Huckvale LLP provides a full range of services in the area of immigration and citizenship law, including applications for Temporary and Permanent Residence in Canada.

Temporary Status

  • Work permits, including NAFTA and GATS
  • Live-in Caregiver Applications
  • HRSDC work Confirmations
  • Study permits
  • Visitor visas
  • Temporary Resident permits

Permanent Residence & Citizenship

  • Investors
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Self-employed applicants
  • Skilled Workers
  • Provincial Nominee Program applications
  • Spouse / Common-law Partner Sponsorships
  • Family Sponsorships and Appeals
  • Permanent Resident Card applications
  • Citizenship applications

Litigation Services

  • Federal Court judicial reviews and appeals
  • Stay of Removals
  • Immigration Appeal Division cases
  • Immigration Division inquiries
  • Citizenship Revocation defence

Contact our

Immigration Law Team

Immigration Law FAQ

A lot of factors come into play when an Immigration Officer reviews any application, including ones finances, reason for extension request, and the applicant’s demeanor at an interview. In all instances, many findings of fact are discretionary on the part of the Immigration Officer, and can result in varying results from person to person.

No. While there are some exceptions for members of the media, performing artists, etc., in most instances you will require a Work Permit in order to be employed in Canada.

You must also be careful if you plan to attend to any volunteer work. While volunteering is not expressly prohibited by the Legislation, if you are volunteering for any work that is ordinarily paid labour, it can be deemed to be employment. Your working without a permit can expose you and your employer to being charged with an Offence under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

Yes. If you are in Canada with a valid Study Permit and are studying full time, you are able to work on the campus of the University or College where you study for the duration of your Study Permit. Any other employment will require a Work Permit.

Any decision rendered by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, or the Immigration and Refugee Board can be appealed. In some instances it can be appealed internally through the Immigration Appeal Division, or the Federal Court of Canada. In all cases there is a time-limit in which one can appeal any decision. In some instances the appeal must be filed as soon as 15 days after you have received your decision, so acting quickly is extremely important.

The processing fees you paid when your application was submitted are non-refundable regardless of the outcome of your application. This must be distinguished from the “Right of Permanent Residence Fee” which is refunded if your application is rejected.

It is extremely important that your Application is submitted completely and accurately. If it is submitted without all of the required information, it can be returned to you. At a minimum, an incomplete application means that more time will have to pass before an Immigration Officer is able to review your application.

When an application is returned to you, you run the risk of adult children becoming too old to be included in your application, or for you to lose points under a Skilled Worker or other Business Class application because too much time has passed. Once those items have expired, they are no longer able to be included in your application, and may mean that you are no longer eligible for your intended application.

It is important that your application is completed fully and accurately when it is submitted the first time. In some instances, the application may not be returned to you, and may be processed despite the fact you had forgotten certain vital information to prove your claim. Here, you risk having your application rejected, when it otherwise could have been approved. You will also lose your Processing Fees.

If a new application must be submitted, you will have to submit new fees, and wait the processing time-line again.

No. An applicant for Canadian Permanent Residence can only be sponsored by a specific class of relatives under the Family Class. Under the Family Class, one can sponsor their spouse (married or common-law), parents or grandparents and their dependent children, and other family members in differing circumstances. Dependent children must be under the age of 22 and unmarried, or 22 and over, unmarried, and financially dependent on their parent (i.e. attending post-secondary education, or having a medical disability). In this instance other avenues for Permanent Residence may be available to you.

Yes. Your partner can sponsor you to live in Canada permanently under the Family Class in those circumstances where a genuine “marriage-like” relationship can be proven to exist for at least one year. This is a more difficult application to make than for those who are married or have been living common-law for a year or more, and the evidence required for such an application should be carefully explored before submitting an application, and paying the application fees required by Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

James, a Canadian Citizen was married to a woman who was a Citizen of the Ukraine, and was living overseas while he resided in Canada. Together they applied for her Canadian Permanent Residence as a member of the Family Class, which application he sponsored. He obtained the assistance of someone who indicated that they were familiar with such applications. The application was submitted to Citizenship and Immigration Canada, but was not completed properly, and without proper evidence for the application to have been successful. The application waited at Citizenship and Immigration in the processing queue before an Immigration Officer returned the application to James as incomplete. This error cost him and his wife approximately 10 months in time apart.

James came to us for assistance. Because of the amount of time that had passed since his wife had completed her immigration medical and criminal background checks, new checks had to be obtained to be submitted with the new application. The new application was submitted, and she was successfully granted Canadian Permanent Residence within the year.