Our Recent Immigration Success Stories

Happy Results for Mother of Three!

We were delighted to assist a mother of three young children, two of whom have special needs, in appealing the refusal of her spousal sponsorship application. Although the visa office was satisfied that her relationship with her husband was genuine, the application was refused because the sponsor had defaulted on a previous sponsorship undertaking.

At the Immigration Appeal Division we argued that despite the sponsor’s default, there were sufficient humanitarian and compassionate factors – including the best interests of the children directly affected – to warrant special relief. We provided extensive documentation corroborating the particular needs of the sponsor’s children and the hardship caused by continued family separation. The sponsor gave compelling oral testimony speaking to these challenges.

The Minister and Member at the Immigration Appeal Division agreed that special relief was justified in the circumstances, and the appeal was allowed. The sponsor is very happy that her husband will soon be able to join her in Canada to help her care for their children.

One Matter, One Client – Five Successful Judicial Reviews!

Last year a man retained our office to challenge his refused Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) to the Federal Court of Canada. He advised our office that this was the fifth time that his PRRA had been refused, and so would be his fifth time challenging the matter to the Court. We reviewed his application materials and the decisions already made by the Federal Court to make our arguments.

The Court allowed the application for Judicial Review and was in complete agreement that enough was enough. No longer satisfied in only quashing the PRRA refusal, the Court issued clear directions to the next Officer to re-determine the file, including the disclosure of communications that Citizenship and Immigration Canada had withheld from our client and the requirement that a PRRA interview be held.

Canadian Citizenship Granted on Humanitarian and Compassionate Grounds

A Canadian citizen entered Canada with his newborn, who was born in the USA via human reproduction technology. The parent had the birth certificate which indicated that he and his spouse, both Canadian citizens, were the legal parents of the baby. The newborn was allowed to enter without being given any status. Once in Canada, the parents applied for a citizenship certificate for the baby as they believed she was entitled to it given their status as Canadian citizens. About one year later, they were advised that their application was put on hold until the “new policy has been developed”.

In the circumstances, with the help of our office, a Temporary Resident Permit was requested and granted. An application was then filed for permanent residence on Humanitarian and Compassionate Grounds. This was also approved and she became a permanent resident of Canada. Subsequently, our office requested that the child be granted Canadian citizenship under subsection 5(4) of the Citizenship Act – based on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. Over 5 years after she arrived in Canada, a decision on the initial application for the Citizenship Certificate as a child of Canadian citizens was made: it was refused. Our office made another application for citizenship, as a child of a Canadian parent (section 5(2) of the Citizenship Act). After many complications, the application was approved and the girl, now 6 years old, was just recently granted Canadian citizenship. Finally!

Record of Suspension Granted, Applicant No Longer Inadmissible

We prepared a sponsorship application as well as a Record Suspension application (previously Pardon). Unfortunately, the Record Suspension processing timelines were lengthy and the Officer made a decision, refusing the sponsorship application for inadmissibility, before a decision could be made on the Record Suspension. This would require the Applicant to leave Canada. Our office did anything and everything we could to prevent this from happening, encouraging the officer to reconsider the refusal without having to advance it to the Federal Court, and did so successfully. This resulted in the refusal being struck, the application being re-opened and reconsidered, the Applicant not having to leave Canada, and saving considerable financial resources. While the application was being reconsidered the Record Suspension was granted, and the Applicant was no longer inadmissible.