News

Canada to make immigrants wait four years for citizenship

Canada’s immigration minister, Chris Alexander, has introduced legislation in the Canadian parliament that would increase the required residency period before immigrants could apply for citizenship to four years from the current three years.
Mr Alexander announced the bill at a press conference at Fort York in Toronto, the site of a historic battle between Canada and the United States in 1812. He said that the bill would ‘increase, reinforce the value of Canadian citizenship which we all sense but which needs to be renewed in every generation’.
The bill would also quadruple the cost of a Canadian citizenship application from $75 to $300 and massively increase the maximum penalty for ‘residency fraud’ from $1,000 to $100,000.

Residency fraud

Residency fraud is committed when a foreign national creates falsified evidence that he is resident in Canada while, in fact, continuing to live elsewhere. In order to qualify for citizenship, a foreign national with permanent resident status must currently be able to show that he or she has resided in Canada for three years (1,095 days) in the last four years.
Canadian immigration has been concerned that some people with permanent residence visas, particularly from the Middle East, continued to live in their home countries and paid agents to create bogus records showing them to be resident in Canada.
In 2012, former immigration minister Jason Kenney announced that over 3,000 people would have their Canadian citizenship revoked when it became clear that when applying for citizenship they had faked evidence to show that they were spending more time in Canada than was actually the case.

Falsified documentation

Mr Kenney said that some Canadian immigration consultants were providing falsified documentation showing receipts for living expenses, household bills and so forth to be used in citizenship applications.
The bill would also make Canadian language and citizenship tests considerably harder and extend the requirement to take a language test to all applicants up to the age of 64. Currently, those over 54 are exempt.
Mr Alexander said that the measures would ‘strengthen the value of citizenship’ and added that Canadian citizenship is ‘our most precious commodity’.

‘A weighty privilege that bestows both duties and rights’

He said ‘We want new citizens to embrace our rich culture and values and feel compelled to remain active members of Canadian society. Canadian citizenship is uniquely valuable in the world, a weighty privilege that bestows both duties and rights, opportunities and responsibilities’.
Canada’s main opposition party, the New Democratic Party has said that the measures ‘will require serious study’ before they support them and expressed a concern that the government might be ‘playing politics’ with the issue.
Canada’s other opposition party; the Liberals, welcomed the increased residency requirement.

Citizen of convenience

John McCallum of the Liberal Party said ‘I do agree with the principle that when a person becomes a citizen of Canada, that person should be a real citizen and not a citizen of convenience’.
The bill will also include measures to extend Canadian citizenship to the ‘Lost Canadians’ who despite having lived in Canada throughout most of their lives and having been born to Canadian parents, do not have citizenship because they were born overseas.

News

Canadian authorities crackdown on citizenship fraud

OTTAWA, Canada, Sunday March 2, 2014, CMC – As concerns heighten over the recall of former St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ Deputy New York Consul General, Edson Augustus, the Canadian government has announced that it is cracking down on citizenship fraud.

Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander said he is reinforcing the government’s commitment to tackling citizenship fraud through measures proposed in Bill C-24, the “Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act.”

“The government is cracking down on citizenship fraud by enforcing stronger penalties for those who do not play by the rules,” said Alexander in a statement.

“Changes to the Citizenship Act reinforce the value of citizenship and will help ensure new Canadians are fully prepared to participate in Canadian life and have a stronger attachment to our country,” he added.

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“Stronger penalties for those who commit citizenship fraud will protect the integrity of Canadian citizenship,” Alexander continued. “The government’s changes to the Citizenship Act reinforce the message that Canadian citizenship is valued around the globe and will be afforded those who recognize that it comes with duties and rights, privileges and responsibilities.”

Under the new legislation, the Canadian government will have the authority to develop regulations to designate a regulatory body whose members would be authorized to act as consultants on citizenship matters.

“This change will help protect applicants and deter third-party fraud,” said the statement, adding that Bill C-24 “reinforces the value of citizenship by cracking down on fraud and ensuring Canadian citizenship is only offered to those who play by the rules.”

The proposed measure includes stronger penalties for fraud and misrepresentation (a maximum fine of CAN$100,000 and/or five years in prison); expanding the grounds to bar an application for citizenship to include foreign criminality, “which will help improve program integrity”; and making it an offence for unauthorized individuals to “knowingly represent or advise a person on a citizenship application or hearing for a fee.”

Alexander said “ongoing large-scale” fraud investigations conducted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have identified more than 3,000 citizens and 5,000 permanent residents linked to major investigations—a majority of them related to residence.

In addition, he said nearly 2,000 individuals linked to the citizenship fraud investigations have withdrawn their applications.

He said the legislation brings Canada in line with “most of our peer countries, by providing that citizenship can be revoked from dual nationals who are convicted of terrorism, high treason and spying offences (depending on the sentence received), or who take up arms against Canada.”

He said permanent residents who commit these acts will be barred from applying for citizenship.

