Ottawa, March 23, 2009 — An advertising campaign is being launched today to help potential immigrants know how to protect themselves against false claims from dishonest immigration consultants, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced.
“This government takes a tough stance against dishonest immigration consultants who make false promises, or counsel immigrants to lie or cheat to come to Canada,” said Minister Kenney. The ads are part of national campaign to warn about immigration-related fraud.
“We want immigrants to know how to protect themselves against fraud. We want immigration consultants, in Canada and overseas, to know that we will do everything we can to protect the integrity of the Canadian immigration system.” Minister Kenney repeated his plans to consult communities to hear about their experiences and suggestions to improve prevention and enforcement.
The ads, which run until the end of the month in ethnic and mainstream press and on the Internet, direct people to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website where they can learn how to find an authorized immigration consultant, lawyer or notary if they choose to use one. They can also find links to where they can go to take action if they believe they have been cheated.
This campaign follows the recent launch of a multilingual warning video, now available on YouTube, the Citizenship and Immigration website and soon through overseas missions. To view the video, please visit the CIC website.
For further information (media only), please contact:
Alykhan Velshi
Minister’s Office
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Alykhan.Velshi@cic.gc.ca
Media Relations Unit
Communications Branch
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-952-1650
CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca
