The Federal Immigrant Investor Program is now closed as 700 complete applications have been received at the Centralized Intake Office. This new annual cap was introduced through ministerial instructions, which came into force on July 1, 2011. The cap will reset on July 1, 2012, unless otherwise indicated in a future ministerial instruction.

On Friday, June 24, 2011, Citizenship and Immigration Canada made a major announcement, concerning the Federal Skilled Worker Class and both the Investor and Entrepreneur Categories of the Business Class.

A. FEDERAL SKILLED WORKER CLASS

1. Changes

a. The current General Occupations (Demand) List of twenty-nine (29) occupations will remain the same for the period of July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012; however, quotas WILL change. To be eligible to apply for Permanent Residence in Canada in the Federal Skilled Worker Class, an applicant must:

• include the results of his/her official language proficiency test, AND
• have a valid offer of arranged employment, OR
• have one (1) year of continuous full-time paid work experience or two (2) years of continuous half-time paid work experience in at least one (1) of the following twenty-nine (29) occupations:

0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers

0811 Primary Production Managers (Except Agriculture)

1122 Professional Occupations in Business Services to Management

1233 Insurance Adjusters and Claims Examiners

2121 Biologists and Related Scientists

2151 Architects

3111 Specialist Physicians

3112 General Practitioners and Family Physicians

3113 Dentists

3131 Pharmacists

3142 Physiotherapists

3152 Registered Nurses

3215 Medical Radiation Technologists

3222 Dental Hygienists & Dental Therapists

3233 Licensed Practical Nurses

4151 Psychologists

4152 Social Workers

6241 Chefs

6242 Cooks

7215 Contractors and Supervisors, Carpentry Trades

7216 Contractors and Supervisors, Mechanic Trades

7241 Electricians (Except Industrial & Power System)

7242 Industrial Electricians

7251 Plumbers

7265 Welders & Related Machine Operators

7312 Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics

7371 Crane Operators

7372 Drillers & Blasters – Surface Mining, Quarrying & Construction

8222 Supervisors, Oil and Gas Drilling and Service

b. A maximum of ten thousand (10,000) Federal Skilled Worker applications will be considered for processing between July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012. Within the ten thousand (10,000) cap, a maximum of five hundred (500) Federal Skilled Worker Applications per eligible occupation (any one (1) of the twenty-nine (29) occupations that appears on Canada’s General Occupations (Demand) List) will be considered for processing between July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012.

2. What does this mean?

a. Existing Clients of Abrams & Krochak

(i) Application already filed

If you are already a client of Abrams & Krochak and your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was filed with and accepted for processing by Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011, the new quotas do NOT apply to you.

(ii) Application not yet filed

If you are already a client of Abrams & Krochak and either (i) your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was NOT filed with Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011 because the quota for your particular occupation was filled OR (ii) your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was NOT filed with Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011 and is still being processed by our office, the new quotas for July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012 DO apply to you. If you ARE still interested and eligible to apply, you should move to have your Application filed AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE before the quota for your particular occupation and/or the quota for the Federal Skilled Worker Class is/are reached for the period of July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012. Please send an e-mail to info@akcanada.com to ascertain your eligibility status and/or the current status of your Application.

b. Non-Clients of Abrams & Krochak

(i) Eligibility already assessed

If you had your eligibility to immigrate to Canada in the Federal Skilled Worker Class already favourably assessed by Abrams & Krochak since June 26, 2010 and wish to have your eligibility reassessed, please send an e-mail to askus@akcanada.com with your request. You will receive your reassessment within one (1) business day.

If you had your eligibility to immigrate to Canada in the Federal Skilled Worker Class already favourably reassessed by Abrams & Krochak OR you are certain that you meet the eligibility requirements and you wish to apply for Permanent Residence in Canada as a Skilled Worker with our assistance, it is IMPERATIVE that you retain/engage our services AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE so that we can file your Application for Permanent Residence before the quota for your particular occupation and/or the quota for the Federal Skilled Worker Class is/are reached. Otherwise, you may have to wait until next year’s List is announced; however, should you do so, you run the risk that your particular occupation might no longer appear on that List or that selection criteria will have changed, thereby rendering you ineligible to immigrate to Canada as a Skilled Worker. If you no longer have instructions on how to retain/engage Abrams & Krochak’s services, please visit http://www.akcanada.com/resources/ind.cfm.

