Nova Scotia Announces New Immigration Stream – No Job Offer Needed

Lighthouse of Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Province of Nova Scotia has created a new immigration option for aspiring permanent residents called the Regional Labour Market Demand Stream. This stream, which is administered under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP), is particularly exciting because individuals do not need a job offer in Canada to apply.

The Regional Labour Market Demand Stream was announced in early March, and began considering applications on March 6, 2014. Through this stream, Nova Scotia immigration officials are able to select individuals with skills and experience that are in-demand in the province.

Eligibility Requirements for the Regional Labour Market Demand Stream

In order to be eligible for this stream, applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Be between the ages of 21 and 55;
• Meet minimum language proficiency requirements;
• Have at least two years of continuous full-time work experience within the past five years in an eligible occupation*;
• Intend to work in an eligible occupation;
• Be legally residing in current country of residence;
• Have sufficient funds for settlement in Nova Scotia;
• Have at least a high school level of education and a degree, diploma, or certificate from a post-secondary institution;
• Completed post-secondary program must be at least one year in length
• Demonstrate intent to live in Nova Scotia and ability to become economically established in the province;
• Complete an Employment Settlement Plan; and
• Attend an interview, if required.

*The NSNP has listed 43 eligible occupations. The list includes, but is not limited to, occupations in the following fields: engineering, health services (including nursing), skilled trades, and food service.

The following occupations are currently designated as in-demand and thus eligible for this program:

• Managers in Health Care
• Retail and wholesale trade managers
• Restaurant and Food Service Managers
• Financial Auditors and Accountants
• Other Financial Officers
• Civil Engineers
• Mechanical Engineers
• Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Computer Engineers (Except Software Engineers and Designers)
• Information Systems Analysts and Consultants
• Database Analysts and Data Administrators
• Software Engineers and Designers
• Computer Programmers and Interactive Media Developers
• Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians
• Electrical and Electronics Engineering Technologists and Technicians
• Information systems testing technicians
• Specialist Physicians
• General Practitioners and Family Physicians
• Dentists
• Pharmacists
• Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists
• Physiotherapists
• Occupational Therapists
• Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
• Medical Laboratory Technologists
• Respiratory Therapists, Clinical Perfusionists and Cardiopulmonary Technologists
• Medical Radiation Technologists
• Medical Sonographers
• Licensed Practical Nurses
• Other technical occupations in therapy and assessment
• Psychologists
• Early Childhood Educators and Assistants
• Retail Trade Supervisors
• Chefs
• Cooks
• Contractors and supervisors, machining, metal forming, shaping and erecting trades and related occupations
• Machinists and Machining and Tooling Inspectors
• Industrial Electricians
• Welders and related machine operator
• Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics
• Automotive service technicians, truck and bus mechanics and mechanical repairers
• Crane Operators
• Supervisors, Other Mechanical and Metal Products Manufacturing

The Settlement Plan

For this stream, applicants must complete an Employment Settlement Plan, which is provided by the NSNP. The settlement plan requires applicants to answer questions on the following topics:

• Intended occupation in Nova Scotia;
• Reasons for choosing Nova Scotia; and
• Where they wish to settle and why.

By answering these questions, applicants demonstrate their desire to live in Nova Scotia as well as their readiness to quickly settle into their new homes.

The Application Process

Like other Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs), obtaining a permanent resident visa through the NSNP is a two-step process.

First, applicants must apply to the NSNP for provincial approval. For the Regional Labour Market Demand Stream, the NSNP has stated that processing times may be up to one month or more depending on the volume of applications received and the time required to assess the application documents. Nomination under the NSNP is solely at the discretion of the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration. Desirable applicants are then selected by the province and issued a Provincial Nomination Certificate. The overall application, including the Provincial Nomination Certificate, must then be approved by the Federal government.

In the second step of the process, the Federal government assesses an applicant’s admissibility with respect to medical and security/criminality concerns. The final authority rests with the Federal government, who is ultimately responsible for granting Canadian permanent resident status.

What This Means for Applicants

The Regional Labour Market Demand Stream is a chance for individuals to immigrate to one of Canada’s most economically and culturally dynamic provinces.

According to Attorney David Cohen, many prospective immigrants possess valuable skills and experience that are needed in Canada. However, due to the gradual restriction of some immigration programs, many have not yet been successful in obtaining Canadian Permanent Residency.

