Lankans queue up for Canadian PR status

While job and business investment opportunities are booming in Canada as per recent statistical data according to a Dubai based permanent residence ( PR) consultancy firm, many Sri Lankans have come forward to apply for PR and work permit visas.

The Business Times met some of the officials from the Dubai- based Vazir Group in Colombo last week who introduced PR programmes to the Sri Lankan market. More than 300 individuals both looking for jobs and local businesses looking for investment opportunities in Canada were present among the gathering for consultancy programmes. Some have already signed contracts with the consultancy firm to obtain Canadian PR. Each programme package introduced by Vazir Group costs US$ 50,000. The event was held at the Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo on Friday and Saturday and at the Grand Kandyan on Sunday.

The aim of Vazir Group which has offices in Dubai, China and Canada is to allow people enter Canada through investments and obtain citizenship. The demand for this product is increasing year- on- year, said Vrinda Gupta, Managing Partner for Vazir Group in Dubai to the Business Times.

“Overwhelmingly there has been a great response from Sri Lankans to migrate to Canada. The demand from Sri Lankans seen the most is for Canada. It’s because of the numerous opportunities that Canada provides. To retain the Canadian PR, you have to be there for two years out of five ( either work or run a business),” she added.

She also mentioned that Vazir Group provides three different programmes to its clients - work permit visas transformed to PR after completion of two years, investing in a new business in Canada or buy an already existing business entity there.

Ms. Gupta noted that 80 per cent of clients who want to move to Canada come for better education opportunities for their children.

“Our applications have 95 per cent success rates. If anything goes wrong and the application is refused by the local embassy, the money will be refunded if we don’t find a job for a client in 90 days. It takes about three to six months to get a work permit. For investment programmes it takes about 10 to12 months for the process,” she explained.

The Canadian economy is booming and so is the number of job and investment opportunities. The country has only 38 million people which is equivalent to the number of people in California in the US. There is a lot of room to expand in Canada, says Gaetano Gior n o f e l i c e, Senior Consultant, Vazir Group.

Vazir Group also helps people migrate to Greece, Portugal, Malta, Cyprus and the Caribbean Islands. “Our expertise lies in Canada,” he added.