Claiming that its immigration system was broken and was being taken advantage of by “bogus” refugee claimants from “democratic, human rights-respecting countries,” such as St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Alexander’s predecessor, Jason Kenney, last year announced a major overhaul of the system.

Kenny’s announcement had come amid what has been described as heightened fraudulent claims for asylum in Canada by Vincentians and other Caribbean nationals.

In an exposé, on November 12, 2011, the Toronto Star, under the caption, “SVG – Is this Caribbean Idyll the Worst Place in the World to be a Woman,” said that the majority of Vincentians flocking to Canada, seeking refugee status, are women, who, it appears, are “fleeing domestic violence.”

In response, the then Consul General to Toronto, Steve Phillips, said there was “no political, religious or social conditions in St. Vincent that justify any Vincentian applying for refugee status.”

CIC, News, Operational Bulletin

Operational Bulletin 545 (Modified) – December 30, 2013

 Processing of Confirmation of Permanent Residence Documents

Summary

The purpose of this Operational Bulletin is to provide instructions to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and Canada Border Services Agency officers on how to properly process a Confirmation of Permanent Residence (CoPR) document.

Background

Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, permanent resident (PR) applicants are issued a CoPR document (IMM 5688E or IMM 5292B), which is to be presented at a port of entry or an inland CIC office for processing in order to become a permanent resident.

 

The CoPR is evidence that an officer was satisfied that, at the time of issuance, the foreign national named in the document was not inadmissible and met the selection criteria and requirements of the Act and Regulations.

 

Most applicants for permanent residence have applied for and obtained a PR visa (if required) and a CoPR from a Canadian visa office outside Canada. These applicants are required to present their document to a Border Services Officer (BSO) upon arrival in Canada. Applicants who already have legal status in Canada, however, can either go to an inland CIC office (after calling the CIC Call Centre for a landing appointment) or a Port of Entry (POE) – if they have a PR visa counterfoil or if they are exempt from this requirement – to finalize the processing of their permanent residence application [R71.1(2)].

POE / Inland Processing

When a foreign national requests to be granted permanent resident status at a POE or an inland CIC office and is in possession of a CoPR, the BSO at Immigration Secondary or the inland CIC officer must ensure that the bio data, including the travel document number, recorded on the CoPR matches the information in the applicant’s passport or travel document. The officer should also ensure that the permanent resident’s height and eye colour are correct, which is needed for the production of the PR card.

Corrections

In cases where a clerical error has been made, the IMM 5688E or IMM 5292B should be corrected to bring it into agreement with the bio data in the passport or travel document. The correction should be made on all copies of the CoPR by placing an asterisk beside the error and notating the correction in the remarks section. Any corrections made must also be reflected in the Field Operations Support System (FOSS) and/or Global Case Management System (GCMS). Final responsibility for ensuring data integrity and legibility of the CoPR rests with the officers, including the reprinting of a replacement document from FOSS or GCMS when significant changes are required.

Document Numbers in FOSS

At the POE, should the document number (T number) on the printed CoPR differ from the T number found in FOSS, the officer should check GCMS to verify the valid T number. If the valid T number is found in FOSS, an asterisk must be placed beside the incorrect document number and the valid number must be written in the remarks section. This will prevent errors when processing the PR card and when using the CoPR as a proof of status document. If two document numbers exist in FOSS, the officer must never land the client on both numbers. Only the valid document number may be used for landing purposes.

 

Alternately, if FOSS indicates an invalid T number, or the Confirmation of Permanent Residence document does not appear in FOSS, the examination should be deferred pursuant to A23 and the client should be referred to an inland CIC office to complete the landing. The inland CIC office will need to contact the issuing office in order to correct the error and close the application in GCMS, if necessary.

Note:

Once FOSS is decommissioned and replaced by GCMS at the end of 2014, this will no longer be an issue.

Photographs

The officer must verify that the CoPR has a photograph affixed to it (either on the CIC Copy of the IMM 5688E or on Copy 1 of the IMM 5292B) and that it bears a clear resemblance to the photograph on the passport or travel document. The photo must also meet the proper specifications (PDF, 1.1 MB) and if not, the photo must be retaken. If a photo retake is required, the new photograph must be affixed to a separate Supplementary Identification Form (IMM 5455B [PDF, 560 KB]), since photos already affixed to the CoPR cannot be removed without damaging the form. If using the fillable and downloadable version of the IMM 5455B, the photo must be attached using a standardized photo patch. Photo patches can be ordered using the IMM 1389 – Requisition for Non-Controlled Immigration Forms, by selecting the item (CIC 0108B – Photo Patch) from the drop-down menu and entering the number of packages required.

Address Update

If an address is already indicated on the CoPR, the officer must check with the client to ensure that it is still applicable. If it is not, the address should be crossed out and updated with the new address. The update must also be made in FOSS and/or GCMS, depending on the system being used. If GCMS is being used, the officer must verify that the address in FOSS is also correct and make any changes if necessary, as the Permanent Resident Card Centre (PRCC) relies on the information found in FOSS when generating a PR card.

