An Immigrant in France – Updated Version of an American in Paris?: Mira Kamdar

2015/08/28 Leave a comment

Interesting account of the immigration process in France:

Most foreigners begin with a one-year permit. In principle, you are eligible for a 10-year permit after five years, and may also be eligible to apply for citizenship. In practice, many people must renew their residency permit every year, a humiliating exercise that makes it nearly impossible to do things that would actually help them integrate into French society, like getting a permanent job or applying for credit.

The real problem is France’s attitude toward immigrants. The populist right has whipped up hysteria with visions of the country being overrun by Muslims from former colonies. In fact, nearly half of all immigrants who arrived in France in 2012 were born in Europe.

In July, France’s National Assembly passed an immigration reform bill after much debate. The right argued it would open the floodgates. Immigrant defense groups said it did not go far enough, and posed new problems. The bill, which is expected to be considered by the Senate by year’s end, would create a multiyear residency card aimed at reducing lines and processing costs at the prefectures. It would allow illegal immigrants awaiting deportation to be assigned to a residence rather than a detention center.

The bill would also give the prefectures intrusive new powers to verify information about foreigners with the health care and employment administrations. Most immigrants in France are required to sign a “contract” pledging to learn French and the values of the republic. Under the bill, they could, depending on their progress, be given another multiyear permit, be bumped back to a one-year permit or be denied residency altogether. The bill would do nothing to guarantee access to the 10-year residency card employers and banks look for as proof of a long-term commitment to stay in France.

In June, my updated residency card finally in hand, I filled out the form to apply for a 10-year permit. Like all immigrants here, I know there are no guarantees.

Source: An Immigrant in France – The New York Times

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Stephen Harper to pledge funds to help new Canadians find work in their field

2015/08/28 Leave a comment

Relatively few citizenship and immigration related announcements so far in the campaign. This recycled and possible expanded one from the Conservatives:

CBC News has learned that Harper will visit a Markham, Ont., manufacturing plant, where he will announce new money for the Foreign Credential Recognition Loan program.

The federal government introduced the program in 2011 as a pilot project. It was made permanent just this year, when the budget put aside $35 million for it over five years. Today’s announcement is expected to add even more money to the program.

According to the government, 36 per cent of new Canadians face financial barriers in getting their foreign credentials recognized. The costs range from $100 to $25,000, and can include paying for retraining or recertification exams.

Professionals affected range from physicians to those who work in the Red Seal trades, which include dozens of professions that have a set of nationally recognized standards, such as electricians, engineers and plumbers.

Source: Stephen Harper to pledge funds to help new Canadians find work in their field – Politics – CBC News

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Immigration et certaines prises de position des associations francophones hors Québec (#342) « Quebec Culture Blog

2015/08/27 Leave a comment

For those interested in Francophone immigration to English Canada, a good long commentary on the tendency of some stakeholders to assign sole responsibility to CIC, rather than recognizing that there are broader issues at stake. His particular recommendations:

Une mini-révolution tranquille « économique » hors Québec est possible sur plusieurs niveaux afin de déclancher une telle restructuration:

  1. On pourrait créer un fonds de solidarité francophone pancanadienne pour les cotisations des entreprises francophones hors Québec (cela pourrait remplacer le rôle de revenu Canada dans ce domaine, et pourrait inciterait les entreprises francophones à continuer d’opérer en français hors Québec si, en revanche, on leur offre des avantages sur la taxe sur la masse salariale).
  2. On pourrait fonder une banque de développement d’affaires francophones spécifiquement pour les entreprises hors Québec qui prouvent que leurs opérations internes sont en français. On pourrait créer une société d’assurance pancanadienne francophone avec des branches partout au pays.
  3. On pourrait financer des cliniques médicales francophones, et de les loger dans les hôpitaux anglophones à travers le pays (il existe des cliniques de langue anglaise dans les hôpitaux chinois en Chine pour les étrangers, alors pourquoi ne pas implanter un système semblable au Canada anglais pour les francophones?)
  4. On pourrait offrir une aide financière au niveau des cours de formation pour les employés qui travaillent dans les entreprises qui ont le français comme langue principale d’opérations internes (affichage, réunions, documents, main d’oeuvre).   Un tel programme serait nécessaire
  5. … les prestataires et fournisseurs hors Québec d’une certaine taille, qui désirent obtenir les contrats du gouvernement, devrait embaucher un seuil minimum de francophones (dont les compétences linguistiques auraient été évaluées au préalable par un tiers neutre et impartial).

