Author Archive for graham

Durham region benefits from Canadian immigration funding

Published by
graham
at September 29, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

As the ongoing bid to attract an increasing number of migrants to its shores, the Canadian government has made the Durham region the latest recipient of funding designed to help new migrants settle into society.

Immigration Minister Diane Finley has pledged funds to a total of six organisations in the Durham area, which has become increasingly popular as a destination for new Canadian migration in recent years. The funding, set to amount to a total of $6 million, is expected to help some 2,400 foreign migrants integrate themselves into their new communities.

The services of the six organisations concerned will include referrals to community resources, advice and guidance, language assessment, language training, general information, and help finding a job.

Minister Finley commented: “This funding will give [migrants] the support they need to settle into the Durham community. Since 2006, the Government of Canada has begun investing an additional $1.4 billion in settlement funding over five years to help newcomers integrate and succeed in Canadian society.”

In recent years, the Canadian government has placed a high emphasis on helping new migrants integrate into society, and the Canadian Immigration Services have made it clear that it will continue to welcome migrants with Canadian skilled visas by offering such services in the future.

Canada takes measures to speed up migration application processing

Published by
graham
at September 22, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

The Canadian government has announced a pilot scheme to centralise the intake of applications for Canadian skilled migration.

$109 million has been pledged by the government in order to implement the changes, which will see 30 newly-trained staff working alongside experienced staff in a new office located in Sydney, Nova Scotia. The centre will provide a faster service for the processing of Canadian skilled visa applications, which it will begin in October.

Immigration Minister, Diane Finley said: “In order to get the people we need to this country, we need to process applications faster. This pilot is one of several measures we are taking to help reduce wait times overall. By centralizing the intake of federal skilled worker applications, we are alleviating some of the workload in our overseas visa offices. This allows visa officers to focus more on processing applications.”

In addition to the establishment of the new processing centre, Canadian immigration officials have been working to reduce the waiting time of applications to be processed. Measures to address such problems include sending staff to areas where processing backlogs are currently unmanageable.

Canadian Experience Class introduced to national immigration scheme

Published by
graham
at September 22, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

As of 17 September, Canada’s new visa class, named the Experience Class, has been in full effect. Under the newly-introduced scheme, certain temporary foreign workers and students will be allowed to apply for permanent residency in Canada.

The scheme targets foreign workers and international student graduates with professional, managerial and skilled work experience. Unlike Canada’s traditional visa classes, the Experience Class allows an applicant’s previous experience in Canada to serve as a “key selection factor” in relation to their application for Canadian residency.

The move comes as Canada, like other popular migration destinations such as Australia and New Zealand, attempts to heighten its profile by attracting a growing number of foreign workers and graduates to its shores.

Canadian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Diane Finley, commented: “With the Canadian Experience Class fully in place, Canada will be more competitive in attracting and retaining individuals with the skills we need.”

She added: “It, along with other recent improvements to modernize the immigration system, will go a long way in bringing Canada in line with its global competitors while further spreading the benefits of immigration into smaller centres across Canada.”

Since the initial proposal to introduce the Canadian Experience Class was made in August, the policy regarding eligibility has been adapted. Originally, only foreign workers and graduates with temporary residence in Canada were allowed to apply, however, this has since been extended to applicants who have left Canada in the last year, but wish to return.

Canadian migrants heading for smaller towns

Published by
graham
at September 22, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

Statistics released by Citizenship and Immigration Canada have revealed that a growing number of people are migrating to Canada’s small and mid-sized towns towns, rather than the traditional big cities.

Last year, Charlottetown’s migration intake increased by a staggering 73 per cent on 2006, with other small regions such as Moncton and Saskatoon welcoming a migration increase 31 per cent and 40 per cent on the pervious year. Overall, Alberta revelled in a massive increase of 93 per cent migration intake compares to the figures for 2006.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada explained that the shifting migration pattern was party due to the Provincial Nomination Program, which encourages skilled workers to immigrate to Canada’s more regional areas.

Overall, the statistics and social factors surrounding immigration to Canada’s smaller towns are highly favourable. New migrants find it easier to integrate into society in regional towns, income rates are higher on average, unemployment is lower, and the demand for housing is greatly reduced.

Vancouver Island Health Authority lists available jobs online

Published by
graham
at August 21, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 1 Comment

The Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA) has published an up-to-date list of available positions in various fields of nursing on its website, in order to encourage qualified nurses to migrate to Canada and take up work in its hospitals.

The online directory of available positions includes detailed job descriptions as well as the salary range, posting number and location information.