“In recent years, many if not most new Canadian immigration programs require that individuals first obtain a job offer in Canada in order to be eligible to apply,” said Attorney David Cohen. “The fact that this new stream does not require a job offer is likely to generate large amounts of interest.”

At the moment there is no deadline for submission of applications. However, the NSNP notes that this can change at any time.

“This new program is a wonderful opportunity for individuals to immigrate to one of Canada’s most beautiful provinces,” said Attorney Cohen. “However, such opportunities do not last forever. Now is the time for eligible applicants to seize the moment and have a chance to realize their immigration goals.”

To find out if you are eligible for the NSNP, or any of over 60 Canadian immigration programs, please fill out a free online assessment today.

Source: http://www.cicnews.com/2014/03/nova-scotia-announces-immigration-stream-job-offer-needed-033285.html

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Quebec Announces New Caps for Immigration Programs

English: Flag of . Color converted to RGB from the EPS file from the Government of Quebec which you'd have to assume is as authoritative as you can get. Français : Drapeau du Québec. Couleurs converties en RGB à partir du fichier EPS du Gouvernement du Québec. Русский: Флаг Квебека (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Government of Quebec has announced new intake caps for its skilled worker, investor, entrepreneur and self employed immigration programs. By enforcing strict limits on application acceptance, Quebec is ensuring that it will receive a manageable load of applications this year. It will also reward proactive individuals who prepare and submit applications as soon as possible, before caps close.

The new intake caps are as follows:

Skilled Workers – Between April 1, 2014 and March 31, 2015, a maximum of 6,500 applications will be accepted for review by the Quebec Skilled Worker (QSW) program.

Investors – Between September 8th and 19th, 2014, a maximum of 1,750 applications will be accepted for review by the Quebec Investor Program. No more than 1,200 applications will be accepted from any one country. There is no cap for investors who speak at least a high-intermediate level of French.

Entrepreneurs and Self-Employed Persons – The Government of Quebec will accept a maximum of 500 applications from entrepreneurs and self-employed persons.

What This Means for Skilled Workers

Applicants to the QSW program will see the greatest change in application intake. The upcoming year’s cap of 6,500 is less than half than the 20,000 application limit that was instituted this past year.

In the past ten months, over 10,000 applications were accepted for review by the QSW program. If interest in the program continues to grow, it means that in the coming months applicants will have to work fast to prepare their applications before the cap fills.

“The Province of Quebec has always been a popular destination for immigrants, and the QSW program has been its most popular immigration program,” said Attorney David Cohen. “In the past, there were relatively few restrictions in terms of how many applications would be accepted for review. The new cap means that prospective applicants must compete against the clock and against each other to make sure they secure a place in the queue.”

What This Means for Investors

The cap placed on the Quebec Investor Program is the same as last year. Last year, despite accepting just 1,750 new applications within a limited timeframe, the ever-popular program received applications from over 5,000 investors.

“The Quebec government will be receiving investor applications for just two weeks this fall,” said Attorney David Cohen. “It goes without saying that, with such a short timeframe for submission, only those individuals who are completely prepared in advance will be successful. Since preparing an investor file can be rather complicated, I encourage interested individuals to begin as soon as possible.”

At present, no additional announcements have been made about Quebec programs moving forward. One thing that can be sure, however, is that Quebec will continue to be a popular destination for immigrants from around the world.

To find out if you are eligible for a Quebec immigration program, or one of over 60 Canadian immigration programs, please fill out a free online assessment today.

Source: http://www.cicnews.com/2014/04/quebec-announces-caps-immigration-programs-043324.html

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Immigration Processing Times Appear to be Decreasing

The logo of the Government of Canada. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Over the past few years, the Government of Canada has expressed its intention to bring immigration processing times down to approximately 12 months or less. Recently, it appears as though the government has begun to deliver on its promises.

According to Attorney David Cohen, of the Canadian immigration law firm Campbell Cohen, some clients who applied to the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) program in summer 2013 are now receiving passport requests. A passport request is the final step in the process of obtaining Canadian Permanent Residency.

“It is exciting to see that processing times are beginning to decrease to under a year,” said Attorney Cohen. “Shortening the timeframe for application processing means that Canada gets the workers it needs in a timely fashion, and applicants are assessed within a reasonable timeframe that allows them to plan for their futures.”

