Red tape leaves immigrants in legal limbo
Ottawa issues permanent resident visas, but it’s not opening its borders
Emeka Machie, his wife and son left their hometown of Onitsha in Nigeria on March 15 for a 500-kilometre ride on dirt roads to Lagos, where they were to board a flight to start a new life in Canada.
They stopped to bid their families farewell and, thanks to the rough state of the roads, what was supposed to be a sevenhour journey ended up being an all-day affair.
After packing their belongings into a cargo shipment bound for their new home in Calgary the next day, they were ready to board their flight on March 18, when they found out Canada’s borders had been shut as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now, eight months after the cancellation of that trip, the family — split between Machie’s parents and in-laws — is still waiting to hear from Canadian immigration officials when the border will reopen to all those with now-expired permanent resident visas, like him.
“I never envisaged we would stay this long with so much uncertainty, no clear timelines or pattern of processing,” says Machie, a pharmacist, who is staying with his parents in Nigeria while his microbiologist wife, Ogechukwu Francess, and twoyear-old son, Kobichimdi Owen, are with his in-laws. Their visas expired on May 29.
“I check my email every second of the day, hoping to get an email from Canada immigration with my authorization letter. It’s depressing.”
Since March 18, with the exemptions for essential travel and close family members, only Canadian citizens and landed
permanent residents have been allowed to enter Canada. (A landed permanent resident is someone who is already in the country as opposed to a PR visa holder, who is a permanent resident in waiting.)
According to the immigration department, more than 15,786 applicants who received their permanent resident visas before March 19 have had their documents expire as of the end of October.
Anyone with expired visas or visas issued after March18 must apply online for an authorization letter to enter Canada. About 2,700 principal applicants filled out the web form and more than 120 received authorization.
Even with the letter, Canada border agents still have the final say at ports of entry. While immigration officials continue to process permanent resident applications, the government has no timeline for when the border will be reopened.
It’s a situation that has critics questioning why the federal government is keeping ready permanent residents, such as the Machies, out of the country.
“These newcomers have sold their homes, quit their jobs, pulled their kids out of school and bought their plane tickets, only to have the borders close with no communication from the government for eight months as to when they will be able to start their new lives in Canada,” said MP Raquel Dancho, immigration critic for the Conservatives.
“This sort of mismanagement these many months into a global pandemic is unacceptable and proves the government’s plans to bring hundreds of thousands of new immigrants to Canada in 2021 is unrealistic.”
Last month, Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino unveiled Canada’s immigration plan for the next three years, with an intake that would reach 401,000 in 2021; 411,000 in 2022; and 421,000 in 2023 — equivalent to one per cent of the population.
“Before the pandemic, our government’s goal to drive the economy forward through immigration was ambitious. Now, it is simply vital,” he told reporters.
Alexander Cohen, Mendicino’s press secretary, said the government recognizes these restrictions can be frustrating, but said they help contain the spread of COVID-19 and save lives.
New exemptions to promote family reunifications have allowed some to join loved ones here, he said, and officials need to be cautious as many of the settlement agencies that serve newcomers are struggling with reduced capacity.
“While many countries have closed their doors, we continue our work to welcome new Canadians, within these constraints,” Cohen said.
Toronto-based immigration policy analyst Kareem El-Assal said Canada is expected to fall short of its immigration target of 340,000 permanent residents this year by nearly 150,000. It will be the lowest intake level in more than two decades — the result of the travel restrictions.
The immigration department “could really support Canada’s economic recovery by fasttracking efforts to enable the Canadians of tomorrow to arrive here sooner and make lasting contributions,” he said.
“Protecting the health and safety of Canadians is the main priority. At the same time, we need to remember that travellers are subject to rigorous health screenings pre- and post-arrival to Canada and are also required by Canadian law to quarantine for 14 days when they land.”
MP Jenny Kwan, immigration critic for the New Democrats, says the government currently doesn’t have any system to respond to those whose permanent resident visas have expired while waiting for admission to Canada.
“The absurdity of the situation is laughable, if the implications weren’t so serious. People’s lives are completely stalled and they are now stuck in the middle of nowhere. You have to ask the question: ‘Why does the government bother to keep on processing applications?’” asked Kwan.
“Having their application approved on paper means nothing if they can’t enter into the country.”
Asimple solution to this problem, she said, is for the government to honour expired permanent resident visas and let them into the country, provided they follow all required public health rules.
University of Calgary sociology professor Naomi Lightman said she doesn’t believe Canadian authorities are denying admission of these newcomers out of “evil intent” but that it reflects a bureaucratic incompetence on the part of the government.
“It is just another example how we haven’t adequately prepared for the circumstances the pandemic has brought on. In Canada, we can’t benefit socially and economically from immigration if we are not allowing people in,” said Lightman, an expert in migration.
“It makes no sense to just not prioritize this group to come into this country, but create more red tape for them. Ethically, it is unfair to cut them off midway through the process. They did their part in applying to come in good faith. Canada has the obligation to follow through.”