Links to information on posting positions is provided below:

Nursing recruitment homepage

British Columbia Nurses Salary information (PDF)

Canadian Experience Class launched with view to boosting workforce

Published by
graham
at August 18, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

Canada has taken a further step towards attracting and retaining foreign workers by introducing a scheme designed to facilitate the transition from temporary to permanent residents for certain temporary foreign workers and foreign students.

The Canadian Experience Class opens up a new path for professionals and students graduates from abroad with qualifications in managerial, technical or trade work who hope to become permanent residents of Canada; keeping the Canadian migration policy in line with other popular migration destinations such as Australia.

Selection will be based on a pass / fail system, and applicants will be allowed to remain and continue employment in Canada whilst their application is being processed. All applicants will require a moderate command of either English or French.

Immigration Minister Diane Finley commented: “The Canadian Experience Class is one more measure this government is proposing to make our immigration system more attractive and accessible to individuals with diverse skills from around the world, and more responsive to Canada’s labour market needs.”

The Canada Gazette explains: “The proposed Regulations create two distinct streams with different thresholds for each selection criterion, one for recent foreign graduates, and the other for temporary foreign workers. Foreign graduates will need to obtain 12 months of legal work experience within a 24-month period prior to making a CEC application, obtain a Canadian credential by studying in Canada full-time for at least two academic years, and meet the language benchmark for their occupation skill level. Temporary foreign workers will need to obtain 24 months of legal work experience in Canada within a 36-month period prior to making a CEC application and meet the language benchmark for their occupation skill level.”

Canada unveils conference agenda to redress immigration priorities

Published by
graham
at July 28, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

The Canadian government has released a timetable of meetings to be held between Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and state officials in various Canadian provinces. The meetings will be aimed at discussing which occupations will be considered worthy of allowing migrants into Canada under the new fast-track immigration system and which would not.

Following the changes made to the Immigration and Refugee Act on 18 June, the government now has the right to process the applications of certain migration hopefuls over others based on their occupation.

If an application is lodged by someone who possesses much-needed skills, they could be granted the right to live and work in Canada in as little as six to twelve months. Recently, applications have taken as long as six years to be processed due to a crippling backlog.

According to the CIC website, the government aims to achieve three goals during the meetings with provincial representatives, they are: to Improve Canada’s competitiveness and more closely align the skills of newcomers with Canada’s labour shortages; to ensure that immigration targets are met and to ensure the backlog does not grow; and that people who apply for Canadian migration receive a decision quickly.

The CIC has also mentioned that three main discussion themes will form the basis of the consultations:

1. The role of the immigration program in addressing specific labour market needs
2. Occupational pressures in each participants’ workplace, industry, sector and region
3. Federal skilled worker applications filed on or after February 27, 2008: prioritization of those applications meeting labour market needs, return of others.

Canadian migration expert Eric Katz commented: “It is clear that Canada is going the way of Labour Market immigration. In other words, demand for certain types of immigrants with specific skills will dictate who gets in or more specifically who gets in quickly (i.e. in 6 - 12 months).

I honestly believe that this occupations that are currently under pressure on a Province by Province basis will be getting their cases fast-tracked to between 6 and 12 months. If you look at the Regional Occupational lists of jobs under pressure or some of the Provincial Nominee Programs, you will be able to read between the lines to see where the Feds are going with this.

Since the last National Roundtable of consultations is August 15th, it is likely that the actual job list will come into effect sometime in September”.

Follow the links to view the Regional Occupations Under Pressure Lists for:
Alberta
British Columbia
Ontario

Canada restructures migration program to address workforce needs

Published by
graham
at July 22, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

Under new immigration law, Canada’s Minister for Migration and Citizenship, Diane Finley, and her staff will have the power to dictate which categories of migration applications are prioritised, held pending future consideration or returned with a refund.

The move comes as a further means of reducing a migration application backlog, which can last up to six years. Under the new legislation, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) aims to cut this down to six to twelve months.

Moreover, the law aligns Canadian immigration with the country’s labour shortages, allowing much needed professionals to obtain visas more quickly, thus addressing the workforce crisis as efficiently as possible.

According to the CIC website, consultations held under the new migration system will: “focus on identifying critical occupational shortages, the role of immigration in responding to them, and any barriers to foreign credential accreditation.

They will help develop instructions to immigration officers on which applications are identified for priority processing, particularly in the federal skilled worker category.”

