A simplified solution for a simple problem: Wrong answer

A simplified solution for a simple problem: Wrong answer

Canadian Immigration News and Views

On September 1st, 2006 Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will begin using the Simplified Application Process (SAP) for most Federal Economic Class applicants (federal skilled workers and business immigrants) whereby only an application form and a fee are required at the time of application.
CIC claims to be implementing the program in an effort to become more client focused. To an extent I suppose this is true. Currently, applicants are required to submit a number of forms and documents essentially to file a completed or perfected application. The idea was, some years ago, that if a perfected application could be presented to the visa officer a decision could be rendered quickly (same day service was even considered).
However, it seems that getting the application before the visa officer is the problem. Current processing times are exceeding 5 years in the top source counties like China, India, Philippines and Pakistan. During that time many things change in the lives of applicants. Some have children, change jobs, change residence, obtain further education, get married, improve their language skills, obtain residence in another country and on and on. In this system, by the time the officer gets a chance to look at the file, the real life situation could be entirely different. Further, if the applicant has been informing the visa post of all these events (like they should be) then this has created further work for the post and taken them away from the work of making decisions.
Under the new process applicants will only submit a form and the fee. Then once the file is ready to be reviewed the applicant will be required to submit the documents other information necessary for the officer to make a decision. This sounds like a good idea, perhaps just as good as the perfected application idea, and we see how well that worked.

CIC is facing an “inventory” (to be read as backlog) of upwards from 500,000 people in the Skilled Worker and Business categories. The SAP will not reduce waiting times and CIC states that this is not one of the goals of the program. It may be suggested that the SAP will in fact increase waiting time and let me tell you why. First, since it is a simple form and fee, it is possible that people will submit applications without any regard to whether they are qualified. There will be “ghost consultants” (illegal consultants giving advice with out being named as representatives and without being members of a regulatory body in Canada) who decide to fill in forms for everyone who wants one. The SAP may become something along the lines of a lottery ticket (and maybe that is the way CIC wants to go). But for now CIC is in fact encouraging people to make applications, without sufficient counseling from recognized authorized representatives and therefore many applicants will put in the form, pay the fee only to find out that they are not qualified.

Second, people will make applications based on what could be. For instance, an applicant may be in their last year of a college program and decide to file now since it takes 5 years to process and by that time the applicant would have completed the education program and may have gotten married and will likely obtain sufficient points. With all these forward looking statements I hope CIC will at least put some sort of disclaimer on the forms with respect to when a person is to meet the requirements.

Further, is CIC doing a good enough job to inform people about when they need to meet the requirements? How to get a proper assessment? What misrepresentation means? Why you should only use authorized representatives? If they are not, could they be implicated in a great misrepresentation that may occur under the SAP?

With the SAP it will be significantly more important that people seek the help of an authorized representative to ensure that they do have proper counseling before they start out on a 5 year journey. A proper assessment, an immigration plan and proper counseling could save a lot of hardship and headache and in some cases may result in a better way to migrate to Canada, but at the very least will result in making a much more informed decision.

People should remember that law requires you to use only authorized representatives when paying for immigration advice and service. To pay for such advice and not claim so put you in the position of misrepresentation and that is a 2 year bar from Canada. Further, not using authorized representatives puts you at risk of being cheated (convinced to file an application when doing so would be fruitless or worse, outright cheated).

Also, just because there is only one form to complete does not mean that there is no need for a skilled and experienced authorized representative. Filling in a form may be simple, but understanding the implications and the road ahead (an immigration plan) and making full assessment of the situation is not.

While the SAP will help save shelf space at the visa posts, there is a serious danger that the programs gets completely flooded with frivolous applications and make things even worse. The more important question that CIC or the government will simply not deal with is, “Why does it take so long to process cases?” To address this question, rather than improve the system, become more efficient and dedicate the appropriate resources the government and CIC have chosen a simplified solution for this simple problem. But, it is the wrong answer. And, I guess until such time as people stop applying to Canada, they may not care to address the proper question adequately.

Have a question? Send them to Berto Volpentesta or to the editor.

Berto Volpentesta of Cannex Immigration Specialists, (416) 398 8882 or (416) 787 0612 or by email at berto@canneximmigration.com or at www.canneximmigration.com.