CIMM – Genuine Students Impacted by Fraud Task Force – February 7, 2024
Key Facts and Figures
There are several active litigations on the matter.
Earlier this year, cases came to light in which some current and former international students began to face enforcement action following investigations into the submission of fake letters of acceptance (LOA) when they previously applied for a study permit.
The cases were identified via tips and intelligence probes conducted by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). Over 2,000 cases were initially examined. Cases included foreign nationals from India (89%), Vietnam (8%) and Peoples’ Republic of China (3%).
Some cases may involve unauthorized consultants providing their clients fraudulent letters of acceptance from various Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs) in Canada, in support of study permit applications.
Of the 285 cases under review by the task force, 135 different immigration officers, across nine visa offices in Canada, India, Vietnam and China, assessed the initial applications.
Note: Data is tracked manually and should be considered preliminary and subject to change without notice.
In June, a joint Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and CBSA taskforce was established to review these cases and ensure that genuine students would not be removed from Canada.
As of January 8, 2024, the taskforce has reviewed 108 cases including clients pending an Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) hearing and those with an enforceable removal order. It was determined that in total 67 individuals were genuine students, 40 were non-genuine, and one needs further review.
Of the 52 individuals with an enforceable removal order, 34 were determined to be genuine students and were authorized temporary resident permits of up to three years. 18 were determined non-genuine and returned to enforcement.
The 55 remaining individuals will be actioned accordingly once their IRB hearings are completed.
Key Messages
IRCC is actively working to provide certainty to genuine international students admitted to Canada with fraudulent admission letters, who were issued a deportation notice. Our goal is to identify those who took advantage of genuine students and take action against them.
When it comes to fraud, we are primarily focused on identifying organizers of coordinated fraud. We have measures in place to detect fraud and to flag these in our systems in order to deter future fraud.
These measures are part of a multi-pronged approach that includes conducting investigations, deploying different integrity measures, improving programs and regulations, and doing client outreach. All these efforts are coordinated to combat fraud.
To prevent similar situations in the future, IRCC has implemented an enhanced letter of acceptance verification process that will have LOAs validated directly by DLIs.
Supplementary Information
IRCC works with its local and international partners to crack down on fraud, and is continuously improving its systems to detect evidence of fraud.
When processing applications, officers review any adverse information that may be found on file and take that information into consideration.
Procedural fairness is afforded to applicants to provide them with the opportunity to respond to an officer’s concerns. The onus remains on applicants to provide truthful information on their applications even if a third party is preparing it.
All persons seeking to come to Canada whether temporarily or permanently must meet the admissibility and eligibility requirements as set out in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.
If we find that false documents or information were provided to obtain status, an individual may have their status taken away, be removed from Canada, have a permanent record of fraud with IRCC and be forbidden to enter Canada for at least five years.
