Philippine Asian News Today Vol 18 No 18 | Page 14
A14
PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY September 16 - 30, 2016
Immigration
Corner
By Giovanni G. Mata
Humanitarian
and
Compassionate
(H&C)
Consideration is an exceptional
ground used in a permanent
residency
application
in
Canada. The legal basis for
this ground is Section 25 (1) of
the Immigration and Refugee
Protection Act which provides
that: “Subject to subsection
(1.2), the Minister must, on
request of a foreign national
in Canada who applies for
permanent resident status
and who is inadmissible
— other than under section
34, 35 or 37 — or who does
not meet the requirements of
this Act, and may, on request
of a foreign national outside
Canada — other than a foreign
national who is inadmissible
under section 34, 35 or 37 —
who applies for a permanent
resident visa, examine the
circumstances
concerning
the foreign national and may
grant the foreign national
permanent resident status
or an exemption from
any applicable criteria or
o bligations of this Act if the
Minister is of the opinion that
it is justified by humanitarian
H&C Consideration: Your last bid
to stay in Canada
and
compassionate
considerations relating to the
foreign national, taking into
account the best interests of
a child directly affected.”
This provision allows the
Immigration, Refugee and
Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
to grant a foreign national a
permanent resident status
or an exemption from any
applicable criteria or obligation
in IRPA based on humanitarian
and compassionate (H&C)
grounds.
This is available for people
who are in Canada and who
failed to qualify to immigrate
under any of the Canada’s
immigration programs. This
application is usually resorted
to by people who are out of
status but have already been
settled in Canada, or those
who have failed refugee
claims. Those who are found
inadmissible on security
grounds, international rights
violations, and organized
criminality cannot apply for
H&C. This is not also available
to those who have a pending
H&C application or refugee
claim and those who are
designated foreign national in
the last 5 years.
In this type of application,
the applicant must establish
unusual or disproportionate
hardship or risk that he or
she will suffer if removed
from Canada and return to
his or her home country. The
IRCC has noted in its website
several factors that may be
considered in an application,
including but not limited to
the following:
1 establishment in Canada
2 an inability to leave Canada
that has led to establishment
3 ties to Canada
4 best interests of any
children affected by your
application
5 health considerations
6 family violence
considerations
7 consequences of your
separation from relative
8 factors in your country of
origin (not related to seeking
protection)
9 any other relevant factors
you wish to have considered
that are not related to seeking
protection.
H&C is an exceptional
ground wherein one must
show compelling reasons and
submit convincing evidence
before he or she be granted
a permanent resident status.
It is therefore important to
submit a very detailed and
carefully crafted submission
showing all the factors and
why the application should
be granted. The application
must also be supported
with the necessary evidence
corroborating all the factors
presented. While the applicant
is awaiting for the decision
on an H&C application, he
or she can stay in Canada in
the meantime. This however
would not delay or prevent
the IRCC from removing
the applicant if he or she is
under a removal order. If the
H&C application is refused,
the applicant can appeal the
refusal to the Federal Court
of Canada within 15 days
from receipt of the refusal.
If the application is granted,
the applicant gets his or her
permanent resident status in
Canada.
If you are a foreign
worker who is out of status in
Canada and who would suffer
unusual and disproportionate
hardship if you go back to
your home country, we can
help you go through the H&C
application process. If you
need help or have questions
about Canada immigration
matters, you can reach me at
[email protected]
Giovanni is an articled
student at Equity Law
Group. Articling is the last
phase of becoming a lawyer
in Canada. Law Society of
British Columbia Rule 2-60
permits an articled student
to provide all legal services
that a lawyer can offer, with
some exceptions. He is
also a licensed immigration
consultant with ICCRC,
a Philippine Trial lawyer,
Certified International Trade
Professional in Canada,
and an Arbitrator.
Disclaimer: This article
is for information purposes
only and not to provide
specific legal advice.
City launches a New Start for immigrants
and refugees in Vancouver
Today
staff
introduced the New
Start Strategy to City
Council, laying out
28 priority actions for
effective
settlement
and
integration
of
immigrants
and
refugees in Vancouver
over the next decade.
The strategy is a key
milestone of the federally
funded
Vancouver
Immigration Partnership
(VIP)
convened
by
the City of Vancouver
and recognizes that
immigrants and refugees
are an integral part of the
city, bringing with them
diversity, talents, skills
and the desire to engage
with other members of
society.
The
New
Start
Strategy was the result
of a 16 month process
that engaged nearly
120 people from 72
organizations
and
groups in order to gain a
better understanding of
the unique barriers and
challenges that many
immigrant and refugee
newcomers face.
The Strategy sets out
to improve the settlement
experience of newcomers
through
coordinated
action across diverse
communities with a focus
on four key themes:
1.
Enhancing
Access to Services;
2.
Strengthening
Intercultural and Civic
Engagement;
3.
Building
Welcoming and Inclusive
Workplaces; and
4.
Government
and Public Institutions
Addressing Needs
These
four
themes
correspond
to the City’s Health
City
Strategy
goals
of access to human
services, being able to
make ends meet, feeling
connected and included,
and
collaborative
leadership.
A full list of the 28
priority actions can be
found in the New Start
Strategy.
Productive consultations on flexible work arrangements
Canadians
have
had their say in the
Government of Canada’s
consultations on flexible
work arrangements.
The
Government
is firmly committed
to
supporting
our
middle class and those
working hard to join it
and that includes the
many Canadian families
increasingly struggling to
balance work and family.
Flexible
work
arrangements, such as
flexible start and finish
times and the ability to
work from home, can
help employees manage
their
responsibilities
and also bring value
to businesses through
higher retention rates
and better productivity.
This could mean
taking care of an aging
person, leaving earlier
from work to pick up a
child from day care, or
taking leave to participate
in traditional Indigenous
practices like hunting,
trapping and fishing.
The
Government
of Canada has held
far-reaching
public
consultations on its plan
to give employees the right
to request flexible work
arrangements
wi thout
fear of reprisal. Through
May and June, more
than 1,260 Canadians
and 60 stakeholders
shared their perspectives
on flex work, including
employers and employer
associations, unions and
labour
organizations,
advocacy
groups,
community groups and
WWW.PHILIPPINEASIANNEWSTODAY.COM
other organizations, think
tanks and academics.
We are committed
to bringing in measures
that balance the needs
of Canadian businesses
and Canadian families.
A report on what
was heard during the
consultations is now
available on our website.