When the 2010 Winter Olympic Games start in Vancouver on Feb. 12, they not only will draw athletes from across the globe but legions of citizens from the USA all of whom will need to present newly required forms of identification to cross the border. In anticipation of that, and in the face of criticism [...] [...more]
Temporary residents seeking work permits or an extension of their visit in Canada can now apply online, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today. “Extending our online services to more temporary residents will significantly facilitate the application process by providing faster, more accessible and efficient services,” said Minister Kenney. Forms submitted by mail often need [...] [...more]
Earlier this month, the Ontario Court of Appeal ordered governments to stop automatically charging individuals, who have sponsored relatives to come to Canada as permanent residents, for social assistance debt sustained by those relatives. Under the Family Class Sponsorship program, a Canadian citizen or permanent resident can sponsor close family members to become Canadian permanent residents, [...] [...more]
Canada will keep its 2010 permanent resident visa quota at current levels of 240,000 to 265,000, but will drastically cut immigrant visa quotas by 3,000. A spokesman for Immigration and Citizenship Canada said the lower number of immigrant visa quotas is based on the 18 months it takes to process the application of a refugee status [...] [...more]
Canadian immigration officials in foreign countries have often refused visitor visas to people wanting to come to Canada. The arbitrary process has often resulted in many genuine visitors being denied entry. Cases, where relatives who intend to come to Canada for weddings, funerals or religious meetings have come to light. Often, unsuccessful applicants have been left [...] [...more]
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper is in Guadalajara, Mexico, meeting with President of the United States Barack Obama and Mexican President Felipe Calderon in the annual North American Leaders Summit. A major issue the leaders are discussing this year is Canada’s recent decision to impose Temporary Resident Visas on Mexican nationals. In July, Citizenship, Immigration and [...] [...more]
The Maytree Foundation, a privately-funded Canadian charitable foundation, has released a Canadian immigration study which found that English language proficiency is the most important factor for an emigrant to Canada to successfully integrate into the Canadian labour market. The author of the report is Naomi Alboim, Maytree Senior Fellow, and Adjunct Professor and Co-Chair, Policy Forum [...] [...more]
The Canadian government introduced a new program that will facilitate travel through Canadian airports yesterday. Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Canada Minister Jason Kenney, Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan and International Trade and the Pacific Gateway Minister Stockwell Day announced the Transit Without Visa program, which will allow certain international travelers en route to the [...] [...more]
Canada will stay the course on immigration in 2009, welcoming between 240,000 and 265,000 new permanent residents, Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, has announced. “While countries such as the United Kingdom and Australia are talking about taking fewer immigrants, our planned numbers for 2009 are on par with last year and are among [...] [...more]
Citizenship and Immigration Canada recently removed the passport visa requirement for Czech nationals visiting Canada. This meant that such individuals became eligible to seek admission at a Canadian port of entry without first seeking a passport visa at a Canadian visa office. This expedited the ability of tourists and business persons to travel to Canada. A [...] [...more]
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