Under the federal skilled worker program, individuals without approved job offers or connections to Canada normally have to qualify under what is known as an “eligible occupation”. Occasionally, an applicant may have experience that may fall within both an “eligible occupation” and a non-eligible application. A recent federal court decision reaffirms an individual’s right to have their application assessed in the manner they request.
In the case of Maizel v The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, a foreign Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer applied to immigrate to Canada as a “Financial Manager”. The Financial Manager category was an “eligible occupation” according to Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
When Mr. Maizel’s application was assessed by the immigration officer, it was refused. However, when assessing the application, the immigration officer did not assess whether Mr. Maizel was qualified as a “Financial Manager”. Instead, the officer assessed whether he was a “General Business Manager”. “General Business Managers” are not on the “eligible occupation” list.
After taking this matter to Federal Court, the judge overturned the decision of the immigration officer. In this case, the judge found that Mr. Maizel had the right to be considered under the job category he applied under (Financial Manager). Since Mr. Maizel requested an assessment as a Financial Manager, the immigration officer had to assess Mr. Maizel’s application under that occupation.
The judge also said that immigration officers must also assess other occupations which Mr. Maizel was qualified and prepared to pursue in Canada. Because the officer did not consider whether Mr. Maizel was qualified as a “Financial Manager”, the officer was not entitled to come to the decision that Mr. Maizel did not qualify as a “Financial Manager”.
As a result, when applying to immigrate to Canada, it is important to be clear as to the job category you apply under. As long as you do this, immigration officers must consider whether you qualify under that job category. As well, if you feel that you also qualify under a different job category that may benefit your immigration application; you should mention this in your application as well.
This Article is prepared for general information purposes only and is intended to provide comments for readers and friends of the Filipino Journal. The contents should not be viewed as legal advice or opinion.
Reis is a lawyer with Aikins Law and practices in the areas of immigration law. His direct line is 957-4640. If you would like to know more about Reis or Aikins Law you can visit the firm’s web page at www.aikins.com, follow Reis on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/ImmigrationReis, or connect with him on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/reispagtakhan
