In the previous issue we published an article on sponsorship and because this subject is very extensive, we divided it into two parts: the first one was about the sponsorship of spouses and children, the second part, which we planned to publish in this issue, was to deal with parental sponsorship. Unfortunately, we have to move this article to the next issue.
The reason for this is a huge number of questions which we receive every day about the Re-Removal Risk Assessment and deportations. During the last months of 2005 the number of deportations increased drastically. Thousands of people, who had been refused their applications including refugee claims, appeals or humanitarian applications, received letters informing them that a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment program had been initiated with respect to their cases. This is the last stage which lasts approximately from 4-6 months up to a year in some very specific cases.
Last year’s sad statistics shows that 97% of applications under this program were refused and only 3% of applicants were allowed to apply for permanent residence. Later we will analyze the category of people who fell under these 3%.
The aim of this program is to give a person the last chance to prove that were he/she to be returned to his country of nationality or residence, he/she would face a grave risk to his/her life or be persecuted because of racial, national or religious discrimination or membership in a certain social or political group, party or organization. With one exception. Due to the fact that all previous applications had been refused, only new facts, which appeared after your arrival in Canada or after you were refused all previous applications, will be taken into consideration. The documents, which have already been submitted with your refugee claims or other programs, should not be sent this time. They will be disregarded.
You may ask a rightful question: why should anyone apply under this program, if it results in refusals and subsequent deportations?
The application should be submitted even if you know in advance that the result will be negative and you have no chance to get into that lucky 3%. First of all, you will gain time. While your application under this program is being processed, you will have time to plan your departure from Canada without panic and haste. You can review thoroughly the chances that you have to stay in Canada or to go back to your country. I would like to discuss this matter in more detail.
Almost all of the clients, who apply to us for assistance upon the receipt of a letter advising them of PRRA program, think that if they marry, the deportation will be stopped. Unfortunately, once you receive such a letter it is already too late to do anything within Canada. But you can review alternative ways of coming to Canada. There is absolutely no sense in applying for spousal sponsorship. Even if you are 100% sure that you will succeed, you will have no time to complete this application. In such cases it is better to apply for spousal sponsorship from outside Canada, from your country of nationality or residence. Any previous refusals will not affect your application. An immigration officer may just scrutinize your marriage more closely.
In one of our previous articles we mentioned the booming Canadian economy and the fast-growing demand in skilled workers at the provincial level. Despite the present unheard-of unemployment rate of 6.3% all construction specialties, truck drivers, mechanics, welders, oil industry specialists, and engineers in all industries are in demand. It is a great chance to come to Canada and in an absolutely different status. In this case you have a great advantage over those who have never lived in Canada. You have Canadian work experience, you speak the language, you are acquainted with the life in Canada, etc.
If the first two options are not for you – either you have not found a spouse or your profession is not in demand, you might explore your chances of coming to Canada in the Skilled Workers class or as a Provincial Nominee to Manitoba, Alberta or British Columbia. The fact that you cannot obtain a work permit does not mean that you cannot immigrate as a skilled worker. These are two completely different things.
In conclusion, I would like to revert to 3% of successful Pre-Removal Risk Assessment applications. This category consists of those who had submitted humanitarian applications or spousal sponsorship applications before the Pre-Removal Risk Assessment program started. In this case, deportation will be put off until there is a decision on the existing applications. Deportation is pending until the decision is made, and if the decision is positive, deportation is cancelled.
Those people whose refugee claims have not been heard for any reason are also included into these 3%. There were cases when either because the documents were lost through no fault of the applicant, or the deadline for submitting Personal Information Forms was not met (28 days), so refugee claims with excellent chances for success were never heard by the Refugee Board and people were refused. It means that a person was issued a deportation order. In these cases the Pre-Removal Risk Assessment is not only an act of mercy but also the only possible means of saving lives. To my great surprise, these cases are rather frequent and immigration authorities do not take into consideration any excuses or explanations. Requests to re-open a case are hardly ever satisfied. Lives of innocent people are at risk because of the negligence and lack of professionalism of unscrupulous “advisors”.
You should never consider fleeing and hiding from the immigration authorities or missing your appointments at the immigration center. It will result in a disaster. You will be declared wanted, and when they will find you, you will never have an opportunity to come back to Canada. Nobody can stand on his toes for a long time. You may be stopped by the police for a routine document check, or because your lights are off, or because of any other reason, and if the policeman checks your data on his computer and finds out that you are wanted… I believe, you would not want to visualize this scenario.
In any case, no matter what your circumstances are, do not leave your decisions for the last moment when you are in a hurry and under stress. Before making any decisions review all possible variants and routes. If you make a correct decision you will be able to come back