The Politics of Processing Times

In years past, the government was facing a large backlog of applications for a number of programs, most notably the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP). These backlogs, along with a number of other factors, resulted in increasing wait times for applicants.

Long wait times presented a problem for both Canada and the applicants waiting to be assessed. Without the ability to quickly issue permanent residence to desirable candidates, Canada faced the possibility of becoming less competitive in the global contest for the best immigrants. Applicants, on the other hand, were made to wait in a state of uncertainty for long periods of time.

Solving the problem required program reforms on many levels. These reforms included the controversial decision to do away with some backlogged applications, the consolidation of some processing centers into the newly created Ottawa Case Processing Center, and the creation of new programs with faster processing times, such as the Canadian Experience Class.

What This Means for Applicants

According to Attorney Cohen, a reduction of processing times can mean only good news for applicants.

“In short, the faster an application is processed, the faster that applicant will see their immigration goals materialize,” said Attorney Cohen. “Hopefully, the promising timelines that my firm has been experiencing with the Federal Skilled Worker Program will continue, and expand to other immigration programs in the near future.”

Speedy processing times are optimal for a number of reasons. For example, immigration programs and program requirements can change regularly. A processing time of one year or less helps to ensure that applicants who submit under a certain set of regulations will be assessed before those regulations change. In addition, shorter and more predictable immigration timelines allow applicants to more effectively plan for their future settlement in Canada, for instance by contacting employers and looking for housing.

The Canadian government has made significant investments of time and money to bring down processing times. As recent examples from the FSWP have shown, the investments will likely pay off for both Canada and future immigrants.

To find out if you are eligible to apply to any of over 60 Canadian immigration programs, please fill out a free online assessment today. 

Source: http://www.cicnews.com/2014/04/immigration-processing-times-decreasing-043326.html

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Canada Immigration Without Job Offer under Nova Scotia Nominee Program

Welcome to Bienvenue à Nova Scotia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Canadian province of Nova Scotia has introduced Regional Market Stream under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program for permanent residence without requiring a job offer from an employer in Canada. The program is intended for those foreign skilled professionals who can meet provincial labour market and economic needs and intend to settle in Nova Scotia. The Nominee along with spouse and dependents can be approved by the province to become permanent residents of Canada after approval by Citizenship and Immigration Canada.  It is a two step application process. First the foreign skilled professional applies for Nova Scotia Nominee Program and gets nominated for the program. The applicant then applies to Citizenship and Immigration Canada to get the final approval to immigrate to Canada. The province is now accepting the application under this new immigration stream.

Eligibility Criteria

• You must be between the ages of 21 and 55 years
• You have achieved a minimum language standard on the Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5
• You have required amount of funds to settle in Nova Scotia
• You occupation must be among National Occupational Classifications (NOC) A, B or O and must be in good demand
• You must have at least 2 years of continuous full time work experience within the last 5 years in the field related to your intended profession in Nova Scotia
• You must have degree, diploma or certificate from recognized post-secondary educational institution.
• You have intentions to settle in Nova Scotia permanently
• You have completed the Employment and Settlement Plan
• You have passport or travel document of the country where you are residing legally.

Application Process:

Eligible foreign skilled professionals apply for nomination by the Nova Scotia Immigration for the Regional Labour Market Demand Stream. Nova Scotia immigration department will assess the application to check if the applicant fulfills all the requirements or the program and if the applicant will be able establish economically in Nova Scotia. The province will nominate the applicant for permanent residence in the province.

Applicants who are successfully nominated under the Regional Labour Market Demand Stream will then apply to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada for permanent residence. Citizenship and Immigration Canada will assess the application to check if the applicant meets the admissibility requirements such as medical and security. The final decision to approve the application for permanent residence is made by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. If the application is approved, applicant can then come to Canada along with spouse and dependents as permanent resident.

Nexus Canada to discuss if you are eligible to apply under the Nova Scotia Nominee Program under the Regional Labour Market Demand Stream.

