Canada has many employment opportunities and welcome thousands of skilled workers from around the world every year. The main objective for encouraging this category of immigration is to attract people with invaluable education and employment skills who will contribute to Canada’s economic growth and development. Canadian skilled worker applicants are assessed based upon a series of factors, which are in theory, designed to indicate the likelihood of becoming economically established in Canada. Applications are assessed on six selection factors and a points system. In order to be eligible to become a permanent resident visa under the federal skilled worker category, an applicant must score at least 67 points.
Should you wish to see if you could be eligible to immigrate to Canada as a skilled worker, we invite you to complete our free assessment form.
In addition, an applicant must have at least one year of continuous full-time work experience in the category of Skill Type 0, or Skill Level A or B on the Canadian National Occupational Classification, within the last 10 years and show enough funds to establish in Canada. Applicant must also pass a medical examination before coming to Canada. Dependents (spouse and children) are also required to pass the medical examination even if they are not coming to Canada.
Applications for permanent residence will not be accepted if that person’s health:
is a danger to public health or safety; or
would cause excessive demand on health or social services in Canada.
Process:
Assessment of Qualifications
The first step towards Permanent Residency under the Skilled Worker Category is the completion of the Assessment form.
The expert and experienced staff at my law firm will provide you with a quick and accurate assessment of your qualifications under the present regulations and criteria. The applicant will be notified whether he/she qualifies for Canadian Immigration under the Skilled Worker Category. If qualified, the applicant should proceed to the Contract provided by RSS Immigration and submit the completed contract online.
If an applicant does not qualify for Canadian Immigration under the Skilled Worker category, RSS will advise the applicant and will not submit an application. RSS may advise of what to work towards and obtain in order to qualify at a future date.
2. Submission Process
Accumulating the supporting documents
Prior to submission of an application for Canadian Permanent Residency to a Canadian Immigration Centre there is a stage in the process considered by RSS Immigration to be the Submission Stage.
This stage includes the collection and submission of supporting documents in order to facilitate the immigration process as well as the completion of the application forms in draft form. In addition the applicant is responsible for the Government Fess.
Work Experience and Educational Credential are key to a Permanent Residency Application.
RSS Immigration will provide their clients with a detailed list of the supporting documents created by our expert and experienced team of immigration professionals. On average, the necessary documents and forms can be accumulated within a month’s time. Upon the receipt of the supporting documents, a review of the information contained within will be verified to match the information provided by the applicant within the application forms.
RSS Immigration will advise each principal applicant of the options of processing centre prior to the submission of an application and the length of the current processing period to visa issuance.
In order to facilitate the assessment of cases, the Canadian Immigration authorities have divided the world into sectors and, within these sectors, certain posts have been assigned the responsibility of assessing applicants for Canadian Permanent Resident status. Not all Canadian immigration posts handle Permanent Resident applications.
3. Application Process
Acknowledgement of Receipt (AOR)
Preliminary Review (Paper Screening)
Interview
Medical Clearance
Security clearance
Selection Decision/Visa issuance
a. Passport Request
b. Validity
Refusal of the applications
While there is a standardized list of required documents, certain processing posts require the submission of additional documentation in order for the application to be considered complete. RSS will cooperate and acknowledge the request of the processing posts and Canadian Immigration in order to facilitate the processing of our clients’ applications and maintain our high standard of service.
Acknowledgement of Receipt
The first communication issued by the Canadian immigration Processing Post is the Acknowledgment of Receipt (AOR). The AOR provides the file number assigned to the application as well as the official receipt for the processing fees paid to the consulate. The issuance of the AOR clearly indicates that the application was received at the immigration processing post and that a file has been created and opened. The AOR does NOT contain the assessment decision for the case.
All future correspondences to and from the consulate should contain the 10 digit alpha numeric number assigned to the case. The file number begins with the letter “B” and consists of 9 digits.
RSS Immigration will receive all communication on behalf of the Applicant. RSS Immigration’s policy is that the applicant will be notified via email within 72 hours of the receipt of the correspondence at their offices.
