Akhtar Immigration

07/17/2025

Sponsor Your Parents or Grandparents for Canadian Immigration: Starting July 28, 2025, the federal government will begin sending invitations to sponsor under the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP).

✅ 17,860 invitations will be issued over two weeks
🎯 Goal: Accept 10,000 complete applications this year

Who will be invited?
Only those who submitted an interest to sponsor form in 2020

You may still be able to bring your loved ones through the Super Visa program, which offers:
🕐 Visitor status for up to 10 years
💙 A pathway to long-term family reunification**

This is a great opportunity to bring your family closer. Be sure to check your inbox if you submitted an interest in 2020!

📅 Schedule a consultation with Akhtar Immigration:
📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com

06/11/2025

If passed, Bill C-2 will make it harder for some individuals to claim refugee status in Canada—especially those coming from the U.S. or who've been in Canada for more than a year.

It also gives immigration officials more power to cancel, suspend, or modify immigration documents, which could affect many with various immigration statuses.

Stay informed. Know your rights. Consult with an experienced immigration representative:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (289) 632-1571

If passed, Bill C-2 will introduce stricter rules for refugee claims, making it more difficult for certain individuals to seek asylum, especially those enter...

06/04/2025

Who can apply for a work permit from within Canada?

Most foreign nationals must apply for a Canadian work permit from outside the country—but there are 9 scenarios where you can apply from inside Canada.

Here are a few:
✅ You hold a valid study or work permit
✅ Your spouse, common-law partner, or parent has a valid study or work permit
✅ Your study permit is valid and you qualify for a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP)
✅ You, your spouse, or parent has a Temporary Resident Permit (TRP) valid for 6 or more months
✅ You’re allowed to work in Canada without a work permit, but require a work permit for a different job
✅ You’re awaiting a permanent residence decision
✅ You are in Canada as a CUSMA professional, trader, investor, or intra-company transferee
✅ You will or already have made a refugee claim
✅ You are a convention refugee or a protected person

Curious if you’re eligible?
📅 Schedule a consultation with Akhtar Immigration:
📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com

05/29/2025

Foreign nationals on closed work permits can continue to benefit from a temporary public policy that allows them to:
✅ Change employers
✅ Switch occupations
📩 BEFORE receiving a new work permit

Thanks to this COVID-era exemption (extended as of May 27, 2025), eligible workers can start new jobs faster—with IRCC approval in just 10–15 days!

You may qualify if you:
✔️ Are in Canada with valid status
✔️ Have applied for a new work permit
✔️ Were authorized to work at the time of application
✔️ Have a job offer for a new employer/role

⚠️ You MUST wait for IRCC confirmation before starting the new job.

⏳ This policy remains in effect until further notice—but it can be revoked at any time.

Book your consultation with Akhtar Immigration:
📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com

05/26/2025

Are you thinking of applying for Canadian PR?
Don't let simple mistakes cost you your dream. 🇨🇦

IRCC just released a training guide showing where PR applicants go wrong — and here’s what you should *definitely* avoid:

🚫 **1. Wrong NOC code
Your job title isn’t enough. Officers check if your *duties* match the NOC code.
🧠 *Tip:* Always match your job description to the NOC lead statement + responsibilities.

🚫 **2. Not declaring life changes
Got married/divorced/had a baby after applying? You *must* report it.
Hiding it = potential 5-year ban for misrepresentation.

🚫 **3. Weak proof of work experience
Even 30 years in your field won't help if it doesn’t meet IRCC’s *recent and continuous* work requirements.
Make sure your experience is recent and properly documented.

🚫 **4. Expired or invalid language test
Your test must be less than 2 years old *at the time you apply* — and from an IRCC-approved provider.
❌ TOEFL iBT doesn’t count for PR!

🚫 **5. Misunderstanding program criteria
It is important to thoroughly understand the specific requirements of the PR program as that helps prevent mistakes.
For example, not all Canadian work experience counts for Express Entry. For CEC, your job must be:
✔️ Full-time,
✔️ Paid,
✔️ Done while NOT a full-time student,
✔️ In the right NOC level.

🚫 **6. Overlooking inadmissibility
Even if *you* qualify, a family member's medical or criminal issues can affect your case.

🛡️ *BOTTOM LINE:* Avoiding these common mistakes could make the difference between rejection and approval.

👉 Save this post & share with someone applying for PR!

💬 Drop your questions below or contact us for immigration help!

📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com

05/26/2025

Akhtar Immigration has been helping clients achieve their Canadian dreams since 2010!

Whether you are looking to:
✅ Sponsor a loved one
✅ Study, Work, Visit or Invest in Canada
✅ Apply for Permanent Residency
✅ Get help with Refugee or Detention Cases
✅ Handle Appeals, Invitation Letters, or Affidavits.. We are here to support you every step of the way.

👨‍💼 Trusted. Experienced. Committed.
📍 Serving clients across Canada and around the world.

📞 Contact us today to book your consultation!
🔗 www.akhtar-immigration.com
📧 [email protected]
📱 289-632-1571

Your Future in Canada Starts Here. Let’s Make It Happen!

05/23/2025

If you’re living in Canada as a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and hoping to sponsor your parent(s) or grandparent(s) to live with you, the Super Visa is likely your best option.

Canada has only one family reunification program for sponsoring these relative for permanent residency—the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP)—and this has been closed to intake since 2020.

While not a pathway towards permanent residency in Canada, the Super Visa allows the host’s relative(s) to visit them in Canada for years at a time.

