an alliance of university, community, and government partners dedicated to fostering welcoming communities and promoting the integration of immigrants and minorities across Canada
The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
Immigration remains a federal responsibility, but agreements with Ottawa allow provinces to nominate candidates who want to invest and run a business for accelerated immigration. Here are the requirements for entrepreneurs applying under provincial nominee programs.
Ottawa plans to replace the immigrant entrepreneur program it shelved last year with a new system aimed at identifying and speeding the path for “high value innovators,” Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says. The previous program, in place for a decade, “was administratively very burdensome and underwhelming in terms of the results.” When it was suspended last July, it had a backlog of nearly 10,000 applicants, and with an average of about 1,000 to 1,500 approvals a year it would have taken nearly eight years to clear, even without new applications.
Last week, Immigration and Citizenship Minister Jason Kenney laid out a plan to help Canada find the right immigrants for the right jobs. These changes have the potential to accelerate the rate at which new immigrants can get on their feet and the rate at which Canada can benefit from their contributions.[…]The changes, of course, will have consequences, whether intended or unintended, so their implementation must be carefully considered.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/choosing-the-right-new-canadian/article2363138/
Nova Scotia is facing a looming labour crunch, with demand for skilled workers expected to outstrip supply by 2014. Although immigration is being pointed to as a panacea, a cap on the provincial nominee program could hamper efforts to expand the workforce. While some observers say Nova Scotia is still struggling to overcome a sullied reputation from immigration scandals past, others say it’s time to overhaul the province’s approach to attracting newcomers.
http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/71878-broad-immigration-strategy-needed-coming-labour-shortage
Only about three per cent of Hungarian Roma refugee applications are successful at the IRB. Roma refugee cases have exploded over the last five years. In 2007 there were just 34. In 2011 there were almost 5,000. The Roma refugee boom coincides with two factors — the 2007 lifting of visa requirements for Hungary and increasing prominence of the extreme right wing Jobbik party in the Hungarian parliament.
http://bcc.rcav.org/canadian/1423-refugee-reform-makes-it-us-vs-them
Most would-be immigrants seek professional help with their applications, to boost their chance of acceptance. But paying for a lawyer or consultant’s advice turns out to be more helpful in some categories than others, according to government data. In fact, for applicants in the spousal sponsorship, self-employed and provincial nominee categories, people who don’t use third-party representation actually get approved at rates similar to or higher than those who pay huge fees to an immigration lawyer or registered consultant.