Immigrating to Canada – Who can assist?

We have been surprised by the amount of people who are thinking of immigrating to Canada from South Africa who are unaware of who can assist them with their application.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada states that only the following are legally allowed to asisst you with your application or on choosing an immigration program for a fee:

• Lawyers and paralegals who are members in good standing of a Canadian provincial or territorial law society (Does not include South African Lawyers or paralegals)
• Notaries who are members in good standing of the Chambre des notaires du Québec and (Does not include South African Notaries)
• Immigration consultants who are members in good standing of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC)

Citizenship and Immigration Canada has outlined the above in order to protect prospective immigrants from immigration fraud.

The authorized individuals have all been through extensive background checks and have to pass various educational courses and examinations in Canadian immigration in order to qualify as a member of one of the approved organizations / bodies. They also need to do professional courses yearly to stay up to speed with the latest Canadian immigration changes. They also need to be Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents.

If an authorized representative does act unprofessionally or break they law in any way when representing you, they will be held accountable by their governing body or the Canadian government.

As a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident the representative can be charged under the Canadian Criminal Code or Immigration and Refugee Protection Act / Regulations depending on what they have done. The reason it is so important that all authorized representatives be a Canadian Citizen / Permanent Residents are so that they can be held accountable for their actions.

Many illegal consultants and representatives operate outside of Canada, as they cannot be touched by Canadian law if operating abroad. The individuals themselves can only be charged if they physically enter Canada. This is why so many illegal operations exist in South Africa claiming to be able to assist with immigration to Canada. 

There are many ways to protect yourself from becoming a victim of fraud. Below is a list of questions you should ask yourself before paying anyone to assist you with a Canadian immigration application:

• Are they considered to be an authorized representative by Citizenship and Immigration Canada?
• Are they in good standing with their governing body or are they suspended?
• Have I even been able to speak directly to the authorized representative or have I only been given their name as proof the company is authorized to assist?
• Has a sales person contacted me or has the actual representative?
• Are they asking me to pay a large sum of money to open a full application before actually seeing / speaking to the authorized representative?
• Are they harassing me for an upfront payment daily?
• Are they giving me a strange vibe?
• Do they have a good reputation on the Internet, or do they have poor reviews?
• Have they ever changed their name?
• Does their website show their registration logo?

After selecting someone to assist you, the following should be kept in mind to ensure you are protected:

• Ensure you have a Retainer Agreement in place that clearly outlines the services being provided to you, what fees you are expected to pay and when, when the representative is allowed to pay themselves from the client account, complaint resolution processes and refund policies
• Ask if your money will be held in a Client Account
• Ensure you have all of their contact details and have been able to communicate with them directly on those specific contacts
• Ensure they have explained all costs to you, not just their professional fees (language tests, government fees, etc)

Remember, having a VAT number and business registration number in South Africa does not mean they are a reputable business or allowed to handle immigration application to Canada. Ensure they have the proper designation.

Recently we have received many complaints about an immigration business operating out of the Cape Town CPD, which offers assistance with immigration to Canada. While we cannot name the company for liability issues, we can give you a few hints on what to watch out for:

• You never speak to the designated representative
• You are assigned a Case Manager
• High rotation of staff (your case manager keeps changing)
• High pressure sales staff
• No individualized Retainer Agreement
• They will not specify what they will do for your specifically for the fee charged – we have reports that they did nothing to date and had the client complete their own application profile under Express Entry
• They “promise you a job offer” – no one can guarantee you a job offer as the authorization rest with the Canadian Government as most employer require authorization before hiring a foreign national
• Wanting payment over the phone for a full application when you have not been assessed by an authorized individual

We at Canada Abroad want to ensure that anyone who is thinking of immigrating is fully informed of what to watch out for when selecting a representative.

Also, you do not have to have a representative. If you feel you have the time and resources to complete the application yourself then by all means do it. We encourage everyone to do what will work for them. If you do not have the time, or you have researched the process and find it too confusing or daunting then we can definitely assist you.

We offer a variety of packages to suit different needs and budgets. Our main goal is ensuring all of our clients are happy, and reach their end goal of immigrating to Canada.