all messages by user

What if my employer refuses to give me an ROE?

Only your employer can get and complete the ROE. Your employer is legally obliged to give you an ROE and cannot refuse to do so. If, however, your employer refuses, write a letter to your employer and keep a copy of this letter for yourself. Send the letter via registered mail.

You can also contact your local Service Canada Centre (SCC) or call SCC at 1-800-206-7218 to assist in obtaining a ROE.

If there is a valid undertaking, CIC automatically sends a warning letter to defaulting sponsors to advise them that there is a potential sponsorship breakdown and reiterates the requirement to resume full support obligations and that they will not be allowed to sponsor again unless they meet their obligations.

If the sponsored person is at risk of domestic violence as a result of the notice to CIC, this must be noted on the referral and no letter is to be sent by CIC.

Once a sponsored immigrant is in receipt of any amount of social assistance, Ontario Works staff sends a letter to notify the sponsor that debt is being incurred.

The letter reminds the sponsor of the obligation to provide for the sponsored person, advises that the federal government has been notified of the default, and
advises that any social assistance paid to the sponsored person is a debt, which is subject to collection by the federal government. In addition, the sponsor will not
be allowed to sponsor while the debt exists.

If a defaulting sponsor and/or a co-signor reimburses the delivery agent for the full amount of social assistance that was paid to the sponsored immigrant while the sponsorship agreement was in force, staff will notify CIC that the repayment has been made by sending the Confirmation of Repayment of Social Assistance Benefits form to CIC.

If a defaulting sponsor and/or co-signor does not respond after fifteen days and/or does not resume their support of the sponsored immigrant, the delivery agent uses the Notification of Sponsorship Debt Form to confirm the default to CIC.

The case is then referred to the ministry's centralized Overpayment Recovery Unit (ORU), by emailing the electronic Validation of Sponsorship Debt form to ORU. The ORU staff will pursue the sponsorship debt by sending letters at 45 and 90 day intervals to the defaulting sponsor. If the sponsor does not begin repaying the debt, the ORU will refer the case to the Canada Revenue Agency to begin the Refund Set-Off process.

Where there is an outstanding sponsorship debt that was not addressed at the time of application under the previous policy, the staff should accept voluntary repayments from sponsors. If the repayment is less than the total amount of the sponsorship debt, staff must advise the sponsor that reimbursement must be made in full before CIC can be notified that the debt is satisfied. The amount of the sponsorship debt is not negotiable.

6.4 Day

For the purpose of calculating the number of days to comply with the residency obligation in A28(2)(a), a day includes a full day or any part of a day that a permanent resident is physically present in Canada. Any part of a day spent in Canada, or otherwise in compliance with A28(2)(a), is to be counted as one full day for the purpose of calculating the 730 days in a five-year period.

"Are divorces from other countries legal in Canada?

Ontario accepts that divorces from other countries are legal if you or your spouse lived in that country for at least one year before you applied for a divorce. If neither of you lived in the country for a year, your divorce may still be legal if the person who applied can prove that they have a “real and substantial connection” with that place. For example, if you were originally from the country that granted the divorce and had returned there when your relationship ended, the court could say that you had a “real and substantial connection” to that country."

"7.8 Examining Permanent Residents at a POE (Port of Entry)

When a permanent resident appears at a POE for examination, the officer must confirm that the person is a permanent resident. Officers must remain cognizant of the fact the Act gives permanent residents of Canada the right to enter Canada at a port of entry once it is established that a person is a Permanent Resident, regardless of non-compliance with the residency obligation in A28 or the presence of other grounds of inadmissability.

Port of entry officers (POE) can refuse entry to a Permanent Resident only when the person has already lost the status in accordance with the provisions of A46 (such as when a final determination has been made that they have failed to comply with the residency obligations or when a removal order comes into force).

In other words, once a permanent resident's status is established, the person may enter Canada by right and the immigration examination under IRPA concludes.

If an officer has concerns that a permanent resident has not complied with the residency obligation of A28, the officer should advise the permanent resident when the examination is concluded that they are authorized to enter Canada; however, the permanent resident may wish to answer additional questions so the officer may determine whether their concerns are well founded or not.

In cases where:
- permanent resident status is established;
- the permanent resident refuses to provide any further information and enters Canada;
and
- the officer believes, on a balance of probabilities that the person is in non-compliance with the residency obligation, officers may report the person, pursuant to A44(1). if there is sufficient evidence to support an inadmissibility allegation. In the absence of sufficient evidence to support the writing of an inadmissibility report, officers may enter any available information into FOSS (date of entry, last country of embarkation, current address in Canada etc.).

If an officer has concerns that a permanent resident has not complied with the residency obligation of A28, the officer should advise the permanent resident when the examination is concluded that they are authorized to enter Canada; however, the permanent resident may wish to answer additional questions so the officer may determine whether their concerns are well founded or not.

It is important to note that a permanent resident does not lose their status under A46(1)(b) until there is a final determination of the decision made outside Canada that they have failed to comply with the residency obligation under A28.

Permanent residents are not finally determined to have lost their permanent resident status until the right of appeal has been exhausted.

5. Departmental Policy

When an officer believes a permanent resident has failed to comply with their A28 residency obligation, then that officer should report the permanent resident under the provisions of A44(1) and recommend the issuing of a departure order.

The form Questionnaire: Determination of Permanent Resident Status (IMM 5511B) has been developed specifically to assist officers in making decisions regarding the permanent residency obligation, keeping in mind that the questionnaire alone is not sufficient to determine compliance with the residency obligation, and a detailed interview including examining humanitarian and compassionate criteria under A28(2)(c) is needed.

Furthermore, the officer cannot seize the person’s documents (such as the IMM 1000, Immigrant Visa and Record of Landing and the IMM 5292B, for example) despite writing an A44(1) report and issuing a removal order unless the officer believes there are reasonable grounds to do so in accordance with A140. The rationale behind this is that the person has a right to appeal the removal order and, until final determination of status, they remain a permanent resident and are the lawful owner of said documents.