“We committed to consulting across the country and we are delivering on that commitment,” said Minister Finley. “I believe this inclusive approach will help identify the categories of workers who get priority, and will allow us to prepare instructions that reflect the knowledge and expertise of the provinces, territories and stakeholders.”

Canadian migration expert Eric Katz said the following of the new migration system: “This is a clear indication that the Canadian Government is committed to changing its system of selection to a labour market style program. In addition, it also appears that they are committed to reducing the processing times to between 6 and 12 months - somewhat similar to the Australian model.”

“I really think this is positive news for Canada as a country in that it will be able to seriously address labour shortages in specific sectors and parts of the country. It also will prioritise migrants based on their skills and not offer false hopes to those who would file an application and wait years and years for it to be processed.”

Top Canadian minister set to lure UK citizens across the pond where a better life awaits

Published by
graham
at July 3, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 1 Comment

The Canadian government has stated its intention to attract British workers to its shores by offering them fast-tracked immigration visa applications which will exploit the rising cost of living in the UK.

Canada expects that large numbers of Britons will be lured in by the scheme, with increasing unrest as a result of soaring food and fuel prices in Great Britain, as well as the diminishing quality its hospitals and the state school system.

Hector Goudreau has been sent to Britain to target such individuals in an audacious and aggressive recruitment raid. He will be targeting doctors, nurses, teachers, electricians, construction workers, engineers, carpenters and joiners, management consultants and cardiac and diabetes experts, all of whom will be eligible for fast-track immigration applications.

Mr. Goudreau commented: “Somebody from London might be able to sell their small flat and come to Alberta where they can buy a detached house with a huge back yard and huge front yard for the same amount.

‘The cost of living is considerably less than in the UK. Our salaries are comparable or even higher, so anyone who moves over would be able to make money and set some aside.”

He then went on to speak exclusively about the province of Alberta, stating: “We are looking at attracting 50,000 foreign workers within the next year alone.

‘There is beautiful scenery, the health care system is second to none in the world and our educational system is second to none in the world. We have some of the lowest business taxes, there is no province sales tax on goods.”

Alberta’s population is just 3.4 million, less than half of London’s, though it covers an area twice the size of Japan. The average annual salary for a civil engineer in Alberta last year was £44,428.

Mr. Goudreau continued: “There has been a recent change in the UK economy which is part of the reason we are targeting it, it is a very important priority for us.
“If there are a lack of future or opportunities here we will encourage the individuals who feel this way to come to Alberta.

“There are tremendous opportunities, all over the world the people are feeling the housing crunch, but we aren’t. We might have some very little dips, but we have a very stable economy which is set up for the future.”

Canada signs new immigration act with Prince Edward Island

Published by
graham
at June 24, 2008 in Canada Immigration. 0 Comments

Citizenship and Immigration Canada has announced an new Agreement for Canada – Prince Edward Island Co-operation in conjunction with PEI’s Minister of Innovation and Advanced learning.

The new agreement is geared towards making it easier for the province to attract a greater number of skilled workers from abroad, whilst processing applications more quickly and increasing its Francophone community.

“The Government of Canada believes in immigration and the signing of today’s new agreement means Prince Edward Island has an immigration agreement that is tailored to the province’s unique needs and priorities,” said Immigration Minister Diane Finley.

She continued: “The focus of the Prince Edward Island agreement is the removal of limits in the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), collaboration on overseas marketing initiatives, and the targeted use of the PNP to attract and retain Francophone immigrants. This will ensure that the province is able to select the number of immigrants it needs to meet labour market demands and build a stronger economy.”

Allan Campbell, Minister of Fisheries, Aquaculture and Rural Development for Prince Edward Island said: “We are very pleased to renew this immigration agreement with the federal government. It gives the province the authority we need to attract new immigrants who will meet gaps in our labour market and help boost our declining population.”

The key points outlined in the new agreement are as follows:

- Prince Edward Island will be able to address particular social, demographic, economic development and labour market needs.

- Prince Edward Island will be able to nominate more immigrants possessing the skills needed in the province, for quicker processing by the Government of Canada.

- Prince Edward Island and Canada will work together to share information and to develop and implement strategies to better integrate immigrants into the labour market. This includes improving the process for the recognition of foreign credentials.

- Canada and Prince Edward Island will enhance their cooperation in overseas immigration marketing initiatives, including bringing temporary foreign workers and students to the province.

- There will be increased encouragement for the recruitment and retention of Francophone immigrants through the Provincial Nominee Program.

Increased immigration will help boost the population of Prince Edward Island and will provide must needed skills that will benefit local business and industry.

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