The above title is a different way of replying to the many inquiries I receive about people interested in Canada’s immigration programs. When answering these queries, I need to know more information. This blog post give some guidance of the information I’d like to see before assessing a person in relation to Canada’s immigration programs.
Many of these inquiries come from outside of Canada, often The Gulf, South Asia, China, the UK, and to a lesser degree, Eastern Europe and Africa. This is in keeping with the general numbers for source countries of Canadian immigration.
The style of inquiry via email varies depending on the place of the applicant. South Asian persons interested in immigration to Canada are often familiar with a ‘biodata’, which I understand to be like curriculum vitae, or a résumé with more personal information. Many African-based queries about Canadian immigration are familiar with the phrase, ‘curriculum vitae’. Chinese applicants, particularly those who are foreign-trained, are familiar with the term résumé.
For persons who don’t have a resume or substantively equivalent document, I send out a form that when completed, allows me to confidentially assess the interested person. My preference would be to have everyone complete my own assessment form, but people tend to prefer the résumé route, since this saves them time.
For those wishing to send a résumé, I always ask a few additional questions. These include the following:
1) Do you have a relative in Canada, and if so, what is your relation to that relative?;
2) How much money can you bring to Canada once your visa is issued?
3) How many years of full time education have you completed from the start of kindergarten up to the end of any college and/or university?
4) Was your education completed at a school that was recognized by the educational department of the government where the school is located?
5) If you have a spouse or common law partner what level of education has he completed?
6) Does your spouse/common law partner have relatives in Canada?
7) Have you or your spouse ever worked or studied legally in Canada?
8) If you were not raised in an English speaking country, can you take the IELTS test?
9) What has your work experience consisted of in the past nine or ten years?
The last question is often answered with a brief reply such as “I am a financial manager.”. That is a good start, given that that title is on one the current demand list for Canadian immigration as of the time of this being posted. A title also allows me to tell people whether or not their work experience is not suited for Canadian immigration under the Federal Skilled Worker (“FSW”) Program. In such a situation, there can be some hope in alternative programs such as Provincial Nominee Programs, or in less common situations arranged employment can overcome the lack of experience in one of the demand occupations.
If the person’s job title is on the list, I proceed with a further review of a candidate’s experience. I thus ask the person to describe the day to day duties in a job where the title of that job appears on the occupational demand list. This allows me to avoid wasting everyone’s time and money, as sometimes the job titles of a person do not necessarily cohere with the perception of that job as performed in Canada. For example, an ‘accountant’ in some countries is often performing the duties of a bookkeeper in Canada.
If the duties check out, and if the sum of the candidate’s education, age, work experience total 67, then I can then…proceed to ask more questions.
Other issues relate to whether the candidate or members of his immediate family have any criminal or medical problems. If this is the case, I’d have to first get more information on those potential issues. Such medical or criminal admissibility issues may be remedied through humanitarian and compassionate submissions to the immigration department, or through a request for a temporary resident permit.
If the above screening is positive, then the processing can begin. This consists of having the client complete the numerous forms for immigration, and then submitting the application. The wait times as described by Canada’s immigration department, sometimes give a clue as to how long an application will take, but the list at the aforementioned link is purposefully vague.
Factors that delay an application may relate to background checks, or medical conditions. I have taken over delayed skilled worker cases to try to compel a decision either by writing the visa office, or taking the visa officer to the Federal Court.