(ii) Eligibility not yet assessed

If you are interested in immigrating to Canada as a skilled worker but you have not yet had your eligibility to do so assessed by Abrams & Krochak, we invite you to complete our Free Online Assessment Questionnaire at http://www.abramsandkrochak.com. You will receive your assessment within one (1) business day.

 

B. INVESTOR CATEGORY OF THE BUSINESS CLASS

1. Changes

The Government of Canada will only accept seven hundred (700) Investor Applications for Permanent Residence in Canada from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012.

2. What does this mean?

a. Existing Clients of Abrams & Krochak

(i) Application already filed

If you are already a client of Abrams & Krochak and your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was filed with and accepted for processing by Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011, the new quota does NOT apply to you.

(ii) Application not yet filed

If you are already a client of Abrams & Krochak and your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was NOT filed with Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011 and is still being processed by our office, the new quota for July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012 DOES apply to you. If you ARE still interested and eligible to apply, you should move to have your Application filed AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE before the quota for the Investor Category is reached for the period of July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012. Please send an e-mail to info@akcanada.com to ascertain your eligibility status and/or the current status of your Application.

 

b. Non-Clients of Abrams & Krochak

(i) Eligibility already assessed

If you already had your eligibility to immigrate to Canada in the Investor Category of the Business Class favourably assessed by Abrams & Krochak and wish to apply for Permanent Residence in Canada as an Investor with our assistance, it is IMPERATIVE that you retain/engage our services AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE so that we can file your Application for Permanent Residence before the quota for the Investor Category reached. Otherwise, you may have to wait until July 1, 2012; however, should you do so, there is no guarantee that selection criteria will remain the same and that you will still qualify as an Investor. If you no longer have instructions on how to retain/engage Abrams & Krochak’s services, please visit http://www.akcanada.com/resources/bus_inv.cfm.

(ii) Eligibility not yet assessed

If you are interested in immigrating to Canada as an Investor but you have not yet had your eligibility to do so assessed by Abrams & Krochak, we invite you to visit our website and complete our Free Online Assessment Questionnaire at http://www.abramsandkrochak.com. You will receive your assessment within one (1) business day.

C. ENTREPRENEUR CATEGORY OF THE BUSINESS CLASS

1. Changes

The Government of Canada is currently reviewing the Entrepreneur Category and has imposed a moratorium on new Applications. As a result, Citizenship and Immigration Canada will temporarily stop accepting new Applications until the review is finalized (the date of which is currently unknown).

2. What does this mean?

a. Existing Clients of Abrams & Krochak

(i) Application already filed

If you are already a client of Abrams & Krochak and your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was filed with and accepted for processing by Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011, the moratorium does NOT apply to you.

(ii) Application not yet filed

If you are already a client of Abrams & Krochak and your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada was NOT filed with Citizenship and Immigration Canada BEFORE July 1, 2011 and is still being processed by our office, you have one (1) of two (2) options:

1. You can wait until the moratorium is lifted and, if new selection criteria are implemented, see whether you meet them and then decide what to do.

OR

2. You can consider migrating to Canada NOW in another category of the Business Class (i.e. Investor or Self-Employed), assuming you meet the selection criteria OR as a Skilled Worker. Please send an e-mail to info@akcanada.com to ascertain your eligibility status and/or the current status of your Application.

 

b. Non-Clients of Abrams & Krochak

(i) Eligibility already assessed

If you already had your eligibility to immigrate to Canada in the Entrepreneur Category of the Business Class favourably assessed by Abrams & Krochak, you have one (1) of three (3) options:

1. If you wish to formally retain/engage our services, you can do so; however, we would not be able to file your Application until such time as Citizenship and Immigration Canada lifts the moratorium on new Applications. Should you follow this route, please be aware that if new selection criteria are enacted and you do not meet them OR the Entrepreneur Category is eliminated altogether, your initial payment of legal fees to Abrams & Krochak will NOT be refunded to you;

OR

2. You can contact our office, again, at a later date, to ascertain whether the moratorium on new Applications has been lifted and, if so, we will reassess your eligibility to immigrate to Canada in the Entrepreneur Category of the Business Class in accordance with the selection criteria in existence at that time;

OR

3. You can consider applying in another category of the Business Class (i.e. Investor or Self-Employed), assuming you meet the selection criteria. Please send an e-mail to askus@akcanada.com with your request for a reassessment in either of these categories. You will receive your reassessment within one (1) business day. You might also consider applying as a Skilled Worker. Should you wish to be assessed by Abrams & Krochak as a Skilled Worker, we invite you to visit our website and complete our Free Online Assessment Questionnaire at http://www.abramsandkrochak.com. You will receive your assessment within one (1) business day.

