Q & A: Post-Graduate/Co-op Work Experience

Q. I am doing my first year for my Ph.D program, and work in a research lab. I am wondering if this would satisfy the one year minimum full time requirement for the PR immigration application, or is a research assistant job counted only a part time job? I work at most 20hrs a week. […]

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Province Wants More Choice of Immigrants

Quebec- The Quebec government plans to increase the percentage of immigrants it selects in a move designed to increase the number of French-speaking newcomers to the province. Speaking to reporters, Immigration Minister Andre Boisclair said Quebec wants the number of immigrants selected by provincial officials – as opposed to Ottawa – to increase from the […]

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Labour Market Shortages in Software Development in Canada

Canadian industry has indicated it is facing a shortage of software development workers which is hurting its competitiveness. These labour market shortages are specific to certain skill sets that cannot be found within the current Canadian labour market. Industry also claims that its ability to attract foreign workers to staff these positions on a temporary […]

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Amendment to Immigration Regulations, 1978 Implemented

As scheduled, the amendments to the Immigration Regulations were implemented as per the proposals tabled by the Minister on March 15 of this year. This amendment, which was prefaced with the claim that it was only “technical in nature,” had the main effect of shifting from the Canadian Classification and Dictionary of Occupations (CCDO) to […]

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Q & A: RRP Validity

Q. I’m a landed immigrant and work in US. My RRP is valid until Feb.1998. Right now I’m facing an urgent personal stuff and had to have a short trip to Canada. My question are 1: When I use my PR visa and RRP to enter the Port, will the customer void my RRP? Answer: […]

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Q & A: “Research Assistant” Experience

Q. Can anybody tell me what the definition of a research assistant is and would my years as a postgraduate researcher working towards a PhD count as work experience? Answer: Research assistant is no longer contained on the General Occupations List. Work experience gained during positions of research during post-graduate research has been repeatedly been […]

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Q & A: Sponsorship

Q1. If an individual wishes to sponsor a fiance(e), is it typical for the immigration authorities to require that a co-signer be available when adequate income is not shown? Answer Demonstration of financial arrangements is required in the case of family class applications. Where they may not be demonstrable, the visa officer may choose to […]

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Commentary

As of April 18, 1997, the provisions of sponsorship in the Family Class changed. If the application was submitted prior to this date, these changes would not affect the applicant. As of this date, the Low Income Cut-Off figures are the only factor in the determination of eligibility of a sponsor, and only the sponsor’s […]

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Historical Processing Times

The following information has been reproduced with the permission of Lexbase, a monthly immigration law journal, Editor-in-Chief, Richard Kurland, email: lexbase@interlink.net. The table indicates the time in months that is required to process 80% of all final cases in every overseas immigration processing post for the most recent quarter. Indication is also given of the […]

By CIC News