By Tobi Cohen

OTTAWA — The federal government is introducing a five-year sponsorship bar to crack down on bogus marriages of convenience.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced Friday that starting immediately, spouses will have to wait five years from the day they are granted permanent residence status in Canada before they can sponsor a new spouse.

The move is meant to prevent people from fraudulently marrying Canadians for the purposes of immigration only to leave them and then sponsor a new partner while their Canadian spouse is still financially responsible for them for three years.

“I held town hall meetings across the country to hear from victims of marriage fraud,” said Kenney, who made the announcement in Brampton, Ont., just west of Toronto.

“In addition to the heartbreak and pain that came from being lied to and deceived, these people were angry. They felt they had been used as a way to get to Canada. We’re taking action because immigration to Canada should not be built upon deceit.”

The move comes less than two years after the Conservatives promised to tackle marriage fraud. In the fall of 2010, the government held online consultations to gather public opinion and ideas on how to address the issue.

The idea of a five-year sponsorship bar was proposed in the Canada Gazette last April and was followed by a 30-day public comment period.

It also comes just weeks after outspoken Ottawa victim Lainie Towell’s ex-husband was, after a three-year fight, finally deported to his native Guinea after walking out on her just three weeks after they exchanged vows.

The measure officially came into force on Friday and is just one of several actions the government is considering.

Public consultations will begin in the coming weeks on a proposed conditional permanent-residence provision that would deter people in newer relationships from attempting to gain quick entry to Canada when they have no plans to remain with their sponsoring partner.

According to the proposal first published in the Canada Gazette last spring, the sponsored partner in a marriage or common-law relationship of fewer than two years would be subject to a conditional two-year period of permanent residence.

The measure would bring Canada in line with other countries, such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, which have similar policies.

Minister Kenney Introduces Sponsorship Restriction to Address Marriage Fraud

TORONTO, ONTARIO, Mar 02, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- The Government of Canada has put in place a bar on sponsorship in an ongoing effort to deter people from using a marriage of convenience to come to Canada, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today.

Regulatory changes now in force mean sponsored spouses or partners will have to wait five years from the day they are granted permanent residence status in Canada to sponsor a new spouse or partner. Until now, a sponsored spouse or partner arriving in Canada as a permanent resident could leave their sponsor and sponsor another spouse or partner themselves, while their original sponsor was still financially responsible for them for up to three years.

"I held town hall meetings across the country to hear from victims of marriage fraud," said Minister Kenney. "In addition to the heartbreak and pain that came from being lied to and deceived, these people were angry. They felt they had been used as a way to get to Canada. We're taking action because immigration to Canada should not be built upon deceit."

Minister Kenney was joined by representatives of Canadians Against Immigration Fraud (CAIF) at today's announcement.

"We welcome the steps taken by the Honourable Jason Kenney to stop marriage fraud," said Sam S. Benet, President of CAIF. "These measures will definitely protect the integrity of our immigration system."

Spousal sponsorship is open to abuse when a person enters into a relationship - such as a marriage or a common law partnership - in order to circumvent Canada's immigration law. Concerned with the problem, the Minister held online consultations in the fall of 2010 to gather public opinion and ideas on how to best address marriage fraud.

"Many of the people who took part in the consultations made it abundantly clear that marriage fraud poses a significant threat to our immigration system," added Minister Kenney. "Our government has listened to the victims of marriage fraud and all Canadians, and acted to crack down on those who engage in fraud and abuse Canadians' generosity and our immigration system."

Barring such sponsorships is consistent with similar restrictions imposed by Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

The proposal for a five-year sponsorship bar was prepublished in the Canada Gazette on April 2, 2011, and was open for a 30-day public comment period. The changes coming into force today, March 2, are posted on Citizenship and Immigration Canada's website and will be published in Part II of the Canada Gazette on March 14, 2012.

To show it is serious about cracking down on marriage fraud, CIC is taking a number of steps to deter it. For example, in addition to the sponsorship bar, further public consultations are also expected to begin in the coming weeks on a proposed conditional permanent residence measure. A Notice of Intent proposing the development of this conditional measure was published in the Canada Gazette on March 26, 2011. The measure aims to deter people in newer relationships from using their relationship to gain quick entry to Canada as permanent residents when they have no intention of staying with their sponsor.

In addition, legislation to crack down on crooked consultants came into force in June 2011 and last spring, CIC launched an anti-fraud campaign, which will be relaunched this month. This includes a short video warning people not to be duped into committing marriage fraud. The video directs people to a special link on the CIC website ( www.cic.gc.ca/antifraud ) to find out how to immigrate to Canada the right way.

A photograph of Minister Kenney will be available later today at www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/media/photos/high-res/index.asp .

Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/CitImmCanada .

Building a stronger Canada: Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) strengthens Canada's economic, social and cultural prosperity, helping ensure Canadian safety and security while managing one of the largest and most generous immigration programs in the world.

