In the spirit of Fraud Prevention Month, I will be sharing the impact using an unregulated immigration consultant can have on applicants.
Do you know that using an unregulated agent or consultant can lead to your application denied and you being banned due to misrepresentation?
Using an unregulated representative can also cost you a lot of time and money.
Only Regulated Consultants or Lawyers are allowed to charge a fee for providing immigration advice or representation. Using an unregulated agent who you paid for immigration advice can lead to your application being denied and you jeopardize your chance of coming to Canada.
True Story
A client came to us after being denied a Canada visa, so we could represent him on a re-application. He mentioned he had used an agent for his application. I asked if the agent was regulated. He said he was not sure.
So I told him, I would need to request a case file and documents submitted from Canadian Immigration in other to determine what was submitted and the real reason for the refusal. I explained to him that this is our process before assisting any client with a re-application.
We submitted the request and when we got the documents back, it turned out there were lots of falsified documents as part of his application.
He also stated on the application that he was not using a paid agent and when Immigration research the agent, the confirm that this agent was indeed paid.
They also had records of applications submitted by this agent. Based on all the findings, misrepresentation and reputation of the agent used, the visa application was denied and client was banned for 5 years.
How can you verify that the agent or consultant you are using is licensed?
To be a Regulated Immigration Consultant you must;
Be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident
Completed and passed the licensing exams
Be approved by the Immigration Consultant Regulatory Council of Canada (ICCRC) to practice as a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC).
You can verify the status of your Immigration Consultant by visiting ICCRC website
Florence Akpan, our CEO is a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant. You can be sure to receive top notch services when you sign up with us.
Thinking of Immigrating to Canada, visiting, working, studying? Contact us for expert representation.