You’ve decided to immigrate to Canada. Congratulations! This is an exciting time for you, and the professional consultants at Taraz Services offer smart, and trustworthy, immigration service that can help you wade your way through the significant work ahead. The process of obtaining a permanent resident visa (or a temporary visa) can be slow, demanding, and complicated. Partnering with Taraz Services will streamline this process, and make it as easy as possible. We offer help with family sponsorship, citizenship, permanent residency, and temporary visas. Your interviews and questionnaires will be full of difficult questions, which can lead to irreversible and life-altering mistakes. If you are looking to make process as smooth and pain-free as possible, you can hire a licensed immigration professional, like those found at Taraz Services, to help you in your journey. The question now is how to find a professional that puts your needs first, instead of someone preying on prospective Canadians.
The following tips can help new immigrants steer clear of fraud:
Only work with a professional
If you go online and search for “immigration to Canada” one of the first warning sign that you are dealing with a fraudster is that they lack an English version of their website, or that their website does not link to an English version. With all the tools available today it is easier than ever for someone to make a website and call themselves professional, when they are everything but.
Anyone who provides legitimate immigration advice must legally be one of the following:
- A Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC)
- A member of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC)
- A Canadian lawyer
There are scammers who claim to be any of the above; however there are resources available to check their legitimacy. You can research the consultant you plan to use by looking them up on ICCRC’s official website, or, if they are a lawyer, by looking them up through the law society of the province or territory they claim to work in.
This is the website for the ICCRC:
http://iccrc-crcic.info/find-a-professional/
This is the website for the Law Society of Upper Canada (Ontario): http://www2.lsuc.on.ca/LawyerParalegalDirectory/index.jsp
The Website has Red Flags
You have to keep an eye out to make sure that the company you are looking at is not an immigration mill, a company that performs extensive marketing and then subcontract their cases to legitimate consultants who then process applications for a fee. Look into the services they offer, otherwise, you may end up with subpar service. To earn a living wage at these immigration mills, a consultant does not have enough time to properly prepare your application and this failure can lead to your application being rejected.
Based outside Canada
Canadian companies are much more likely to employ professionals in Canadian immigration, while companies based outside of Canada often do not. These companies are sales companies, not immigration consultants. It is easy to find comfort in the fact that you, as the applicant, can physically go into the office where you can meet the “consultant” in person, but that does not mean this person has any education or licence in Canadian immigration. The majority of Canadian immigration consultants practice from inside Canada, and while it stressful to communicate electronically and over the phone, it is your best bet. There are some consultants who have offices in the UEA, India, China, the Philippines, and other countries, but this is the minority and it can be hard to judge who is legitimate and who is not.
Incorrect information
Immigration is an ever-changing field, recently in July and October of 2017 some changes were made to the Immigration Act, including requirements on intent to live in Canada once granted citizenship, and the age range for language and knowledge requirements (these were reduced to 18-54). Researching the Immigration Act yourself, and checking that the consultant website you are considering hiring is also up to date, can be a lifesaver. If they are not showing the most recent changes to the Immigration Act, there is very little chance that they are a legitimate organization.
There is also a falsehood that if they promise to assist you in finding work, that you owe them a fee. This is illegal in Canada, recruitment fees are always paid by the employer not by the prospective employee, and in most provinces in Canada it is required that a recruiter be licensed.
Fees seem too good to be true
If fees seem too good to be true, they most likely are. You have to take into consideration that these are highly skilled professionals that you are hiring, and that they will charge a rate based on that. If it seems that the rates are too good to be true, it may mean that they are making money elsewhere. You are handing over all your personal and private information to this company. Scammers do exist and they can steal your identity and charge you fees that you think are helping you get towards your goal, but are just lining their pockets.
Poor spelling, grammar, and vocabulary
If any website has errors it is a sign that it is not professional. When a consultant’s website, who will be helping you fill out your application to come to Canada, has errors, then what kind of application will they be writing up for you.
Canada does have a provision under Bill C-35 that makes it illegal for unlicensed people to represent themselves as professionals to future immigrants and/or give immigration advice for a fee. This applies both in Canada and outside of the country. Penalties for convictions under the act include fines of up to $100,000 Canadian and/or two years in prison. You can report someone if you believe you are being taken advantage of.
Conclusion
When finding a professional of any kind, whether it be a doctor, electrician, or teacher, it is always best to do your research and to ask for recommendations from those you know, especially if they have already gone through the process themselves and had a successful outcome. With those tools you will be able to make the right decision for you in getting help on your journey to Canadian citizenship.