Law Times

Law TiMes • March 9, 2009 NEW An online resource tool 1.800.263.3269 Bestcase earlug.indd 1 3/26/08 11:52:01 AM Focus On IMMIGRATION LAW Governments expand recruitment options year, but the federal and Ontario governments have nevertheless made a few changes that will provide companies with expand- ed recruitment options. Provincially, the government New playing field for businesses hiring immigrants T BY GLENN KAUTH Law Times he recession will likely mean a decline in busi- ness immigration this federal Canadian experience class will only do once they've worked for at least a year. The provincial changes also mean foreign students can apply even if the job they get is out- side their fi eld of study. Still, not all lawyers agree in February announced the ex- pansion of its provincial nomi- nee program, now called Op- portunities Ontario. It began in 2007 in a bid to fast-track the immigration process for busi- nesses that nominate a prospec- tive employee to come to Can- ada. Now, the province is dou- bling the number of nominees it will accept to 1,000 from 500. The federal government, meanwhile, has made similar moves to allow businesses to hire offshore through the ar- ranged employment option that will allow people with a job of- fer to get permanent residence. Still, some immigration lawyers feel the provincial program of- fers a number of advantages over the federal one. In par- ticular, the Ontario bureaucrats who run it are easy to deal with, Randy Hahn an associate at the Toronto fi rm Guberman Gar- son Bush said during a Febru- ary session on immigration law at the Ontario Bar Association Institute. "They want to make things work," he said. "That's worth gold," he added. Other benefi ts include the fact that, unlike the federal pro- gram, Opportunities Ontario has no minimal requirement for profi ciency in English or French, Hahn noted. As well, it allows foreign students who get a job after graduation to get perma- nent residency, something the the Ontario program is much help. "It hasn't been terribly helpful. In the past, there's been a lot of redundancy," says Nan Berezowski founder and principal lawyer of Bere- zowski Business Immigration Law in Toronto. Previously, the require- ments for the program were too narrow, meaning she found few candidates were eligible. At the same time, investors applying to be nominees had to put up too much money, a problem the new rules addressed by low- ering the investment thresh- old to $3 million. As a result, Berezowski says the recent changes are positive. "I'm op- timistic that they're going to improve that." Besides the provincial nomi- As a result, the government is making it easier for compa- nies to keep the foreign work- ers they hire. Although new rules on fi rst attempting to recruit Canadians before the government will let businesses hire foreign workers represent a change in the other direc- tion, MacGregor says faster processing times for labour market opinions necessary to bring in someone from abroad are a help. But at the same time, law- The Ontario bureaucrats who run Opportunities Ontario are easy to deal with and 'want to make things work,' says Randy Hahn. nee program, governments this year have opened a few other new doors for businesses seeking workers from abroad. They in- clude changes to NAFTA work permits, which allow Canadians working in a designated profes- sion to get a U.S. visa. Previous- ly, those permits were available for up to a year; now, Canadians can get one for up to three years. On the fl ip side, the Canadian government has made a similar extension of NAFTA permits available to Americans wanting to work here, a positive move for businesses, says Bill MacGregor, a partner with Gowling Lafl eur Henderson LLP in Waterloo. The federal government has also extended work permits for foreign graduates of Canadian post-secondary institutions. As long as their program of study is one that takes two years to fi nish, they can now get a work permit for up to three years once they graduate. They would then be eligible to become permanent residents under the Canadian experience class after they've fi n- ished a year of work experience, MacGregor notes. Overall, MacGregor says those new rules, in tandem with major changes to the im- migration system in November, represent a signifi cant shift for businesses looking to hire im- migrants. "There's more of a focus on facilitating permanent residence for foreign nationals who are already here working," he says, referring to the new Ca- nadian experience class. yers involved in business im- migration wonder whether the economic downturn will lead governments to limit the movement of people through subtle ways. Border offi cials could, for example, apply the rules more rigidly for people seeking NAFTA permits. "I think there is a potential con- cern that the rules that are out there may be interpreted more tightly in some instances per- haps because of concerns for the economic slowdown and jobs," says MacGregor. Already, Berezowski has seen that trend emerge at the U.S. border, something she suspects is happening here as well. "I think there's a version of this going on on the Canadian side. I don't think it's as bad," says Berezows- ki, whose fi rm does a lot of work in cross-border immigration. The rules, she notes, are of- ten subjective, including the fact that while NAFTA permits can last as long as three years, how much time a person actu- ally gets is up to border offi cials. At the same time, they can de- cide an employment letter that is a few days old is no longer valid, something that might not have happened when the jobs outlook was better. So, Berezowski is advising 10% Purchase 5 or more subscriptions for your law firm to Law Times or Canadian Lawyer and save clients to be more vigilant about making sure their applications are complete. "The answer is you've got to be really careful. You've got to document every- thing to death." More generally, Berezowski says the government's massive changes to the immigration system have nevertheless been positive for her practice, partic- ularly since she deals with a lot of foreigners who already have work permits and who therefore can now more easily apply for permanent residence under the new rules. Still, she worries whether the new focus on bringing in im- migrants for specifi c jobs and occupations — often on the in- vitation by a particular employer — might have a downside in the long term. That's because the preferred jobs the government wants to bring in immigrants to fi ll may no longer be in demand later on. Referring to the many mining engineers and tradespeo- ple brought in to work in Fort McMurray, she says, "If we're not going to be pumping out of the oil sands, we're not going to need these guys." At the same time, the fact that Canada isn't bringing in immigrants for the jobs cur- rently out of favour may create a labour shortage in those ar- eas down the road, something Canada has been experiencing since the 1990s when provincial governments made it more dif- fi cult for foreign-trained doc- tors to practise here. As a result, she wonders whether a system that falls between the new oc- cupation-focused one and the recently discarded human-cap- ital model based on skills sets might be better. "I think there's got to be some sort of hybrid," she says. LT 15% 1 Year = $65.00 + gst 2 Year = $105.00 + gst go online at www.canadianlawyermag.com or call 1-888-743-3551 Special rates for students and international subscribers. www.lawtimesnews.com LT - 1-4 x 5.indd 1 3/3/09 4:51:38 PM Purchase 20 or more and save 1 year $135.00 + gst, go online at www.lawtimesnews.com PAGE 9 FIRM UP! Digital Editons FREE with each paid subscription Receive the BONUS

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