Preliminary Review (Determining eligibility)
Canadian Immigration will conduct an initial review of your documents (paper-screening). All documents submitted to support the application will be reviewed at this time. It is therefore imperative that a completed application and supporting documentation be submitted, as only the documents submitted will be reviewed. Upon the conclusion of the paper screening of the application the immigration officer will make one of the following decisions:
a. Waiver/Interview Queue
The immigration officer may render a decision that, upon review of the application and supporting documents , the applicant is not required to attend a Personal Selection Interview.
If a Personal Selection Interview is required, the application will be placed in queue to await an interview date. Your interview will NOT be scheduled at this time. The exact date of interview will be provided by the processing post later and this process could take several months after the paper screening section is completed.
b. An Interview Waiver
A notice will be issued and same will be communicated to the client immediately upon receipt by RSS Immigration. To continue and finalize the processing, the applicant will be required to pass both the Medical and Security requirements.
Within the correspondence of the Interview Waiver the immigration officer may also request that further documentation be submitted. The submission of police certificates and evidence of funds are normally requested at this time.
c. Refusal of the application
Upon the initial review of the application, the immigration officer may decide that the documents submitted do not establish the level of qualifications required by Canadian Immigration. An example of this would be if the applicant failed to submit any documents to support the information provided on the application form. For example, should an applicant claim an education level of a Master’s Degree, but fail to submit their Degree and Transcripts, the immigration officer is not required to award the points for the Master’s Degree. Interview
The immigration officer is entitled to request that an applicant attend a Personal Selection Interview if he/she has concerns regarding any or all of the following:
a) Authenticity of the documents submitted
b) Truthful and total completion of the forms;
c) Verification of the information entered on the forms;
d) Clarification of the specific information provided to Immigration Canada
The immigration officers will NOT conduct interviews to:
• assess language abilities
Upon completion of the interview, the applicant will be required to pass both the Medical and Security requirements. The immigration officer may also request that further documentation be submitted as had been requested at the interview. A Permanent Resident Visa can be issued within 12 weeks, from the date of receipt of the last document at the processing post.
Medical Clearance
All Applicants as well as all dependents (accompanying or not) will be required to pass the medical requirement. The medical examination requirement is mandatory and serves the following purposes:
• To protect the health of Canadians;
• To protect the safety of Canadians;
• To reduce and prevent excessive demand on Canada’s health and social services
The medical report is valid for one year from the date of completion.
The medical exam can be completed anywhere in the world. However, in order for the report to be valid, the attending physician who oversees the exam must be indicated on the Designated Medical Practitioner (DMP) list and the results sent to the appropriate medical office. DMP’s are medical officers certified by the Canadian Immigration Authorities to oversee the exams. The DMP’s do not make the final decision regarding an applicant’s admissibility into Canada. Only Canadian Immigration has the right to make this decision.
Security Clearance
Each applicant over the age of 18 is required to pass the security requirement. All applicants must prove that they are not a threat to the safety of Canadian society. Applicants provide this information through police clearances which the applicant must obtain directly and by passing the background clearances which the immigration authorities obtain on behalf of the applicant.
Selection Decision/Visa Issuance
The last stage of the application is the issuance of the Permanent Resident Visa.
Passport request: Once the Immigration authorities are ready to issue the visa, applicants will be required to submit their original passport for visa stamping. Original passports must be submitted for the principal applicant as well as each accompanying family member. For security reasons, the visa is now lasered directly into the passport. Each passport will need to be valid for at least 12 months and have a minimum of 2 pages per visa
Validity: Each Permanent Resident visa is valid for 1 year from the date of the medical exam or until the expiration of the passport. The validity of the PR visa from the date of medical exam refers to the first exam completed (either principal applicant or dependent). The principal applicant and each accompanying dependent must make their official landing in Canada before the PR visa expires. Failure to land before the expiration of your visa will void the visa and will then result in the necessity of a new application. The validity date of the visa CANNOT be extended.
Refusal of Application:
Applicants can be refused at anytime during the process of the application, for any of the following reasons:
• Proof of language skills
• Criminal Issues (have a criminal record in any country)
• Security (failed background checks)
• Medical (failed medical exam)
• Financial reasons (have less then the minimum settlement funds)
• Misrepresentation (failed to be truthful during the application or omitted information)
• Non-compliance (failed to provide any requested information/documents the immigration officer requested or failed to attend a Personal Selection Interview)
• Inadmissible family members (the above reasons for any family member indicated as a dependent on the application form)
