Entrepreneurs to Get Faster Immigration Processing

Entrepreneurs to get faster immigration processing - August 23, 2006 - Immigration Canada and the B.C. Ministry of Economic Development announced a new pilot project Tuesday that aims to speed up the immigration application process for entrepreneurs wanting to settle in the province. As part of the project, Citizenship and Immigration Canada will identify entrepreneurs interested in locating to B.C., then mail them information about the province's existing Provincial Nominee Program to encourage them to apply. The Provincial Nominee Program, introduced in 2001, puts skilled workers and investors on a fast track to obtain permanent residency in B.C. "In general, this will go much more quickly and make it possible for people to come here who might otherwise say, 'We want to go somewhere else,' " Immigration Minister Monte Solberg said at a press conference in Burnaby. "I think this is B.C.'s response to their own desire to bring more entrepreneurs here. This is a province that thrives on entrepreneurship." Solberg said there is no limit on the number of people who can enter the province under the program.

He said there are an estimated 4,000 people currently applying to immigrate to Canada who could qualify as entrepreneurs. About 1,000 of them have indicated they're eyeing B.C. as a destination, and could immediately be targeted under the new pilot project. Those who apply to the Provincial Nominee Program as entrepreneurs would still have to meet a number of criteria, as outlined by the province, such as making a $1 million investment if they locate in the Lower Mainland, or investing a lower amount and creating a certain number of jobs if they intend to settle elsewhere in the province, Solberg said. The province would also review their business proposals. Solberg said it currently takes a little less than a year to process applicants under the Provincial Nominee Program, whereas under the regular federal process, it could take four to five years. Economic Development Minister Colin Hansen told reporters that the pilot project will help the province's economy continue to grow. The B.C. government has stated that the province will need an estimated 1 million people over the next 10 years to fill all the jobs expected to be created in the province, while during that same period, only 650,000 people will be graduating from B.C.'s school system. While addressing the anticipated labour shortage, B.C. also needs to bring in entrepreneurs from elsewhere, Hansen said. "We're going to have to attract much of that talent in entrepreneurial spirit that's going to keep our economy going strong into the future," he said.

More than 2,000 skilled and business immigrants plus their dependents have settled in B.C. through the Provincial Nominee Program since 2001. Close to 240 people have been approved under the program's business category. They have brought in more than $351 million in new investment and created more than 1,300 new jobs, according to the Ministry of Economic Development. The top country of origin for business category applicants is China, followed by South Korea and the United Kingdom, it said.

SunSet on Marsh

New Canadians Urged to Stay Here

"New Canadians urged to stay here", Immigration minister makes plea at citizenship ceremony

Fifty new Canadians from 23 countries around the world were urged Wednesday to consider the benefits of remaining in the East. "Thank you for making Nova Scotia your home. Please let your friends and family know what a great place it is," provincial Immigration Minister Carolyn Bolivar-Getson said. At a sometimes emotional ceremony in Halifax, Canadian citizenship was bestowed upon individuals and families from Cuba, England, France, Iraq, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates and other countries. "Your province needs more people just like you," the immigration minister said after the group collectively recited the oath of citizenship. "There are lots of good things here in Atlantic Canada. There is no need to head west," she added. More than 75 per cent of Canada’s immigrants head immediately to Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal. About 60 per cent of those who come to Nova Scotia depart for one of those locations soon after receiving citizenship, Ms. Bolivar-Getson said. With statistics like those, keeping immigrants here remains as much of a challenge as finding them jobs, the immigration minister said.

Nova Scotia must compete with established cultural support networks that exist in major Canadian urban centres if the province wants to keep immigrants here, she said. Support organizations, including those that help immigrants find homes and learn a new language, can help immigrants feel welcome. "We have our work cut out for us," Ms. Bolivar-Getson said in an interview after the ceremony. Some new Canadians who have sampled the big-city lifestyle said they are glad to call themselves Maritimers. "I was in Toronto six months before being offered a job here," said Rehan Pervaiz, an engineer who came to Canada over three years ago from Pakistan. He and his wife, Dr. Fouzia Rehan, and their three children — Saad, 16, Sara, 13 and Leila Amna, 2 — have settled in Dartmouth. Dr. Rehan works at a Musquodoboit Harbour medical clinic. Memories of Toronto traffic jams make it easy to call Nova Scotia home, Mr. Pervaiz said. "I was living in Mississauga and driving to work in Scarborough each day along the 401 Highway, about an hour each way," he said after receiving his citizenship papers with the rest of his family. "This is a much better place to be — if you have a job," he said.

