April 16, 2024
How an Immigration Lawyer in Toronto Can Simplify Your Family Sponsorship Process
We have been asked many times during consultations, “Do I really need to hire a representative, be it an immigration lawyer or an immigration consultant?” We note on our website, “This is a personal decision.” But if you decide to hire an immigration lawyer in Toronto, we have a saying at our firm: “Stop worrying and start living.” What this really means is that you have to place trust in who you ask to represent you in this very important step in your life. To enumerate a few advantages of hiring a lawyer in Toronto, not exhaustively:
When you submit a family sponsorship application, you do not submit only one application; there are two applications submitted at the same time. One implicates the sponsor, the other refers to the sponsored family member. First, an immigration lawyer, in Toronto or another city, will assess eligibilities for both the sponsorship and the applicant spouse, as both sides/parties must comply with the requirements set by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). We see people who have been refused not knowing that they did not qualify or meet the conditions.
Another advantage is the assistance given to the client with their supporting documentation. In the IRCC guide, there is a skeleton list of supporting documents, but in our experience, a lot more is needed. Family class sponsorship applications require extensive documentation to prove the genuineness of the relationship between the sponsor and the sponsored family member. An immigration lawyer would assist in gathering all the necessary documents, including strong evidence to prove the relationship and strengthen the application.
At first sight, completing the forms for a family sponsorship application seems to be straightforward. Not quite, as the great majority of our clients have many questions as, sometimes, the forms can be complex and confusing. An immigration lawyer will guide the client and answer all the client’s questions regarding the forms, minimizing the risk of errors or omissions that could delay processing or lead to an application being rejected.
The family sponsorship process could sometimes become very complex and complicated, involving previous immigration issues, refusals, requests for an interview when the relationship is in doubt, background checks complicated by the sponsored person’s past, etc. An immigration lawyer may guide both the sponsor and the sponsored family member through each stage of the process, providing clear instructions and support along the way.
An immigration lawyer will present the client’s case to IRCC in a thorough factual and legal submission, presenting the main points of the application. An immigration lawyer will be the main point of contact with IRCC, and he/she will advocate on behalf of the client to resolve issues and expedite the process, while ensuring the application meets all the requirements of the latest immigration legal requirements. If the application is refused, an immigration lawyer may act accordingly, defending the client in front of the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) and/or Federal Court (FC) of Canada.
Hiring an immigration lawyer in Toronto can demystify the family sponsorship process and hopefully take the stress out of your journey of reuniting in Canada.