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Ontario proposes a Québec style Provincial Nominee Program

Le château Frontenac –Vieux-Québec / Old Quebec, ville de Québec / Quebec city(Québec, Canada) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Written By: Amy Whittam

According to Ontario Immigration Minister Michael Coteau, Ontario wants what Québec has – a special agreement with the Government of Canada on immigration.  Like Québec, Ontario too would like more power to choose its own immigrants and to set its own targets for attracting skilled workers to the province.

This past month the Ontario government introduced legislation proposing an expansion of the Provincial Nominee Program. The program would grow from 1,300 economic immigrants to 5,000 accepted per year. Similar to Québec, under this new legislation Ontario would have the discretion to develop its own specific selection strategy.

Québec currently has its own set criteria for choosing new immigrants who will adapt well to life in Quebec. A skilled worker first applies to the Québec Government for a Certificat de Sélection du Québec (CSQ) and then later can apply to Citizenship and Immigration Canada programs to gain Permanent Residency.

Notwithstanding the very different historical relationship Québec and Ontario have vis-à-vis the Canadian Government, Ontario also has cause to seek a province-specific approach to immigration. Ontario is looking to grow its immigration program beyond the existing 100,000 new residents per year. Ontario also seeks to court a far grater number of skilled professionals in fields like Information Technology, which are in high demand in the province.  Annual caps to the Federal Skilled Worker Program introduced earlier this year by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, may obstruct the Province’s designs on attracting more skilled workers and their families to Ontario.

The Provincial Nominee Program allows employers to fill skilled positions when there is a shortage of qualified candidates to be found within Ontario.  Under the proposed new legislation, new immigrants would apply first to an expanded Ontario Provincial Nominee Program. The role of Citizenship and Immigration Canada would then be to clear these applicants on the basis of security and medical admissibility.

 source: http://www.bellissimolawgroup.com/2014/03/ontario-proposes-a-quebec-style-provincial-nominee-program.html

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Choose the right representative, don’t be a victim of immigration fraud

Immigration Debate at The Weissberg Forum For Discourse (Photo credit: MDGovpics)

Posted by: Claudia Cheung

March is Fraud Prevention Month, and Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander is encouraging newcomers to seek authorized immigration representatives to avoid being a victim of fraud. “Fraud is a very serious issue in our immigration system. Our government is taking action to combat fraud by introducing specific measures in the Strengthening Citizenship Act that will address misrepresentation in the citizenship system.”

Newcomers should be aware that under Canadian law, only authorized immigration representatives are allowed to charge a fee to assist an individual to apply for a Canadian visa. Hiring an unauthorized representative weaken Canada’s immigration system, cost taxpayers money, and can often lead to the refusal of the application. On the other hand, authorized immigration representatives are vastly trained and effectively regulated and will provide newcomers with accurate advice and the best service.

Authorized immigration representatives include:

-       Lawyers and paralegals who are members in good standing of a Canadian provincial or territorial law society;

-       Notaries who are members in good standing of the Chambre des notaires du Québec; and

-       Immigration consultants who are members in good standing of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council.

Make the right decision, don’t be a victim of immigration fraud

Source: http://www.bellissimolawgroup.com/2014/03/choose-the-right-representative-dont-be-a-victim-of-immigration-fraud.html

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A Summary of Recent Changes to Canadian Immigration

Happy Canada Day (Photo credit: Anirudh Koul)

Written By Amy Whittam

In recent months Citizenship and Immigration Canada has introduced a number of regulatory changes to theImmigration and Refugee Protection Act.  Many of these changes have already come into effect this year. Below is a summary of how several popular immigration programs have been affected. To learn more, contact us to find out how these changes affect you!

On January 2, 2014 the Parent and Grandparent Programreopened after a 2 year hiatus.  Changes to the program include an annual cap of 5,000 applications which will be considered each year.  On February 3, 2014 the Minister announced that the Parent and Grandparent Program had reached its cap for 2014.  The program will reopen to new applications in January of 2015. An available alternative is the Super Visa.

Changes to the Temporary Resident Visa Program are effective as of February 6, 2014. Visitors who require a visa to enter Canada will now automatically be considered for a multiple-entry visa. This visa allows a temporary resident to leave and re-enter Canada for 6 months at a time over a period of up to 10 years.  The changes apply to any new temporary resident visa application including visitor’s visas, work permits and study permits.

