The Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association (CILA) has had an incredibly exciting and jam-packed last few months of 2025. From hosting our first ever conference, to our insightful continuing legal education (CLE) sessions, advocacy, and many media spotlights, we’re so proud to get to end off this year looking back at some truly meaningful work. And we cannot wait to let you know what we have in store for 2026!
🚀 Membership Growth
We’re thrilled to announce that CILA’s membership has now surpassed 550 lawyers and law students across Canada. Our continued growth reflects the strength of our community and the rising importance of independent, member-driven voices in shaping Canadian immigration policy and practice.
👉 Reminder: CILA membership is completely free for law students and remains highly affordable for practicing lawyers. If you know someone who might benefit, encourage them to join here.
🌇Fall & Winter Highlights – Events & CLEs
CILA Conference 2025
On October 28th, we welcomed 250+ attendees and speakers to our first ever conference. Hosted at The Quay in beautiful downtown Toronto, we saw a full day of CLE-accredited programming, engaging panel discussions, keynotes from high-level officials, and unmatched networking opportunities – including breakfast, lunch, and a closing cocktail reception.
A huge thank you to all of our incredible sponsors for their support, and to all attendees who made the day such a success.
CLEs
CILA continued to offer thought-provoking and practical CLEs this fall and winter. Thank you to all our speakers and participants for making these recent sessions such a success:
- August 13: Tax Implications and Considerations for Immigrants
- September 10: New European Rules (ETIAS)
- October 22: PNP Programs Compared: Western Canada
- December 9: Refugee Protection Division (RPD) Credibility Assessment & Document Evaluation
🎥 Missed one? Recordings are available for purchase here.
📆 Upcoming CLEs and CILA Conference 2026
Mark your calendars for our upcoming exciting events:
- January 28: Be Your Own Boss: Panel discussion on the decision to fly solo and run your own immigration law firm
- October 5: The CILA Conference 2026 is returning to downtown Toronto. Tickets are already on sale. Click here to register!
👉 Full details and registration: CILA Events
⚖️ Advocacy
CILA’s committees have been actively reviewing legislation, preparing submissions, and engaging with government processes. In addition, CILA has launched legal action to strengthen protections for access to legal counsel.
Access to Legal Counsel
CILA has commenced legal proceedings against the Ministers of IRCC, ESDC, and Public Safety (the “Respondents”) to strengthen legal protections for access to legal counsel. Click here to learn more.
Improving Visa Processing
CILA has sent a follow-up letter to IRCC on ongoing challenges with arbitrary refusals for temporary residence applications. The letter also contains a series of recommendations.
Overall, CILA is pushing for greater procedural fairness, more consistent decision-making, and a smoother client experience, while reducing unnecessary strain on IRCC, DOJ, and Federal Court resources through more efficient, accurate processing.
CILA’s Submission to CIMM on Bills C-2 and C-12
The Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association (CILA) warns that Bill C-12, presented as a border-security modernization effort, fundamentally undermines Canada’s immigration system, the rule of law, and protections for vulnerable people. While CILA agrees immigration legislation must evolve, the organization stresses that reforms must balance security with fairness, transparency, and Canada’s international obligations. In CILA’s view, Bill C-12 fails this test. Read our full statement here.
Moreover, the CILA Refugees Committee has shared recommendations in tandem with CARL on how the federal government can alleviate backlogs at the IRB.
CILA Ethics Committee
In March 2025, CILA’s Ethics Committee released The State of Immigration Fraud, a report containing recommendations on how Canada can strengthen protections for newcomers. Stay tuned for the 2026 version of the report.
In addition, CILA has been active in outlining the limitations of IRCC’s proposal to introduce administrative monetary penalties on lawyers.
Citizenship Committee
On November 17, 2025, CILA’s Citizenship Committee appeared before Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology to express its support for Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act.
Bill C-3 has since received royal assent. You can see our work on this at timestamp 18:40 here: https://senparlvu.parl.gc.ca/harmony/en/powerbrowser/powerbrowserv2?fk=677435&globalstreamid=3
💼 Catalyst Canada – Business Immigration in Focus
Launched in March 2025, Catalyst Canada is an initiative by CILA’s Canadian Business Immigration Committee (CBIC) aimed at improving entrepreneur, investor, and self-employed programs to better support Canada’s economic goals.
🔊 Their multi-part podcast series features insights from leading lawyers, economists, entrepreneurs, and policymakers. You can see updates on Catalyst’s advocacy work and catch podcast clips on the Catalyst Linkedin Page!
📺 Subscribe to the Catalyst Canada YouTube Channel so you don’t miss any updates.
💡 Want to volunteer with CILA? Sign up here
📰 Media Relations
CILA has been featured in Bloomberg, the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star, and more. Check out our press coverage.
CILA Comments on Canada’s New Immigration plan
Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan 2026–2028 aims to balance Canada’s economic needs with its humanitarian commitments. However, with limited processing capacity and a shrinking overall “immigration pie,” the government is forced to shift allocations between programs, prioritizing economic immigration while reducing spaces for family reunification and refugee protection.
CILA underscores a key concern: the immigration system lacks a coherent national strategy. CILA proposes a series of recommendations to get the system back on track.
✍️ Member Articles
CILA is proud to publish original articles written by our members, covering everything from legal commentary to practice tips.
📚 Read the latest: CILA News
📝 Want to contribute? Submit here
🎉 What’s Next?
📍CILA Conference 2026: Delving Deeper Into Canada’s Immigration System
October 5, 2026 – Downtown Toronto
Join us for a full day of networking, expert panels, and engaging dialogue on the future of Canadian immigration law.
👉 Conference details and registration:
https://cila.co/events/cila-conference-2026/
🤝CILA’s Mentorship program
In February of 2026, CILA is launching its inaugural mentorship course: Practical Training on Preparing Judicial Reviews, in which we are preparing lawyers to overcome their fear of filing JR’s and gain confidence to handle Federal Court applications with expert guidance. Learn more about how we are providing members with life-long practical skills and connection opportunities here: https://shorturl.at/LErLP
Thank you to our incredible members, volunteers, and supporters for keeping CILA thriving. Whether you’re attending events, writing articles, volunteering, or engaging in committee work—you’re helping shape a stronger immigration system for Canada.