Immigration et certaines prises de position des associations francophones hors Québec (#342) « Quebec Culture Blog

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An Early Look at Express Entry Candidate Selection

2015/08/24 Leave a comment

__An_Early_Look_at_Express_Entry_Candidate_SelectionGood summary of experience to date with Express Entry by the Conference Board:

A new report by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) provides a mid-year update on Express Entry, CIC’s new, two-step application management system.1 Launched on January 1, 2015, Express Entry seeks to be more responsive to Canada’s economic needs while processing immigration applications more efficiently.2 In step one, candidates complete online profiles and are awarded up to 1,200 points based on various criteria. In step two, CIC draws the highest scorers from the pool of candidates, who then become eligible to submit applications for permanent residence in Canada.

As of July 6, 2015, 112,701 Express Entry profiles had been submitted. Of these profiles, 48,723 candidates (43 per cent) were found ineligible since they did not meet Express Entry criteria. Of the remainder, 12,928 received invitations to apply for permanent resident status (in eleven draws which took place January 1–July 6: See Table 1). Among the invited candidates, 70 per cent scored above 600 points, meaning that the majority either obtained a job offer backed by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA),3 or a Provincial Nomination Program (PNP) certificate.4 Scoring over 600 points was a prerequisite to receiving an invitation to apply in Express Entry’s first four draws. Since then, point requirements have declined, though never below 453 points.

The overwhelming majority of invited candidates resided in Canada at the time of their Express Entry application (85.5 per cent), followed by India (3.2 per cent), and the United States (1.8 per cent). The top five source countries of invited candidates were India (20.8 per cent), the Philippines (19.4 per cent), the United Kingdom (7.4 per cent), Ireland (5.3 per cent), and China (4.1 per cent).

An Early Look at Express Entry Candidate Selection.

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Guest column: Canada’s migrant worker program a model for the world | Windsor Star

2015/08/21 1 Comment

Ken Enns, owner of Enns Plant Farm, on the need for Temporary Foreign Workers in the agriculture sector:

Our workers are here on eight-month contracts, can leave and go home at any time they want, must be paid minimum wage plus whatever bonus is negotiated, full health care coverage when they step off the plane, full workman’s compensation, free weekly transport to town for shopping and supplied living accommodations.

They go home after eight months with a very large amount of money to put their children through university, they support their families, send home generators, tools to start machine shops, home appliances and all the things they cannot get at home.

We have many workers who have applied to return now for 25 and 30 years in a row. They continually ask if they can bring more of their family members for the next year — hardly the request from a person who is a “slave,” as described in the article.

We have the finest labour program in the world and we should be holding it up as a model for the world to follow. This is how you treat and protect your migrant workers.

Instead of trashing the program, we should be increasing it. Instead of giving foreign aid to impoverished nations, we should have their people come here and we could get some benefit for all that aid.

Our industry is one of a very few that can compete with and do better than the Americans. Our labour program is one of the reasons.

Guest column: Canada’s migrant worker program a model for the world | Windsor Star.

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Counting foreigners in the housing market is one thing. Then?

2015/08/18 1 Comment

More on the PM’s stated intent to conduct research into the effect of foreign buyers on Canadian real estate prices and information on what the UK and Australia do to restrict foreign ownership:

But if the data does indeed confirm that foreigners are swamping the country’s major urban centres, the question about what Harper would do about it remains up in the air. Harper didn’t elaborate on what specific regulations, if any, he would implement to tame offshore buyers.  However a Conservative Party background document on the issue points to countries like the U.K. and Australia, which have adopted certain policies, without saying which ones are being considered here.

So what have other countries been doing? Earlier this year, Britain implemented a capital gains tax for non-residents selling property in the country, however it was a tax that already applied to British sellers. As of April foreign buyers must pay up to 28 per cent of the profits they earn when selling their homes, though it’s not yet clear whether the move has dampened enthusiasm for London properties among rich foreigners.

And what about down under? “Australia provides a fine example and some guidance,” says Wozny. “[Their regulations] are all fair and logical.” To combat rising house prices in Australia, often attributed to rich Chinese investors driving up the market, rules were put in place restricting foreigners from buying homes that were previously owned or occupied for longer than a year if they plan to use them as a rental property or vacation home. The move effectively limits foreign buyers to newly built properties. As for foreigners living in Australia temporarily—such as those buying a home for their child entering Australia for university—they are restricted to purchasing one property in the country as a primary residence, and must sell it when they leave.

Australia has other nuanced regulations for how quickly foreigners must build on vacant land, and others that limit foreign buyers from purchasing investment properties. Those who flout the rules in Australia can face stiff fines and even up to three years in prison. And yet, despite all the restrictions, home prices in Australia jumped by about 10 per cent over the last year.

So there are genuine questions as to whether targeting foreigners in Canada will make homes more affordable for Canadians. Some argue it may even do more harm than good. “Are you going to introduce some additional charges with non-residency ownership?” asks Richard Bell, a Vancouver-based real estate lawyer with Bell Alliance. “And what’s the impact on the market if you were to do that?”

