Citizenship and Immigration Committee on Nov. 30th, 2020

[Misha Pelletier]

Yes, of course.

I completely agree with Ms. Mira. Our group has the same feeling. It's fortunate that we teamed up because we're stronger together. That's how we mobilized and met the various opposition members so they could, I hope, make changes to immigration.

That's it.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Please answer briefly, with a yes or no.

Does being in a group help you determine whether the announcements IRCC makes actually work?

[Misha Pelletier]

Yes. We often conduct surveys these days, in which people really participate and…

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Madam Pelletier, but your time is up.

We will now move to Ms. Kwan.

You have six minutes for your round of questioning.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Thank you very much, Madam Chair, and thank you to all the witnesses.

My first question is for Ms. Pelletier.

Part of the issue, of course, and the frustration for families is that they can't readily get an update on what's going on with the files. Literally, people are not able to contact anyone. We were talking a bit about updating systems. Would it make sense for the government to provide a system whereby you can actually get online and find out what is the status of your application?

Similarly, if a TRV has been rejected, you would be able to get that information on the website when you go into your account, similar to that for your taxes. When you went into My Account you would be able to get all of your information.

Would it make sense for the government to actually proceed in this way?

[Misha Pelletier]

Yes, absolutely. We came to the conclusion that there are a lot of callbacks, emails and calls to the MPs based on the fact that we're not accessing our information because we either have an immigration lawyer or a consultant accessing our file, and we don't have access. It would be logical to give one point of access as well as have only one website rather than two, like GCKey and cic.gc.ca, which we have right now. We have two websites to access, so it creates a lot of confusion for the applicants.

It would be great if we just had one site with all the information, and that's it, which both immigration lawyers and applicants can access at the same time.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Thank you.

On a similar question, you raised the issue around expired medicals. Medicals are very expensive and you proposed that the government extend the period to which the medicals would apply.

Alternatively, could the government also ensure that the medicals are done at the end stage? That is to say, in the final step of your application, once everything's approved, you then get your medical done. Then, once you complete that medical, your application is approved.

Would that not make sense, so that you don't run into a situation where you have an expired medical over and over again and have to go through the process numerous times?

[Misha Pelletier]

Exactly.

It's very costly for our members who travel from one country to another. For instance, someone in Cuba has to go to Trinidad and Tobago. It costs over $5,000 or $6,000. Also, Honduras.... They also need to travel in rural areas. It can be very dangerous.

The best thing to do is actually leave it for the end. That way they won't run into the same problem. Regardless of whether it's COVID or not, we would ask that it be done at the end of the application, rather than in the middle or near the beginning.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Thank you.

I'm going to turn to Ms. Guthrie.

Ms. Guthrie, you were talking about caregivers who are experiencing a difficult time in the face of COVID. Many of them are not getting their 24-month work requirements completed because of COVID. That's been interrupted.

Then the other issue, of course, is that some of their children are aging out with their PR application.

I wonder, Ms. Guthrie, if you can comment on that and what your recommendation is for the government to address this issue.

[Nicole Guthrie]

We would recommend that the government look at applicants who enter the program. Particularly for COVID at this point, it would be helpful if the age of children is locked in from March for applicants. Ideally, it would be great if, as with the refugee protection program, once someone applies to the program, the age of children is locked in on that date.

It would be helpful if similar criteria were adopted for the caregiver applicants.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

That would be locking in the age of the children so they don't age out.

On the issue around interrupted time, should the government, for example, count the interrupted time towards the 24-month work requirement?

[Nicole Guthrie]

It would be helpful if the government would be flexible and count that time, as well. It's very hard for caregivers to find employment. The processing time for work permits and LMIAs, which some caregivers still need, is really long and difficult.

At this point, the processing time is six months for a work permit only. LMIAs are similarly taking much longer, so you're looking at clients being unemployed for a year or a year and a half.

It would be really helpful to count that time.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Thank you.

I have one minute left. Do you have any other recommendations to make to the government in terms of changes in policy and approaches as a special COVID measure for migrant workers?

[Nicole Guthrie]

As I stated earlier and I wish to reiterate, it would be very helpful if all these workers who are waiting for permanent resident applications that are in process, like interim caregivers, or caregivers under the new pilot who have been told the processing time for a work permit is a year, could get short-term work permits that would help them to be able to work, and then be able to count that work time—or at least earn money, so they could help their families.

A lot of these are women of colour or single women who come to Canada and are trying to support young children and families back home. It would be really helpful if we could issue—

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Madam Guthrie, but the time is up.

We will now—

[Sukh Dhaliwal, Liberal, Surrey—Newton, BC]

Madam Chair, will we adjourn the meeting soon?

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

Yes. The first round has come to an end. We will now have the shorter second round. We will have four minutes each for the Liberals and the Conservatives and then two minutes each for the Bloc and NDP.

We will start with Mr. Saroya.

You will have four minutes for your round of questioning.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Thank you so much, Madam Chair.

Thank you to the witnesses for bringing your feedback to us.

Listening to Armelle and Roxane from Montreal, it sounds like a Liberal Nightmare on Elm Street. My head got tired listening to the whole thing from Armelle. This system is supposed to work for you, not for the IRCC. The students bring in $23 billion to the Canadian economy. They are tired of waiting. The system doesn't work for you. You sent 10,000 signatures to the minister, and you are still waiting. There is the cost of renewing the visas.

Armelle or Roxane, do you have any suggestions for the government or for the minister on what they should be doing? The system should be working for you, rather than working for somebody else.

[Roxane Hatem]

In our investigation of our situation, we learned that, in Quebec, files are apparently forwarded and processed in paper format. We don't have access to electronic versions to submit our applications for permanent residence.

When COVID-19 hit and IRCC employees couldn't work, our files weren't processed at all. My recommendation to IRCC is that it modernize the system for Quebec because submitting paper files doesn't work.

Then, as I said, we should really be given open work permits so we don't have to pay visa costs. Every time you change employers, you have to negotiate a new work visa. Sometimes employers even tell us they'll hire us if we pay for our own work visa. It's gotten to that point. So the suggestion is really that we should be given an open work permit, as is done in the other provinces of Canada.

I'll hand over to Ms. Mara.

[Armelle Mara]

Thank you for your question, Mr. Saroya.

Yes, it's very difficult and really awful for us to apply for work visas in Quebec. Applying for a closed work permit to get a job is complicated. So it would really be appropriate to give us an open work permit, which would enable us to wait for our permanent residence without having to renew any permits. There are cases where officials renewed and granted permits for only six months, and the applicants had to redo the procedure afterwards. That's exhausting for the employer and for us. A work permit with an open term would be a gain for us.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

There are many Liberal MPs listening today. You have all their ears. They're telling us that everything is hunky-dory, that it's good. What would you suggest to them needs to be done to get people like you—

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Mr. Saroya, but the interpreters are asking if you could move your microphone closer to your mouth. They're having some difficulty hearing you.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Sorry. Can you hear me? Is that better?

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

Yes.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Thank you so much.

What I'm saying is that the students are young. They want to work. They want to stay in the country. They speak the languages. We should be working with the students. They could be working for the next 30 or 40 years in this country.

What would you suggest to this government and to the Liberal MPs who are listening to you right now? What should be done to make sure people like you are heard and the system is working for you?