On February 12, 2014, new changes were announced to Study Permits for International Students.  Starting June 1, 2014 visitors to Canada will be able to apply for a study permit from within Canada. Study permits will only be issued to international students enrolled at designated educational institutions.  There will be a grace period of up to 3 years for International students enrolled at non-designated schools to complete their programs.  There is to be increased access to part-time work permits for students pursuing studies in Canada. An international student will be able to remain in Canada for only 90 days after their studies are completed, unless the student has applied for a separate work permit or temporary resident visa.

Changes to the Canadian Experience Class now involve an annual cap of 12,000 applications to be considered from November 9, 2013 to October 31, 2014. Occupation types will also be subject to sub-caps limiting certain skilled occupations to only 200 applications per year. There are 6 occupation types that are no longer eligible to apply to the CEC under the changes.

Changes to the Federal Skilled Worker Program affect applications submitted anytime between May 4, 2013 and April 30, 2014.  To be eligible an applicant must meet the minimum language, education, and financial requirements. There is a cap of 5,000 applications per year. Up to 1,000 applications will be considered in the PhD stream. For the other 24 occupation types there is now a sub-cap of 300 applications each.  Many of these of these categories have already reached their annual quota, and others are filling up quickly!  An applicant with a valid job offer and Labour Market Opinion can be considered outside of this cap system.

Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program is under on-going review with the most recent changes announced on February 11, 2014. There will be an increased focus on Labour Market Opinion that limits the use of Temporary Foreign Workers in “high unemployment regions”. Measures to help identify vulnerable workers have been introduced, as well as measures to better enforce employer compliance to the terms of the program.

The Federal Immigrant Investor Program and the Federal Entrepreneur Program are to be terminated as a part of the Economic Action Plan of 2014. These changes were announced on February 11, 2014. The large backlog of existing applications for these two programs will also be eliminated retroactively.

The possible introduction of an Expression of Interest based system was announced in January 2014. This would work as a second stage in the approval process for the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades, Canadian Experience Class, Business Class, and the Provincial Nominee Program. The first stage is eligibility; the second stage is availability of interested employers. The Expression of Interest system is set to commence in January 2015.

Mario D. Bellissimo has commented extensively on these and other changes in his role as Chair of the National Immigration Section of the Canadian Bar Association. To find out more about these recent changes and how they affect you, contact us today!

Source: http://www.bellissimolawgroup.com/2014/03/a-summary-of-recent-changes-to-canadian-immigration.html

Changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

Interior of one of the Eaton's factories, Eaton's department store, Toronto, Canada (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Written By: Diandra Farquharson

On February 11, 2014 the Government announced its changes to the Federal Budget. Among these changes were new limits that will be placed on the TFWP (Temporary Foreign Worker Program). The government plans to limit the use of Temporary Foreign Workers in “high-unemployment regions”.

The government proposed funneling $11 million dollars over two years, and $3.5 million per year ongoing to “strengthen the Labour Market Opinion (LMO) process to ensure Canadians are given the first chance at available jobs.”

Mario D. Bellissimo asked an important question: “how do you define unemployment by category and by region?”  If the Government limits the program’s use in places where there is a high unemployment rate, it could leave businesses in those regions without a practical way to recruit skilled workers in a reasonable time frame.

Canadian businesses often turn to the TFWP to acquire workers with science and technology skills who may not be present in high-employment regions.  Mario D. Bellissimo also stated that “placing limits on the program could have a lot of unintended consequences if the changes are too broadly drawn”.

Although, the budget did not provide comprehensive particulars; it did however promise to amend the program in several other ways including but not limited to:

• Ways to identify vulnerable workers;
• Improving processing times for certain applications;
• Ensuring better employer compliance to government terms for the program; and
• Making changes to the stream of applicants who are exempt from the Employment and Social Development Canada’s Labour Market Opinion process.

The government also plans to impose a $275 user fee per position to ensure full cost of recovery under the LMO process.  They plan to revisit the rules for companies with which Canada has a free-trade agreement.  The North American free trade agreement contains a clause providing for intra-company transfers.  This makes it difficult to make any changes without violating the terms of the agreement.

The changes to the TFWP outside of the LMO process are still being discussed.

To read the full article featuring Mario D. Bellissimo’s comments pleaseclick here.

Source: http://www.bellissimolawgroup.com/2014/02/changes-to-the-temporary-foreign-worker-program-2.html

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