Counting foreigners in the housing market is one thing. Then?.

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Man’s immigration status wins him slightly shorter sentence

2015/08/18 Leave a comment

Makes sense when someone has spent most of their life in Canada and thus their criminality was Canadian in origin:

In a recent judgment, Justice Fergus O’Donnell credited a Vietnamese man, Hoang Vu, for the equivalent of just under six months already served and gave him a suspended sentence with three years’ probation.

Considering the crime alone, O’Donnell said, an appropriate sentence would have been six to eight months. That would have made Vu unable to challenge a possible deportation order under the newly passed Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act.

“Mr. Vu left Vietnam as an 11-year-old boy. After two years in an Indonesian refugee camp he arrived in Canada as a 13-year-old boy. He is now a 43-year-old man,” O’Donnell wrote in the decision released this month. “At this point in his life, Vietnam is a foreign country to him.”

The Star was not able to reach O’Donnell or the Crown for comment over the weekend. Vu’s lawyer said he needed to confer with his client before commenting.

Vu, who has 11 prior convictions, had pleaded guilty to a single count of assault with a weapon, a charge to which the defence recommended a sentence of under six months in prison. The Crown had recommended 15 months.

Under the Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, non-citizens sentenced to terms six months or longer cannot appeal to the Immigration Appeal Division if a decision is made to deport them. Before the new law came into effect this year, that threshold was two years.

Experts said judges do have the right to consider a convicted person’s status when sentencing — but with only a little discretion.

Man’s immigration status wins him slightly shorter sentence | Toronto Star.

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Conservative pledge to collect data on foreign homebuyers gets mixed reception

2015/08/15 Leave a comment

While the Government is playing on fears (an election theme), there is considerable merit in having better data either to confirm, or as suggested in this article, debunk this myth (see earlier Millionaire migration to Canada didn’t fall after investor scheme’s axing – it rose, new data reveals):

In his speech Wednesday, Harper referred to estimates that “as many as 15 per cent of the condos in Vancouver sit empty” “No dreams are living there,” he said, vowing to “take action to ensure any foreign, non-resident investment supports the availability and affordability of homes for Canadians.”

The estimates he cited are from a 2013 analysis by BTAworks based on 2011 census data and apply only to the downtown core. For Metro Vancouver, the numbers are closer to six per cent, according to that study, and five per cent, according to the B.C. Real Estate Association. The idea that large swaths of Vancouver are sitting empty, robbing Canadian families of the dream of home ownership, is largely a myth, Bell said.

“The Saudi prince buying a $19 million penthouse — that’s going to sit empty,” he said. “What is sitting empty, I believe, is the high end, where people are saying, ‘Vancouver is a beautiful city. We want to go there for one month out of the year.’

“It’s sort of like Canadians buying in Palm Springs or Florida.”

Foreign ownership affects prices at the top of the market and trickles down to the average homebuyer only in the sense that “people that used to buy at the top end of the market are now having to move into the mid-range, so everyone is pushed down a little bit,” he said.

“The baby boomers who are downsizing are able to pay more than the people that are moving up.”

He said the anxiety over foreign ownership has less to do with xenophobia than skyrocketing house prices, which are affected by a lot more than a buyer’s citizenship.

“The baby boomers’ kids are now starting to buy properties — generational wealth transfer is taking place; low interest rates; urbanization — young kids don’t want to live in small towns anymore. So, the discussion that would be really interesting is to try and look at all the factors in play,” Bell said.

Now if only this evidence-based approach could lead to the restoration of the Census.

Conservative pledge to collect data on foreign homebuyers gets mixed reception – Business – CBC News.

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OCASI Questions for political parties General Election 2015 | OCASI

2015/08/14 Leave a comment

Imagine we will see more of these as the election draws closer. Will be interesting to compare these with political party platforms when released and degree to which citizenship and immigration-related issues make it into the platforms:

1. Settlement Services

Settlement service is an important resource that helps refugees and immigrants to make a strong start in their new life in Canada. This year, the Government of Canada cut $14 million from immigrant settlement services in Ontario. Ontario has already faced cuts to settlement funding almost every year since 2010, affecting the capacity of community-based organizations that deliver these programs to maintain organizational stability and excellence in quality of service. The federal government no longer has immigration agreements with the provinces and territories, except in Quebec.

Question: How will you support the immigrant and refugee serving-sector to deliver appropriate settlement services to immigrants and refugees, and support them to reach their full social, political and economic potential?

