{"id":776,"date":"2021-12-02T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-02T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cila.co\/?p=776"},"modified":"2024-09-30T16:55:36","modified_gmt":"2024-09-30T20:55:36","slug":"integrity-of-canadas-immigration-system-at-stake-warn-lawyers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cila.co\/fr\/integrity-of-canadas-immigration-system-at-stake-warn-lawyers\/","title":{"rendered":"Integrity of Canada\u2019s immigration system at stake, warn lawyers"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is a republished article that was authored by Fabian Dawson in New Canadian Media.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The integrity of Canada\u2019s immigration system is at stake if Ottawa continues to allow immigration consultants to operate independently and regulate themselves, warns a new group of lawyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, the group \u2014 Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association (CILA<\/a>) \u2014 is calling for a system where consultants will work under the supervision of lawyers, who will ultimately be responsible for representing immigrants and refugees in terms of their applications and when assisting them at tribunals and courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSelf-regulation by immigration consultants has not worked and will fail to protect the vulnerable public,\u201d said CILA steering committee member Barbara Jo Caruso, in the wake of this week\u2019s official opening of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new College is a key part of the government\u2019s $50 million effort to fight fraud in Canada\u2019s immigration system. It has new powers and tools to investigate professional misconduct and to discipline consultants<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aspiring immigration consultants will also now need to complete a new competency-based graduate diploma program after getting a bachelor\u2019s degree to enter the profession. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new College\u2019s website <\/a>already lists 33 disciplinary cases among its members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have an obligation to protect those who wish to come to our country \u2014 and we\u2019re fulfilling it,\u201d Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe new College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants will ensure that aspiring Canadians get the professional and honest advice they deserve, and strengthen our immigration system so it can continue building the Canada of the future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an email statement, John Murray, president and CEO of the College, said this marked \u201cthe beginning of a new era in the regulation of the immigration consulting profession.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Third incarnation\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Caruso, however, says the College will be \u201csimply a third incarnation of two previous federal attempts (Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants and the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council), which have failed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is nothing more than a name change, as all consultants under the previous regime will now be grand-parented into this new College and all the problems associated with the thousands of immigration consultants engaged in the actual practice of law today will continue,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is no new code of conduct yet and we don\u2019t even know who will be sitting on the board of the new self-regulating body\u2026Fraud and incompetence by immigration consultants is sadly a regular feature of our news cycle, and we believe this will continue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Caruso said Law Societies effectively regulate lawyers and placing immigration consultants under their purview will ensure the integrity of the system, properly protect the public and ensure true access to qualified professionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is not a turf war with consultants, because they provide a valuable service, especially when it comes to marketing Canada, and many of us already work with them,\u201d she said. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In a statement, CILA also explained that the competent practice of immigration law requires a full three-year law school education, keeping abreast of legislative, policy and operational changes and knowledge of other areas of law such as criminal, family and corporate law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is also critically important to stay abreast of jurisprudence from the Immigration and Refugee Board, the Federal Courts of Canada and Supreme Court of Canada. This is the only way to properly protect the public and ensure true access to qualified professionals, thereby facilitating access to justice,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Insulting and unfair\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

But that\u2019s not a necessarily popular view among immigration consultants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is insulting and unfair for us to be forced to work under the supervision of lawyers,\u201d said a Surrey-based veteran immigration consultant of 16 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asking to remain anonymous because she already assists legal firms on immigration files, the consultant said the self-regulatory system works well to police oversight to her industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI agree that the new College is a just a name change, but we don\u2019t need lawyers looking over our shoulders all the time as we too have the qualifications to help new immigrants and in many cases do the work for much lesser fees,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cLike the legal profession, our industry also has some bad apples,\u201d said the consultant, a graduate of the University of B.C.\u2019s one-year long Immigration Practitioner Certificate Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immigration integrity<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association, in a submission<\/a> to IRCC, pointed to a Regulatory Impact Analysis statement (RIAS) by the government which recognized that the unethical conduct and incompetent service of some consultants and their ineffective self-regulation have seriously harmed immigration applicants and the integrity of the Canadian immigration system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe RIAS has described the problem as \u2018a recurrent issue over the past decades\u2019 exacerbated by the heightened vulnerability of applicants with \u2018limited or no proficiency in English or French, those with less knowledge of Canada\u2019s regulatory and immigration system and those with fewer connections to Canada.’\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cImmigration consultants should be supervised by lawyers or Quebec notaries in all activities relating to immigration applications and related proceedings,\u201d contends the Canadian Bar Association.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New powers<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Quick facts about the newly minted College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The College regulates immigration and citizenship consultants under the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act<\/em>. It has new powers and tools to investigate professional misconduct and to discipline consultants. The College can also protect the public from unlicensed consultants by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n