        
        Contacts:
        Citizenship and Immigration Canada
        Minister's Office
        Candice Malcolm
        613-954-1064
        
        Citizenship and Immigration Canada
        Communications Branch
        Media Relations
        613-952-1650
        CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca
        
        
        

SOURCE: Citizenship and Immigration Canada

Ontario Developing 'First-ever' Immigration Strategy

To help build a stronger economy, Ontario will develop its first-ever immigration strategy.

A new expert roundtable, led by Julia Deans, will help develop the strategy and examine ways that immigration can best support Ontario's economic development and help new Ontarians find jobs.

Ontario remains the number one destination for newcomers to Canada yet it is the only province currently without an immigration agreement with the federal government. The new provincial immigration strategy will help to inform and shape discussions with the federal government towards an agreement.

Skilled new Ontarians are fundamental to our economic future. That's why the McGuinty government is calling on the federal government to share responsibility for immigration so that Ontario and Canada can continue to grow stronger together.

QUICK FACTS

 

• Ontario receives more immigrants than all the Western provinces, all the Atlantic provinces and the three territories combined.
• Newcomers make up 30 per cent of Ontario's labour force.
• In 2001, the Federal Skilled Workers Program accounted for 77 per cent of economic landings to Canada. By 2010, that number had fallen to 46 per cent. More than 60 per cent of these newcomers have historically landed in Ontario.
• The Federal Skilled Workers Program has a current backlog of over 300,000 applicants - many of whom want to come to Ontario.
• The roundtable will consist of business people, employers, academics and other experts within the field of immigration and labour market needs.
• The roundtable will provide its recommendations to the government in summer 2012.

Ottawa to tighten spousal immigration sponsorship rules

CTVNews.ca Staff

Date: Friday Mar. 2, 2012 3:23 PM ET

In a move intended to crack down on bogus marriages, Ottawa has increased the length of time that a sponsored immigrant can turn around and sponsor a new partner.

The new rules take effect immediately and are meant to prevent people from fraudulently marrying Canadians to get into the country, only to turn around and leave that sponsor to bring in another spouse.

Canadians who sponsor immigrants are financially responsible for them for three years. Under the new rules, a spouse must wait five years from the day they are granted permanent residence status in Canada before they can sponsor a new spouse.

"I held town hall meetings across the country to hear from victims of marriage fraud," said Citizen and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney in a statement. The minister made the announcement Friday in Brampton, Ont.

"In addition to the heartbreak and pain that came from being lied to and deceived, these people were angry. They felt they had been used as a way to get to Canada. We're taking action because immigration to Canada should not be built upon deceit."

The minister was not immediately available for a comment.

The rule changes are in line with United States, Australia and the United Kingdom which have waiting periods of two to three years before a sponsored spouse could be come a permanent resident of Canada.

Kenney has long promised to tackle marriage fraud. Two years ago, Ottawa held online consultations to solicit public opinion on the issue.

The new measures come just weeks after Ottawa resident Lainie Towell's ex-husband was deported to his native Guinea. Towell's husband left her nearly one year after they exchanged vows in Guinea and four weeks after he arrived in Canada as Towell's sponsored spouse.

Read more: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Politics/20120302/spousal-sponsorship-rule-changes-120302/#ixzz1o0Uk6700

A new immigration point system for Canada starts in 2012

A revised points-based selection grid will be introduced to favour young immigrants with strong language skills, says federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenney.

Prospective immigrants in licensed professions will need to be pre-assessed to ensure they are likely to get certification in Canada before their applications are processed, Kenney said in Toronto at the annual gathering of Metropolis, an immigration research network that is about to lose its federal funding.

Currently, immigration applicants can skirt the mandatory language requirement by entering through the Provincial Nominee Program, which allows provinces to select immigrants with job offers from local employers.

Under the new grid, to be introduced by the end of the year, Kenney said provincial nominees will face a higher bar as well, because research has shown that language proficiency enhances social and economic integration in the long run.

“We must make better choices. We must select immigrants who have the skills and traits we know will lead to their success, and qualifications that are already recognized in Canada, or can be recognized in a short time,” he said.

While the federal government does not plan to require spouses of applicants in the federal skilled worker program to undergo language tests, Kenney said they will be awarded more points if their spouses are proficient in English or French.

Calling the revised system “more flexible and intelligent,” Kenney said a welder with a job offer in Prince George would not face the same expectations with regard to language skills as someone expecting to work as a physician.

Plans are also underway to change the federal immigration programs for entrepreneurs and investors, though Kenney gave few details.

“In the United States, half of the top 50 venture-capital backed companies are founded by immigrants. We do not nearly do as well in Canada. We must do a better job attracting entrepreneurs and investors to Canada,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kenney said Canada will continue to offer protection to refugees and the family reunification program.

“I strongly believe that economic integration is the best path to social integration,” he said. If new Canadians can maximize their contribution to the labour market, social integration will quickly follow.”

Torstar News Service