2. Employment

There is extensive research documenting the chronic underemployment of skilled immigrants in Canada, as well as research to show the strong correlation between racialization and the growing wage gap in the labour market i. Recent (past ten years) immigrants at all skill levels (internationally and locally trained professionals, tradespeople, lower-skilled dependents) are facing higher levels of un/under-employment compared to earlier cohorts, and compared to those born in Canada. For many, re-training, re-qualifying and licensing in Canada have not resulted in a significant change in job or wage prospects, and discrimination continues to be a significant barrier – particularly for racialized immigrants and refugees. This represents a significant missed opportunity for our economy and tremendous personal cost to the affected individuals and their communities.

Question: What will you do to improve the employment prospects, and pay parity for immigrants at all skill levels?

3. Citizenship

Only 26 per cent of permanent residents who settled in Canada in 2008 acquired Canadian citizenship, compared with 44 per cent for immigrant who arrived in 2007 and 79 percent for those who arrived in 2000.[Note: The updated numbers – full 2014 data – are somewhat better but reflect the same trend. 49 percent of those who settled in 2008, 57 percent who landed in 2007.]  These are the findings of research on citizenship acquisition released earlier this year ii. Access to citizenship has become more restricted, and naturalized citizens and those with dual citizenship are treated differently under the law.

Question: How will you ensure access to citizenship and exercise of citizenship is equitable?

4. Refugee sponsorship

59.5 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced as a result of war and persecution by the end of 2014 according to the UNHCR iii – the highest level ever recorded. A year earlier the number was 51.2 million. Canada’s Government Assisted Refugees program numbers have fallen by almost 22% in the ten years since 2004, and by 24% for all refugee programs iv.

Question: What will you do to increase the number of Government Assisted Refugees (GARs) over and above the current numbers, and to welcome more refugees to Canada through all the programs?

5. Migrant Workers

Canada has relied for decades on migrant workers to support and sustain our economy. In previous years, migrant workers in all occupations and sectors were allowed to stay and build a new life in Canada for themselves and their families. In recent years while migrant workers are recruited to work in almost all sectors and occupations only some are allowed to stay. The most recent change has further restricted the pathway to permanent residency for Caregivers and Domestic workers who arrived through what was known as the Live-in Caregiver Program until December 2014.

Question: What will you do to provide a pathway to permanent residency to all migrant workers, including those recruited through the Temporary Foreign Worker, International Mobility and Seasonal Agricultural Worker programs?

6. Family reunification

Family reunification is a pillar of Canada’s immigration program. Changes to legislation and policy in recent years combined with existing barriers are contributing to an increase in prolonged and sometimes indefinite delays in reunification. They include a narrow definition of family (example: non-biological children are not included), a category of “excluded family members, lower maximum age of a “dependent child” who can be sponsored, limitations on reunifying with parents and grandparents and more. Refugees and immigrants, particularly those from the Global South are subject to greater scrutiny and are among those most affected. Between 2010 and 2013, family reunification reduced by 15% v.

Question: What will you do to remove barriers to family reunification and allow all categories of family members to reunite in Canada?

7. Residents without Immigration Status

Canada has a large and growing number of residents without full immigration status. The growth in this population has resulted in part from gaps in immigration and refugee policies and practice and a massive growth in migrant workers, who also happen to be vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Residents without immigrant status are a part of our economy and our communities. Most do not qualify for any form of government assistance, and support themselves and their families through their own efforts. They pay taxes without receiving the full benefit of legal resident status.

Question: What is your position on the regularization of residents without full immigration status?

OCASI Questions for political parties General Election 2015 | OCASI.

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U.K. immigration crackdown could hit 6,000 Canadian students

2015/08/11 2 Comments

Strange – the worry about fraud undermines a pathway to skilled immigrants (cancellation of pre-Permanent Resident credit in Canada towards citizenship residency requirements, while not as strong as UK measures, will likely reduce attractiveness of Canada as a destination):

British Home Secretary Theresa May has announced a wave of changes to the United Kingdom’s immigration rules, effective in November, that target international students.

The aim is to curb what the government calls an increase in visa fraud by students who arrive on a study permit and enter the job market instead, thereby bypassing the strict requirements needed to obtain a legal work visa.

It’s the latest in a series of crackdowns by Prime Minister David Cameron’s government, which has promised to reduce annual net migration to the U.K. from “hundreds of thousands to tens of thousands.”

The U.K. is one of the most popular places for Canadians to study abroad, second only to the U.S. For the 2013-14 academic year, there were more than 6,000 Canadian students enrolled at higher education institutions in the U.K., a three per cent increase from 2012, according to Britain’s Higher Education Statistics Agency.

Like Hirschy, many of these students hope to stay and work, but the new legislation will make this more difficult.

U.K. immigration crackdown could hit 6,000 Canadian students – Canada – CBC News.

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