The way to verify in case your immigration consultant is allowed…
In case you select to make use of an expert immigration consultant, you need to be sure that your consultant is legally licensed to behave in that capability.
Even within the face of strict guidelines and fines for offenders, newcomers to Canada are sometimes focused by immigration scams from fraudulent consultants and representatives.
The speed of incidence is excessive sufficient that Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada even devotes a complete month (March) yearly to fraud prevention.
Newcomers who make use of a licensed immigration consultant can take steps to confirm the authenticity of their credentials. This text will cowl the definition of an immigration consultant, earlier than detailing procedures you can take to substantiate the authenticity of their immigration lawyer or advisor.
Seek the advice of with an skilled immigration consultant
What’s an immigration consultant?
An immigration consultant is a person who assists you (a newcomer) together with your immigration case. These people carry out duties corresponding to
- Offering recommendation on finest practices and subsequent steps in your immigration journey;
- Finishing kinds in your behalf;
- Speaking with IRCC and different immigration officers in your behalf; and
- Representing you in official immigration hearings.
In case you use an immigration consultant, you will need to declare this in your immigration utility, utilizing the suitable kind.
Who will be an immigration consultant?
Representatives will be paid or unpaid. Beneath Canadian regulation, any particular person (for instance, a good friend or member of the family) can legally act as your immigration consultant, supplied that they don’t obtain any compensation in change.
Paid immigration representatives, however, have to be legally licensed below Canadian regulation to behave in that capability. Paid representatives have to be licensed by the related regulatory physique.
You will need to at all times declare your use of a consultant, paid or unpaid.
Utilizing an unauthorized paid consultant, or failing to declare your use of a consultant, can result in a refusal of your immigration utility.
Solely the next professionals can legally act as paid representatives in Canada:
- Attorneys and paralegals licensed by a provincial or territorial regulation society;
- Citizenship and immigration consultants licensed by the School of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants; and
- Notaries licensed by the Chambre des notaries du Québec.
The rest of the article will deal with the best way to confirm the credentials of the above professionals. If the paid consultant you’re contemplating hiring is just not a member in good standing of the related regulatory physique, you shouldn’t to make use of their companies.
For extra info on immigration representatives, what they do, and your obligations when hiring a consultant, go to our devoted webpage.
The way to confirm the authenticity of your consultant
The supply you need to check with with a purpose to verify registration will depend upon whether or not your paid consultant is
- A lawyer or paralegal;
- A citizenship or immigration advisor; or
- A notary.
Immigration attorneys and paralegals
You’ll be able to navigate to IRCC’s webpage to see a full record of regulation societies for each province and territory.
From right here, choose the related authorized society from the hyperlinks within the record introduced. This may take you to that authorized society’s listing web page, the place you possibly can verify the consultant’s registration.
You can be prompted to enter details about your immigration lawyer or paralegal to substantiate their registration, corresponding to
- their title;
- their regulation society registration quantity;
- their present standing with the regulation society;
- their designation (lawyer or paralegal); and
- the town they function in.
