Anchor Babies

The following article illustrates another example where the current government raises fear over a non-problem to change the very nature of Canadian citizenship.

 http://www.thestar.com/news/immigration/2014/08/18/ottawa_urged_to_remove_citizenship_by_birth_on_canadian_soil.html

The proposal seems to be yet another example of poorly conceptualized policy and law changes, without adequately thinking through the possible consequences they may occasion if implemented.

 

In this case, the "field" appears to have a firmer grip on reality than the "think-tanks" at the National Headquarters. The CBSA is correctly warning the government that these changes will end up costing the Canadian taxpayers disproportionately to the benefits they may realize, while creating operational nightmares. The Government and its “legal beagles”, however, set on their preconceived course,  appear to be deaf to these alarm bells.

 

The whole endeavor seems to be predicated on the irrational obsession with the guarding and protecting of Canadian citizenship. We are constantly reminded by the bureaucrats that "citizenship is a precious privilege" and that the abuse of "Canada's generosity" must be terminated. While one is hard-pressed to put forth convincing arguments against such noble intents, the fact is that this is all based on presumptions, presuppositions and "urban anecdotes". The sad truth is that no government agency keeps statistics on live births to non-status parents in Canada, how many of these babies accompany their parents if the parents are removed or otherwise leave Canada, nor how many of them return in adulthood to sponsor their parents and bring them to Canada. And given the moratorium on the sponsorship of parents, which has practically wiped out that entire class of immigrants, does it really  matter?

 

Canada has signed international conventions that commit us not to make people stateless. Canada is a signatory to the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Yet, the current government is apparently prepared to turn a blind eye and abrogate all those commitments. It finds justification for its intent in the fact that currently only Canada and the United States offer "birth on soil" ("anchor babies" is a disparaging terminology common in the United States) provisions, as if that in itself has no  intrinsic values which sets us apart from the rest of the world.

 

Let us look at an example. Palestinians, who for generations have been moving from country to country never acquire citizenship of any state. Under the proposed changes, children of Palestinians seeking protection  in Canada, would be born in Canada but would not have Canadian citizenship. Then, if the claim of their parents fails, there would be no government to give these babies citizenship and travel documents, hence making it impossible for them to accompany their families if the parents are required to leave Canada and return to the country they came from. Canada, in that scenario, would in fact be engaging in the breaking up of families and making these children a ward of the state.

 

This could also happen to a family that is here on temporary purposes, with no intention of immigrating to Canada, or seeking protection.

 

Losing Canadian Citizenship and Permanent Residence

As if to confirm our last blog posting, the Federal Court recently not only allowed the removal of Canadian citizenship from a family, but also imposed $63, 000 of costs on them. Costs which are very high in Citizenship and Immigration litigation.

 

http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/07/28/blatantly-lying-loses-family-its-citizenship-but-earns-them-a-63k-bill-from-canadian-government/

 

This article illustrates the reality that our warnings are not us “crying wolf” but a true reflection of today’s reality when it comes to Canadian Citizenship and Permanent Residence. The final piece of advice, while seemingly self-serving, is as true. It is wise when dealing with such matters to seek the assistance not only of experienced litigators but of litigators experienced in Citizenship and Immigration matters, and the Federal Court, because such litigation is highly specialized and unique.

 

For those interested this is link to the actual decision of the Federal Court,

 

http://decisions.fct-cf.gc.ca/fc-cf/decisions/en/item/70932/index.do?r=AAAAAQAISG9jaGFpbWUAAAAAAQ

 

Finally, a warning to many clients who have been misled by  so called “professionals” .  Lets just say that maintaining status and citizenship in Canada, is no longer “easy” as you were made to believe, and if you wish to remain Canadian Permanent Residents and Canadian Citizens you better take proactive steps to protect your status. We also believe that criminal prosecutions in certain cases will be a growing reality.

Detentions & Deportations

Recent articles dealing with different subjects, one on deportation of a long-time Canadian and the other about detention, reflect the new reality of Canadian immigration; the focus is no longer on attracting people to Canada, but rather, on kicking people out.

http://www.truenorthtimes.ca/2014/06/16/government-deporting-man-whose-citizenship-revoked-media-grants-sainthood/

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/they-march-in-ottawa-to-push-for-end-to-immigration-detention

Few are safe from this trend. As can be seen from the deportation story, even people who have been citizens for decades are not exempt from losing their citizenship, and facing deportation.

Permanent Residents should be aware that they are most vulnerable to this problem when they are applying for citizenship, as the government is checking carefully not only that you meet the residency requirements for citizenship, but also going back to check for other problems of possible misrepresentation (for example failing to declare a spouse at the time of landing).

The government is also evaluating other inadmissibility criteria including examining whether individuals have met the residency requirement for maintaining one’s PR status. In fact, it seems that the government  is deliberately delaying processing of citizenship applications across the country, not only to ensure that persons have maintained the Permanent Residency requirement prior to applying for citizenship, but also ensuring that they have stayed in Canada and maintained their residency requirements after they applied for citizenship. That is, if you applied in 2012, and the application is not processed until 2014, the government may check whether you have been out of the country since 2012, and may look as far back as five years prior to your date of application, in this case, looking to 2009, if during that time period, you have been out of the Canada.

As for detention, it is becoming a reality for an increasing number of people, including tourists.  It is not only alarming  that tourists who happen to be confused at the port of entry and do not answer questions to the satisfaction of the very aggressive CBSA are increasingly  being detained, but even more alarming is the length of time for which they are being detained. They are often being detained for  a month or more without being allowed out on bond and then deported back.  Even when released, their bonds are often astronomical compared to what you see in criminal cases. In these detention cases, bonds are often in the tens of thousands of dollars. The new reality of Canadian immigration is casting an increasingly wider net and legitimate applicants, even Canadians, may risk being caught up in it.