I'll very briefly describe the temporary resident and visitor visa process. When a person applies, they are supposed to submit all of the supporting documents. These include their ability to demonstrate that they are capable financially, that they have a valid reason to travel, and that they have solid roots to assure us that this will be a temporary visit and that this is their intent. We do take into consideration family events and other things. A visa officer determines both their eligibility, in terms of their having a valid reason to go, and their admissibility, in terms their having no serious criminality or any other piece there. Finally, an assessment is based on all of the information available and the risk parameters that have been developed. We determine whether the person will be able to get a visa or not.
When we are unable to give a visa, or when we are refusing to grant a visa, we try to be very explicit about the specific reasons. I would say, with great confidence, they include those parameters that do not go into extreme detail. For example, a visa refusal might indicate that the person's financial ability to support themself during the time they want to be in Canada is not clear to us. If documents are lacking, the visa officer cannot assess financial stability. At other times, we say there is no previous history of travel that gives us the confidence that.... For example, if the requested visa is tourism-related and the person wants to visit Canada for that reason, we ask if they have ever attempted to visit a country nearer their own.
So we take into consideration a multitude of things. Our visa officers take a lot of time.