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Refusal of Admission to Canada

What are your options when your application for admission to Canada has been denied?

We know how frustrating it can be when you have been denied a visa or admission to Canada. Every day, immigration authorities receive applications for permanent residence, visitor’s visas, work permits, TRP’s, study permits, etc. Not all applications are accepted. Also, Canada receives travellers from all over the world by air, or by private or commercial vehicle. Some are denied entry even though they may have already been to Canada many times before. Fortunately, you have options.

Sometimes, we can resolve these matters informally with the immigration officer handling the matter. On other occasions, we can help our clients by simply applying again with better supporting documentation and a better explanation as to why you comply with all legal requirements. Sometimes, there is no other way to solve the problem other than through a legal challenge.

Fortunately, almost any decision made by immigration officials can be challenged either in the Federal Court of Canada or at the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB). Our team of litigation lawyers can help assemble the relevant facts of your case and determine if the process that was used to refuse the application was fair. Then we can prepare the appropriate proceeding to get you the desired results. When it comes to challenging refusals and removals, timing is everything. The timing for submitting applications to appeal or review a decision is time limited. It is extremely important to appeal or judicially review an application within the time limits allowed by law. As soon as you become aware of a negative decision please contact us at once to make sure that your right to a fair result does not expire.

Frequently asked questions about denied entry

All decisions made by Federal official may be reviewed in Federal Court. There are special rules which have been established for citizenship and immigration decisions. Essentially, every immigration action is subject to a judicial review by the court.

The only scenario where a person may not have a right to judicial review is where they have a right to appeal the decision to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD), which is a far more fulsome and involved process.

If it is in a case of a decision made by an officer from within Canada, notice of application must be received by Federal Court no later than 15 days from the day on which you received the decision. For an application made outside of Canada, the limitation date is 60 days. Applications for judicial review of decisions made by citizenship judges must be filed with the court no later than 30 days from the day on which the decision was received.

No, you may not. Applications for judicial review are considered based only on the material that was before the officer rendering the decision. Although there are limited circumstances where new evidence may be admissible in court, generally speaking, only the evidence that was before the officer may be considered.

Only members of a provincial or territorial Law Society have standing to represent their clients in Federal Court. This means that immigration consultants or other representatives may not act on your behalf before a Federal Court judge.

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Why should you hire Mamann Sandaluk LLP to represent you before the federal court?

We have several lawyers on our processing team who are experienced with the Express Entry program, and who are always up to date on recent legislative and policy developments. They can assist with the sometimes overwhelming process of calculating your point-total and submitting the necessary documents to substantiate your application and ensure that your permanent residence application gets processed in a timely manner.