Humanitarian & Compassionate Consideration H&C Processing Applications from Outside Canada

How Applications Outside of Canada are Processed with H&C Consideration

There are many individuals that are outside of Canada that do not fit into any of the classes for immigration to Canada. If this is the case, then these individuals could apply for Humanitarian and Compassionate consideration. When assessing humanitarian and compassionate consideration cases outside of Canada, the application is processed in two stages. In order to better understand how the process is accomplished, I will address how applications outside of Canada are processed, specifically in its two stages and the implications.

Who Can Apply for an H&C Consideration Application from Outside of Canada

There are specific eligibility requirements that must be met in order to apply for humanitarian and compassionate consideration from outside of Canada. In these cases, foreign nationals that are inadmissible or who do not meet the requirements of the Act or Regulations, may apply for humanitarian and compassionate consideration. This is regulated under A25(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. When determining whether the applicant may be considered for humanitarian and compassionate consideration, the Minister examines applicants to whom the following apply:

They don’t meet the requirements of Ministerial Instructions based on the category for which they are applying for
They are inadmissible based on A34, A35 or A37
They are subject to a bar under A25(1.2)

When assessing applications for humanitarian and compassionate consideration that are made outside of Canada, they must be assessed in the context of an application for permanent residency status in Canada. The application must be specifically in writing and must accompany one of the three existing classes: family, economic or refugee. It is important to note that Ministerial Instructions that apply in certain categories, such as skilled workers, unfortunately, humanitarian and compassionate consideration may not be utilized to overcome the fact that the applicant cannot meet the requirements of the Ministerial Instructions. For instance, as a skilled worker, you must have a valid offer of employment and you must have experience in one of the specific National Occupation Classification (NOC) codes. Therefore, humanitarian and compassionate consideration cannot be used to overcome these requirements.

The Application Process for Applications Outside of Canada for H&C

Any immigration application can bring an overwhelming amount of stress to any applicant, especially if they are in need of entering Canada based on humanitarian and compassionate arguments. However, in this article, I will explain how the applications outside of Canada for H&C consideration are processed and specifically focus on positive assessments of both stage one and stage two of the application process. Both stage one and stage two only become available once it has been determined that the applicant is eligible to have their H&C application assessed. The first stage is referred to as a humanitarian and compassionate assessment of the requested exemptions, whereas the second stage is referred to as the final decision for a permanent residency application. Below, I will explain each step in detail.

Positive Assessment of Stage One

The most reliving part of the application process for humanitarian and compassionate consideration is more than likely the stage one. The stage one of the application, once it is positively assessed, is only for the current application and not for any other H&C applications. This positive assessment is often referred to as the approval in principle; you will need this before proceeding to stage two.

During this stage, the responsibility and onus is on the applicant to satisfy the Immigration officer of the humanitarian and compassionate factors of their specific circumstances that warrant an exemption. The Immigration officer will then consider all of the relevant factors in conjunction with the information that is already known to Immigration.

For instance, the following factors would be considered when assessing humanitarian and compassionate consideration applications:

Balance between discretion and the consistency of information
Responsibility and onus on applicant
Threshold of proof and evidence
Requirement to apply for PR from outside of Canada
Hardship and the H&C assessment
Inadmissibility Issues
Best interests of the child
Former Canadian Citizens
De facto family members
H&C and the Ministerial Instructions
Dealing with family relationships
Establishment in Canada for In-Canada Applications
Ability to Establish in Canada for Applications Outside of Canada
Reconsideration of a negative decision
Statelessness

Once and if the stage one is positively assessed then the applicant will be able to receive the approval in principle letter. This approval letter will indicate that an exemption has been granted and that the applicant and any of their dependents must still meet the admissibility requirements, which have not been granted an exemption. Keep in mind, if the applicant or any of their dependents do not successfully meet the requirements for admissibility, then the second stage which would be the application for permanent residency can be refused.

Positive Assessment of Stage Two

During Stage two of the application process, the statutory requirements would be received. Subsequently, if no inadmissibility, for which the applicant would not have been granted an exemption, is established, then the application then proceeds to finalization. The next thing the applicant would do is proceed to pay the Right of Permanent Residence Fee (RPRF). Any applicant that applies for a humanitarian and compassionate consideration application must ensure that this fee is paid in order to obtain permanent residency in Canada. Nevertheless, there are exceptions to this fee. If the principal applicant is a dependent child of either a permanent resident of Canada or a Canadian citizen, then they do not have to pay the fee. Similarly, if they are the dependent child of an H&C principal applicant who is currently residing in Canada, then they do not have to pay the fee. Apart from these exceptions, once the applicant has paid the RPRF fee, they will receive a confirmation of permanent residence for themselves and any accompanying family members within their application.

The most important and significant part of stage two is the final examination interview. At the interview, the applicant will need to verify the following information:

Ensure their passport is not expired
Their identity documents
Ensure their family members have been duly examined
Ensure that the applicant nor any other family members will need social assistance
Answer any questions with regards to criminality and/or war crimes
Answer any other statutory questions
Sign and date the form

Once you provide the Immigration officer with all of the previously mentioned information, you will be on your way to finally obtaining your permanent residency in Canada.

Contact Akrami & Associates

If you would like to apply for permanent residency in Canada with humanitarian and compassionate consideration, Akrami & Associates can definitely help you with this process. Applying for an H&C consideration application from outside of Canada can be confusing if you are unfamiliar with how Immigration applications work. Moreover, any Immigration application can become overwhelming if done alone; therefore, it is highly recommended that you seek out professional and experienced help before attempting to apply. Additionally, it is extremely important that you take into consideration the aforementioned information prior to submitting your application. Here, at Akrami & Associates, we work and have experience with many different immigration issues. We have helped many of our clients obtain permanent residency through humanitarian and compassionate consideration. If you believe that you might be eligible to apply from outside of Canada, please feel free to contact Akrami & Associates at our office at 416-477-2545 for more information or if you would like to book a consultation with an immigration professional for more advice.

With Akrami & Associates, there is always a way!