 

However, if the client does not yet have a permanent address, he/she should be told how and when to send in their permanent address when it becomes available. The client should be counselled to do so within 180 days in order to receive a PR card. If FOSS is being used, the address section should indicate “Address to follow” in the street space and the postal code field must be left blank.

 

Clients may update their address in Canada by one of the following methods:

  • Access the on-line Address Notification tool on the CIC Web site;
  • Complete the form entitled Address Notification – Permanent Resident Card [IMM 5456B] and transmit the form using the fax number indicated; or
  • Contact the Call Centre.

On occasion, at a POE, it may be appropriate for clients to provide the address of a third party (friend, relative, service provider or a paid representative) in Canada in order to facilitate processing and issuance of the PR card following their arrival in Canada, as new immigrants may not have a permanent address. However, where there are clear indications that the initial entry into Canada is only of short duration and the client provided a third party address for the purpose of forwarding the PR card outside of Canada, these cases should be flagged with a Non-Computer Based Entry (NCB) 22 indicating that the client is outside Canada. If the client plans to leave Canada prior to receiving the PR card, the officer should counsel the client with respect to the requirements under A31(3) for a travel document issued at a visa office abroad.

Completion

If using the IMM 5688E the officer must complete the fields below using a black pen. The same fields must also be completed on the IMM 5292B.

  • Last entry at: If the CoPR originated from a visa office overseas, this field must be completed; the officer may use the location of where permanent resident status is granted.
  • Last entry date / Orig. entry date: If the CoPR originated from a visa office overseas, these fields must be completed; the officer may use the date that permanent resident status is granted.
  • Became P.R. at: The officer must write the location of where permanent resident status is granted (either a POE or an inland CIC office).
  • Became P.R. on: The officer must write the date that permanent resident status is granted.
  • Conditions: The client must write his/her initials beside any imposed conditions.
  • Have you ever been charged/convicted of a crime or offence; refused admission to Canada or required to leave Canada?: The client must write ‘yes’ or ‘no’, as well as his/her initials. If the client is a minor, write N/A.
  • Dependent(s) Information: The client must write ‘yes’ or ‘no’, as well as his/her initials. If the answer is yes, the dependent’s information must be added only if they have been included in the application and they have been examined.
  • Signatures: The officer granting permanent resident status, as well as the client (14 years and older), must sign and date all copies of the CoPR. Parents must sign for children under the age of 14.

Counselling

The officer should counsel each new permanent resident on the following matters:

  • the conditions of PR status that have been imposed, how to comply with the conditions and how to apply for the removal of these conditions;
  • the residency obligation;
  • the procedure for obtaining a PR card;
  • the procedure for obtaining a social insurance number;
  • the procedure for applying for provincial health coverage; and
  • settlement assistance, where applicable.

 

Distribution

After permanent resident status is granted to the client, the officer must distribute the CoPR appropriately. If the CoPR is printed on the IMM 5688E, the client copy is given to the client, while the CIC copy must be forwarded to the PR Card Centre at the Case Processing Centre in Sydney (PRCC-Sydney), NS. If the CoPR is printed on the IMM 5292B, it must be distributed as follows:

  • Copy 1, with photograph affixed, is to be sent to the PRCCC-Sydney to be scanned for production of the PR card;
  • Copy 2 must be forwarded to National Headquarters (NHQ), Document Management, to be microfilmed (CIC Records-Microfilm Unit, Jean Edmonds Tower North, 2nd floor, 300 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 1L1); and
  • Copy 3 is given to the client for information purposes.

Copies sent to Sydney should be sent as quickly as possible in order for CPC-PRC to initiate the processing of a PR card. CoPRs must be sent to one of the following addresses, depending on the mode of delivery:

Regular mail

Case Processing Centre – PR Card

P.O. Box 10020

Sydney, NS

B1P 7C1

 

Courier

Case Processing Centre – PR Card

49 Dorchester Street

Sydney, NS

B1P 5Z2

Processing in GCMS

If the CoPR is processed by an inland CIC officer in GCMS, the CoPR must be changed to a status of ‘Confirmed’ in order for the information to be downloaded to FOSS. Although it is possible, this step must not be done in advance, i.e. before a client appears for his or her landing appointment, as the information will be transferred to FOSS prematurely before the client has actually been granted PR status. Entering the information in advance also prevents the information from being downloaded to the National Case Management System, since this system does not record the disposition if the landing date is in the future.

 

Reminder for CIC officers

When issuing the CoPR to applicants, officers are reminded to provide clients with the correct version. If a CoPR is cancelled in order to make changes after it has already been generated, officers must remember to print the new CoPR document for the client. (The valid T number in GCMS must match the T number on the printed CoPR).

 

In addition, if a Certificate of Selection for Québec is required, officers must ensure that it is valid when issuing the CoPR, however, it does not need to be renewed if it is expired at the time of landing.

 

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