We realize that these changes are major. Regardless of how you wish to proceed, rest assured that Abrams & Krochak remains ready, willing and able to assist you with all of your Canadian Immigration needs and we will do everything in our power to ensure that your Application for Permanent Residence in Canada is processed in a timely and efficient manner to help you realize your proposed Canadian Immigration plans.

Vancouver tops the list, with Toronto in fourth place and Calgary in fifth. The liveability index takes into account multiple factors, such as healthcare, education, crime statistics, and environment.

From The Economist:

VANCOUVER remains the most liveable city in the world, according to the latest annual ranking compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Canadian city scored 98 out of a maximum 100, as it has done for the past two years.

The ranking scores 140 cities from 0-100 on 30 factors spread across five areas: stability, health care, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. These numbers are then weighted and combined to produce an overall figure. The top ten cities occupy the same positions as last year, with the exception of Melbourne and Vienna, which have swapped places.

At the other end of the ranking, Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, is in 140th place, thanks to particularly poor scores for its stability, health care and infrastructure. Somewhere between the extremes sit London and New York in 53rd and 56th places. They are let down by stability scores of 75 and 70, the result in turn of poor scores for the perceived threat of terror and the rates of petty and violent crime.

Here’s another story about liveability from CTV News.

The RCMP has arrested a Quebec immigration consultant accused of providing Canadian citizenship and immigration documents to hundreds of residents of Middle East countries who then collected tax benefits from Ottawa.

Ahmad El-Akhal, 62, was arrested in Montreal on Thursday following a 2½-year investigation by the RCMP’s Immigration and Passport and Commercial Crimes sections. His wife was also arrested, as well as a suspected accomplice in Mississauga.

The arrests have shed light on an audacious scheme that led to more than 200 Middle East citizens–none of whom lived in Canada — fraudulently obtaining Canadian citizenship, immigration and travel documents as well as a half-million dollars worth of federal tax benefits.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada said on Thursday it was reviewing the matter and may revoke the citizenship and immigration status of those involved. It also said it would ensure that benefits were no longer paid to those not entitled to them.

The alleged crimes date back as far as 1999 but the investigation did not begin until 2008, when CIC officials noticed that 320 permanent residence applicants had given the same addresses as their residence in Canada. Almost all were eventually linked to Mr. El-Akhal.

“Basically, this individual passed himself off as an immigration consultant and assisted these people in obtaining permanent resident status and submitted the applications for them,” said Sergeant Marc LaPorte, the RCMP spokesman for Ontario.

Once they were issued their immigration and citizenship papers, Mr. El-Akhal would then apply for Income Tax benefits for them, Sgt. LaPorte said. “This guy would fill out the tax returns and documents to get benefits back in the names of these people,” he said. “They were getting tax refunds, goods and services tax rebates, child credit tax benefits, so the whole gamut.”

Mr. El-Akhal, who lives in L’ile-Bizard, Que., has been charged with 58 counts, including forgery, fraud and conspiracy. Police said he worked out of his home and was not a registered professional immigration consultant.

Also arrested was his wife, Tahani Mohamad Hassan El-Akhal, 53. She was charged with possession of proceeds obtained by crime in the amount of $155,000. Mississauga resident Hussam Hassan Ali Saif, 44, faces three charges under the Citizenship Act.

“He was the leasor of some of the residences. And also he forged lease agreements and created mail addresses for these people. He actually collected the mail and gathered the information and sent it back to Montreal,” Sgt. LaPorte said.

The three accused were scheduled to appear in a Brampton court on Friday for a bail hearing.

Despite the three arrests, the government still faces a significant challenge: how to reclaim and nullify the scores of Canadian documents it wrongly issued and that are now scattered throughout the Middle East.

“It is important to note that while over 300 files were implicated, we can confirm only five people had obtained Canadian citizenship,” said Melanie Carkner, a CIC spokeswoman.

“Other cases are being reviewed in terms of their continued status of permanent residence, which is the last step before citizenship. In the case of the five, all appropriate action will be taken to ensure that people do not obtain benefits they aren’t entitled to.

“In cases where CIC determines that residence requirements have not been met, Canadian citizenship will be refused or may be revoked and appropriate enforcement measures may be initiated that could lead to loss of permanent resident status and eventual removal from Canada.”

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