NY Times, 2007: Illegal Immigrants Chase False Hope to Canada
I live in Canada and I know a Colombian guy who did this. He went to the government with a bullshit persecution/facing violence claim and got permanent residence status.
When he told me this I thought about whether or not it bothered me. I have to say that it doesn’t. He is a successful, hard-working taxpayer who contributes more than he receives. He was just a guy looking to better his life and he found a way.
I take it there is no large illegal immigrant population from any country, according to what has been stated. Thanks for the input.
P.S. I am a person that hates Mexican food, so now you know an American that hates it. I also have a brother that hates it.
The visa change with Mexico (and several other countries) related to the false refugee claim backlog. Since it can take 3 to 10 years to sort out a claim, it’s pretty easy to use that trick. Basically, you have to explain why you are going to Canada and how long you will be there, how you plan to get home. They look at things like - do you have a steady job, where do you live, how can you afford this trip, etc. I.E. If it looks like you just sold all your possessions and quit your apartment to get on the plane, no visa for you…
I would think actual illegal hidden immigrants are likely from China, and to some extent from south asia. Every so often you hear about a boat intercepted off the west coast full of Vietnamese or Chinese trying to sneak in. A recent case was the boatload of Sri Lankans, who wer detain on suspicion of being Tamil Tiger connected. many of these people, if successful in sneaking in, go on to the USA. If caught, they claim refugee status.
Refugees techincally are not allowed to work. I think they can get work permits, but generally they are on welfare.
The government announced rules to streamline refugee claimants the other day. If you are from a list of certain countries, the process should be much quicker. Also, they have rules IIRC such as if you arrive through a “safe” country (i.e. USA or Europe) you must return there until your claim is processed, since refugees should be going to the first place they can get to to be safe; not shopping around the world for a better deal than the last country they were in.
There is also a tighter control on undocumented workers, and a high enough minimum wage that there is little need to hire illegals simply because you cannot fill a position with locals. There are also plenty of legal immigrants to fill the menial jobs that don’t require training or good language skills. Plus, the penalties for hiring illegal immigrants are not trivial; and the penalties for paying underminimum wage are ever worse, plus the government will make sure you pay any back wages if you underpaid. Areas like construction are generally heavily monitored by unions and it is not something that you’ll get $3/hour day labourers doing.
Draft dodgers are all legal. In the 1970’s you could apply from inside Canada for landed immigrant status, and most US citizens with decent education and ability had no problem getting legal. We’ve also had a few amnesties since then.
Really? Filipinos migrate a LOT, but it’s usually done legally. I’d be interested in your experiences.
Interestingly enough, we had a story on our local news yesterday about the costs to Canadian taxpayers for refugees - the figure named was between $80,000 to $100,000 per claimant. Does anybody know if these refugees have to pay this back if they are granted Canadian residency?
Oh, God, I read abosolutely glowing reviews of this Mexican Restaurant in Streetsville (Mississauga) when living there, and even saw one of the reviews from a major GTA newspaper while there. The place absolutely sucked. The service sucked. The food sucked. The nickel-and-diming sucked. The base prices well and truly sucked. Trust me, Taco Bell is better in every respect, and that’s not even Mexican food.