Canada is asking the court to dismiss hundreds of immigration cases. Here’s why
2026/01/23 1 Comment
Makes sense and good to see some due diligence:
Ottawa has asked the Federal Court to throw out hundreds of immigration cases en masse, alleging they were filed by unauthorized agents.
In a motion last month, the immigration minister argued that the 430 applications, seeking relief from court over delays, should be heard and dismissed collectively due to “irregularities” stemming from the “similar format, style and phrasing” in court filings.
The applicants also shared the same home addresses, phone numbers and email accounts despite claiming to have self-represented.
The case involves Chinese applicants who have applied for study, work or visitor permits. They have asked the court to review the processing delays of their individual files and to order the Immigration Department to fast-track the application if the delay was found to be unreasonable.
The use of unscrupulous “ghost agents” has posed an ongoing challenge for immigration officials and legal profession regulators because they operate behind the scenes and cannot be held accountable. Their incompetence can also lead to dire consequences for applicants and abuse of the immigration and legal systems.
Recently, immigration officials appear to have stepped up efforts to detect the involvement of unauthorized agents in applications — and have been going after the applicants as a deterrent. Last year, multiple refugee claims by Sikhs were flagged and rejected for lack of credibility because their narratives were “nearly word for word” identical.
Source: Canada is asking the court to dismiss hundreds of immigration cases. Here’s why
About Andrew
Multicultural Meanderings 
Little or no nuance on the Toronto Star comment section: “these are fraudulent applications; deport immediately.” I have only a little more time for those who ask why so many of these cases have to go to court. The right to have the Federal Court review a decision of the IRB needs to be preserved. But I sympathize with the government, because if it doesn’t do something about these agents, it will be tacitly permitting them. Ideally, these applicants should be allowed access to Legal Aid lawyers and the time needed to make those filings.