers Initiative on April 25, 2005. The Initiative is a combined program between Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, CIC, the Prime Ministers Office, and the provinces and territories. The Government of Canada had previously committed to improving integration of immigrants and meeting […]
The post Recognition for internationally trained professionals first appeared on CIC News.
A newly obtained report from Citizenship and Immigration Canada provides a rare glimpse into the workings of the behind-the-scenes mail-opening program. Under federal legislation, authorities can search international mail and courier packages within Canada, to examine the authenticity of items contained within those packages (such as passports, licenses, and credit cards) in order to determine […]
The post Mail seizures by CIC uncovers fraudulent immigration documents first appeared on CIC News.
A 40-year-old Guyanese woman, who had an affair with a Canadian immigration officer and then sued him for $1 million CDN in damages, dropped the case against her former lover after claiming the case was making her suicidal. The woman, identified only as Jane Doe because of a media ban, had claimed that the immigration […]
The post Woman drops $1,000,000 lawsuit against immigration officer first appeared on CIC News.
OTTAWA, March 21, 2005 — The Government of Canada announced the country’s first ever action plan against racism. “Canada is a world leader in the development of policies and laws to fight racism, but many Canadians still experience racism and discrimination in their daily lives,” said the Honourable Raymond Chan, Minister of State (Multiculturalism). “The […]
The post Government of Canada announces action plan against racism first appeared on CIC News.
OTTAWA, March 7, 2005 — The Honourable Joe Volpe, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, announced the preliminary figures for permanent resident admissions in 2004. The current numbers for admissions to Canada are 235,808, well within the planned range of 220,000 to 245,000 announced to Parliament on October 30, 2003. Although these are preliminary numbers, they […]
The post Canada welcomed almost 236,00 new permanent residents in 2004 first appeared on CIC News.
Being white and Canadian circa 1967 it was easy to feel smug. Back then, race riots threatened to engulf many American cities but North of the Border the urban landscape was all peace and love.While most of us praised our egalitarianism, a friend from Boston scoffed at our self-righteous ways, noting that our tranquility had […]
The post David Cohen’s Blog: Look in the Mirror first appeared on CIC News.
Immigration Minister Judy Sgro resigned from her cabinet post on Friday, January 14. during a meeting with Prime Minister Paul Martin. She was replaced by Human Resources Minister Joe Volpe. Ex-Minister Sgro resigned following allegations in a sworn affidavit deposited in Federal court by Toronto-area pizza shop owner named Harjit Singh. Mr. Singh alleged that […]
The post Immigration Minister Judy Sgro Resigns first appeared on CIC News.
CIC is fast-tracking existing applications of Family Class applicants under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act who have been and continue to be seriously and personally affected by the disaster and who have immediate family members in Canada. Priority is being given to spouses, common-law partners, conjugal partners and dependent children. New applications under the […]
The post CIC responds to the crisis in South East Asia first appeared on CIC News.
The Ontario government and CIC are jointly investing $3.4 million over two years to support 13 projects under the Enhanced Language Training Initiative. The projects will deliver job-specific language training to more than 1,300 internationally trained individuals to help them make the transition to Ontario’s workforce. “One of the keys to our continued prosperity and […]
The post Increased language training funding for Ontario immigration first appeared on CIC News.
Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew and Natural Resources Minister John Efford announced on January 7 that Canada has accepted the recommendation of an independent report to increase the annual budget of the Canadian Section of the International Boundary Commission to $2.4 million from the current $830,000. The International Boundary Commission is a bilateral treaty organization […]
The post Canada increases budget for international boundary commission first appeared on CIC News.
The Year 2004 ended on a sour note for humans. The images and numbers coming out of tsunami-ravaged South and South East Asia are starkest in the absence of commentary. Read Full Blog on CanadaVisa.com…
The post David Cohen’s Blog: Tsunami in South and South East Asia first appeared on CIC News.
“Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers…” – Blanche DuBois I mean this blog to be of particular interest to Americans who do not wince at the sight of Tom DeLay. I sense some of you are fence-sitting on the issue of establishing a foothold in Canada and are a […]
The post David Cohen’s Blog: The Kindness of Strangers first appeared on CIC News.
Question: I am in the process of submitting an application for permanent residence as a skilled worker. Can I be awarded points for unpaid work performed outside of Canada? Answer: No. Work is defined in section 1 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations as : “an activity for which wages are paid or commission […]
The post Q & A: Skilled Worker Application – work experience first appeared on CIC News.
The RCMP has charged five people, among them an Immigration Canada official, with corruption and fraud after several raids in Ottawa. The RCMP are alleging the group received up to $25,000 in fees from at least a dozen Arab immigrants seeking permanent resident status. The arrests are the culmination of an investigation that began in […]
The post RCMP Arrests Federal Immigration Official first appeared on CIC News.
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and United States Customs and Border Protection have launched the NEXUS Air pilot project at the Vancouver International Airport. The program is designed to speed up the border clearance process for pre-approved, low-risk air travellers. NEXUS Air uses biometric iris recognition technology to ensure the highest level of border […]
The post NEXUS Air off to a flying start at the Vancouver International Airport first appeared on CIC News.