If your relative(s) only want to stay for six months or less, a regular visitor visa is the way to go if they’re from a visa-required country. If not, an Electronic Authorization (eTA) will suffice (if arriving by air from an eTA-required country).

The Super Visa allows eligible hosts to sponsor their parent(s) or grandparent(s) to become temporary residents in Canada for up to five years at a time while they visit their child or grandchild.

Super Visa holders also have the option to request a two-year extension once the five years are up—but it’s important to note that the visa will only be valid for a 10-year period.

These visas are available year-round, unlike the PGP, which sends out invitations to apply once per year and operates on a lottery system.

The Super Visa does not grant permanent residency status, and does not authorize holders to work or study in Canada.

Contact us:
📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com



Source: CIC News

01/25/2025

The Regional Economic Development through Immigration (REDI) pilot program will run from January 2 to December 31, 2025.

The REDI will seek to attract up to 800 highly skilled immigrants to four rural and northern regions in Ontario:
- Lanark;
- Leeds and Grenville;
- Sarnia-Lambton; and
- Thunder Bay.

Newcomers who are approved through the new pilot program will receive a provincial nomination from the OINP, which they may use to apply directly to Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for permanent residence (PR).

Eligibility:
To be considered under this pilot program, newcomers must meet the eligibility requirements of one of the OINP's job offer streams.

As part of the eligibility requirements for these streams, newcomers must have a qualifying job offer from an employer in Ontario. To qualify for the REDI pilot program through an OINP job offer stream, newcomers must have a job offer from a business in one of the identified regions targeted by the pilot program.

For all streams, candidates must
- Intend to reside in Ontario; and
- Be licensed or authorized to practice their occupation (if the job is in a regulated occupation).
Contact us:
📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com





Source: CIC News

01/16/2025

Effective January 21, 2025, family open work permits (OWPs) for international students will be restricted to the spouses or common-law partners of students currently enrolled in:
- Master’s programs that are 16 months or longer in duration;
- Doctoral programs; or
- Select professional and eligible programs (listed below).

Prior to this change, a master's program did not have to be 16 months or longer in duration in order for the student's spouse to be eligible for a SOWP.

In addition to this, family OWPs for foreign workers will be limited to spouses or common-law partners of those working in:
- Training Education Experience and Responsibilities (TEER) 0 occupations;
- TEER 1 occupations; and
- Select TEER 2 or 3 occupations* in:
Natural and applied sciences;
Construction;
Healthcare;
Natural resources;
Education;
Sports; and
Military sectors.

*A full list of eligible TEER 2 and 3 occupations will be published by IRCC on January 21, 2025.

For spouses of foreign workers to be eligible under these rules, the foreign worker must have at least 16 months remaining validity on their work permit when their spouse applies.

Dependent children of foreign workers will no longer be eligible for family OWPs.
Contact us:
📲 Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com




Source: CIC News

11/13/2024

Canada has announced changes to their visitor visa policies, ending the automatic issuance of 10-year multiple-entry visas.

The IRCC posted an update on Nov. 6 claiming that “multiple-entry visas issued to maximum validity are no longer considered to be the standard document.”

Previously, visitors to Canada could be granted multiple-entry visas for up to 10 years, which allowed them to enter and exit the country freely during that period.

Under the new rules, this will no longer be the default option. Now, visa officers will assess applicants based on an individualized basis to determine whether a single or multiple-entry visa will be issued and its validity period, the IRCC said.

Factors for issuing visas include an applicant’s purpose of visit, funds, medical conditions, ties to their home country, and more.

For multiple-entry visas, officers will also decide the validity period and can choose to provide a time frame shorter than the maximum 10 years.

The IRCC said factors will include whether there is a short-term purpose for the visit, an applicant’s status in their current country of residence, changes to ties to their country of residence and Canada over time and whether the economic or political conditions are unstable in their home country.


Contact us:
📱Call: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com



Source: CTV News

11/09/2024

As of today, November 8th, 2024, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is no longer accepting study permit applications submitted under the Student Direct Stream (SDS).

IRCC has also ended the Nigeria Student Express (NSE) stream for study permit applicants from Nigeria.

Going forward, all study permit applications will be submitted using the standard application process.

In 2018, the SDS was launched to expedite study permit applications for international students from 14 countries, including India, China, Pakistan, and the Philippines.
Contact us:
📲 Phone/WhatsApp: +1 289-632-1571
✉  Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com
 




Source: CIC News

10/25/2024

Effective November 8, candidates applying through the high-wage stream of the TFWP will need to earn hourly salaries at least 20% higher than the median wage for their position relative to where they work, to be eligible.

Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and their counterparts at ESDC have made a number of changes this year to the TFWP, in particular, to incentivize Canadian businesses to hire and employ more Canadian workers.

ESDC expects that this announcement will result in a greater number of jobs falling under the stricter rules of the low-wage stream of the TFWP; under which employers must provide greater support to workers related to housing and transportation—which the department hopes in turn will incentivize more hiring of Canadian workers for the same position.

These changes include:
- A six-month pause on the processing of Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) in the low-wage stream of the TFWP, destined for metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher;
- Enforcing a cap allowing employers to hire no more than 10% of their workforce through the TFWP; and
- Reducing the maximum duration of employment for workers hired through the low-wage stream to one year (from the previous two years).
Contact us:
📲 Call/WhatsApp: +1 289-632-1571
✉ Email: [email protected]
🌎 Website: akhtar-immigration.com





Source: CIC News