In case your consultant is allowed by their regional regulation society, you need to be capable to see them listed and to confirm that they’re presently a member in good standing. As a result of the truth that Legislation Society web sites are structured otherwise and supply considerably differing info, the next desk outlines some key areas to concentrate to on every Legislation Society webpage:
| Legislation society | Key areas |
|---|---|
| Legislation Society of Alberta | – Present citations;
– Self-discipline historical past; – Present restrictions. |
| Legislation Society of British Columbia | – Present standing (ought to say “working towards”);
– Present working towards restrictions; – Self-discipline historical past since 1983. |
| Legislation Society of Manitoba | – Agency;
– Standing (ought to say “working towards”). |
| Legislation Society of New Brunswick | – Standing (ought to say “working towards”);
– Insurance coverage standing (ought to say “insured”). |
| Legislation Society of Newfoundland and Labrador | – Working towards standing (ought to say “working towards”);
– Roll (ought to present registration quantity). |
| Legislation Society of the Northwest Territories | – Roll quantity;
– Membership sort; – Membership standing. |
| Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society | – Member sort (ought to say “working towards lawyer”);
– Member #. |
| Legislation Society of Nunavut | – Working towards standing (ought to say “Common-Lively Membership”) |
| Legislation Society of Ontario | – License sort (lawyer or paralegal);
– Legislation Society Quantity. |
| Legislation Society of Prince Edward Island | – Membership standing (ought to say “working towards”) |
| Legislation Society of Yukon | – Membership standing (ought to say “resident lawyer”, “non-resident lawyer”, or “certificates of permission to behave”;
– Self-discipline historical past in Yukon; – Certificates expiry date (if relevant). |
In case your consultant’s credentials or registration don’t present up after a search, or in case you require additional info, it’s also possible to name the regulation society on to inquire additional.
Citizenship and immigration consultants
Citizenship and immigration consultants in Canada have to be registered with the School of Citizenship and Immigration Consultants.
The school runs its personal listing web page, the place you possibly can verify the credentials of Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants (RCIC) and Regulated Worldwide Scholar Immigration Advisors (RISIAs).
Merely enter the related info of your advisor within the fields to verify their registration and standing with the faculty. In case your advisor is discovered, the webpage will show their title, school ID, profile, firm, license sort, and whether or not they’re entitled to follow.
Solely RCICs and RISIAs with an “lively” standing and who’re marked “Sure” below the entitled to follow column might legally present paid immigration recommendation or companies.
Licences supplied by the faculty vary from “Class L1” to “Class L6”. A breakdown of every licence, and what it entitles an immigration advisor to do will be discovered on the faculty’s web site.
Notaries
Notaries have to be licensed by the Chambre des notaries du Québec.
To verify whether or not your notary is licensed, go to the Chambre des notaries du Québec listing web page.
From right here you possibly can enter the related info within the fields supplied and seek for your notary.
Inside Canada, the skilled designation of notary is particular to Quebec.
Declaring your use of a consultant
If you’re utilizing the companies of an immigration consultant (whether or not paid or unpaid) you will need to declare this to IRCC.
You’ll be able to declare your consultant utilizing the “use of a consultant kind,” obtainable on IRCC’s web site. Your consultant can fill out this manner for you, however you will need to be sure that all info is correct and validate the shape together with your signature.
In case you have not utilized but, you will need to embody using a consultant kind together with your full utility.
In case you have determined to make use of an immigration consultant after making use of, you will need to full the above kind and ship it to IRCC electronically utilizing the net net kind.
If you want to cancel using a consultant, this should even be declared to IRCC by filling out the related fields of the “use of a consultant kind” and submitting it via the division’s net kind.
Advantages of utilizing an expert consultant
It is vital to know that utilizing a consultant doesn’t assure any benefit within the processing of your utility. In case you submit the very same utility with or with out a consultant, there can be no precedence given to 1 over the opposite, and your utility won’t be processed any sooner.
Representatives should not have any particular affect over the decision-making course of, nor do they possess any “superpowers” to hurry up approvals.
That stated, there are various different causes you might want to use a consultant. An skilled skilled consultant can prevent time and provide help to keep away from pitfalls in navigating the complicated and infrequently complicated Canadian immigration system. A licensed consultant can help you in strengthening your utility, making certain that each one obligatory documentation is included, appropriately crammed out, and well-organized. Their experience can considerably scale back the danger of errors or errors that might result in delays and even refusal of your utility.
Moreover, working with a consultant can prevent effort and time by dealing with duties which may in any other case be tedious or overwhelming, corresponding to monitoring deadlines, making ready required kinds, and speaking with immigration authorities. The help of a certified and skilled immigration consultant can scale back stress and assist guarantee your utility is as robust as potential, rising your probabilities of success.
Seek the advice of with an skilled immigration consultant
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