QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

– YOU ASK WE ANSWER –

AThe law does not require for immigration applications to be filed with the assistance of an Immigration Attorney. However, due to the complex nature of an immigration application, as well as the fact that the immigration laws, by-laws and processes are constantly evolving, applying without the representation of an Immigration Attorney could potentially result in your application being refused or significantly delayed by the Canadian government or by the Province in which you wish to immigrate. Hiring an Immigration Attorney from our team simply means doing it right the first time.

AAn Immigration Consultant holds a certificate or an attestation to give consultations regarding Canadian immigration. This formation typically takes 6 to 12 months and the Consultant must successfully become a member of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council. An Immigration Consultant can represent an applicant who wishes to immigrate to Canada. The Immigration Consultants can appeal some of the decisions but cannot appeal in front of the Federal Court since they are not Attorneys.

An Immigration Attorney is an individual who graduated from Law School, who then passed a Bar Exam or who graduated from a Master’s degree in Notarial Law (in the case of Quebec Notaries),  and then followed a one year internship in order to become a member of a provincial or territorial Law society or of the Quebec Chamber of Notaries. An Immigration Attorney can represent immigration candidates throughout their applications; can appeal unfavorable decisions in front of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Superior Court, of an Administrative Court and in front of the Federal Court.

AOur Law Firm represents clients that are typically widespread geographically. No matter where you are, we can assist you with legal consultations via video-conference. We will also be able to update you and answer any questions you might have by e-mail as by telephone conversations throughout your immigration process.

ACanadian citizenship is typically given to you if you are born in Canada or obtained if you are born in another country while one of your parents was holding the Canadian citizenship or if one of your adoptive parent holds the Canadian citizenship, in which case you would be able to claim citizenship.
Another way of becoming a Canadian Citizen would be to first obtain a Canadian permanent residency. After residing physically in Canada for three years, a permanent resident can apply for Canadian citizenship.

The citizenship allows additional rights that the permanent resident status does not provide, namely the right to vote, to hold a Canadian Passport and to be employed by the Government of Canada.

AThe Permanent resident status can currently be obtained through 4 immigration categories:

1) Economic Immigration, which includes:
– Immigrating as a skilled worker;
– Immigration for business purposes;
2) Family Sponsorship for spouses, children, adopted children, parents and grandparents.
3) Refugees status or persons in refugee-like situations
4) Humanitarian and compassionate grounds.
Contact us to find out if you qualify in one of these above mentionned categories.

AThe federal government of Canada and Province of Québec signe The Canada-Québec Accord in 1991 which stated that the province has the exclusive responsibility of selecting the persons who wish to reside permanently or temporarily in Québec, their admission into Canada, their integration into Québec society, and the determination of levels of immigration to Québec.
As a result, an applicant residing outside of Canada who wishes to immigrate to Canada and establish himself in the province of Quebec needs to first obtain a Certificate of Selection or a Certificate of acceptation from the Province of Québec before being able to apply through the federal government.

AImmigration application processing times vary depending on the category of application, in some cases the applicant can be placed in a points-based system pool which means that the higher the applicant can score, the shorter the processing time will be. Our team of Immigration Attorneys are here to help you optimize your score in order to reduce the processing times. We can also tell you more specifically what kinds of delays you are facing according to the category of application that suits your situation.

AOvercoming an application which was refused is definitely possible. For instance, if the applicant did not file the application properly, one of our Immigration Attorney can represent you in order to reopen the application. We can also represent you by appealing the unfavorable decision whether it is front of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, the Federal Court, a Superior Court or an Administrative Court.

AImmigration applications can be refused for a number of reasons such as: 1) if the applicant does not qualify for the selected category; 2) if the applicant is considered “inadmissible” to come to Canada under Canada’s Immigration Law; 3) if an applicant fails to properly fill his application; or 4) if he fails to provide the proper documentation within the prescribed delays. Our team of Immigration Attorney is here to help you overcome any obstacles you might encounter during your immigration application and we are also here to streamline the application process, should you chose to mandate us right from the start. .