Retaining immigrants requires adequate settlement and language services, said Tony Brothers, director general for Citizenship and Immigration Canada in Atlantic Canada. He said Ottawa has pledged to pump more dollars into immigrant services within a few months to help Atlantic Canada keep its immigrants. "If we can offer the services to help people integrate here, then I think the (retention) numbers will speak for themselves." The swearing-in ceremony was one of about 70 or 75 held each year at various Atlantic Canadian locations. Each event includes about 50 new Canadians, the director general said. 'There are lots of good things here in Atlantic Canada. There is no need to head west.’

Canada's Welfare Myth

By Philippe Gohier August 25, 2006

http://maisonneuve.org/index.php?&page_id=12&article_id=2376

A new report suggests welfare recipients are crying all the way to the bank. The National Council on Welfare, an organization the Star’s Thomas Walkom describes as an ”advisory board to the Federal government,” released a daming document yesterday claiming that welfare payments have been in steadily declining in all Canadian provinces since 1994. According to the Globe, “The plight of the poor is the worst it has been in twenty years in provinces such as Alberta and New Brunswick, which are cited as among the stingiest jurisdictions.” In fact, taking inflation into account, Alberta’s welfare payments have effectively been cut in half since 1986, reports The National; whereas recipients twenty years ago received approximately $10,000 a year, they now receive $5,050. And this in the only Canadian province to have run thirteen straight budget surpluses.

La Presse puts the sad situation into perspective, noting that welfare recipients in New Brunswick are expected to survive with less than $10 a day. Comparatively, welfare recipients in Alberta get about $14 a da and those in Quebec get a whopping $19. So much for the “myth of the welfare bum that takes it easy smoking cigarettes and drinking beer on the balcony all day,” writes La Presse. Faced with a steady economic boom and politically conservative winds blowing strongly through most Canadian provinces, the plight of Canada’s welfare recipients has been virtually ignored by both the media and politicians. The Globe’s breakdown of annual welfare payments in the provinces and territories provides a rare glimpse at the grim economic reality of welfare in Canada. But perhaps most worrisome is the council’s suggestion that the welfare system has become so complicated that it is now “incomprehensible to most people,” including would-be beneficiaries. Mediascout hopes to see the Big Seven delve deeper into daily life of Canada’s struggling underclass, so that politicians, in Thomas Walkom’s words, are no longer able to “either ignore welfare recipients or subtly (not so subtly in the case of [Mike] Harris) demonize them as undeserving.”

Right of Permanent Residence Fee CUTS to 50%

Just as the new government promised the $975 right of permanent residence fee has been reduced to $490 effective May 3, 2006. If you paid the right of permanent residence fee (either as part of your initial application or after a request to pay it after processing), before May 3, 2006, but did not become a permanent resident until after May 3, 2006, you are entitled to a refund. Click http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resid-fee/refund.html for information on how to get your refund.

New Agreement on Immigration Attracts Entrepreneurs to B.C.

BURNABY, Aug. 22 - The Honourable Monte Solberg, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, and the Honourable Colin Hansen, Economic Development Minister, British Columbia, announced today the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will help speed up the process for immigrant entrepreneurs to get to British Columbia. "It is a pleasure to announce this new memorandum of understanding between Canada's government and the Province of British Columbia," said Minister Solberg. "This pilot project will help British Columbia get the entrepreneurs it needs faster, and is another important step toward our goal of making immigration work for Canadians."

The pilot project outlined in the MOU will allow B.C. and Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to identify people who have applied to come to Canada as entrepreneurs. CIC will then contact applicants who have indicated an intention to settle in B.C. and steer them toward the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). This step will speed up the application process significantly since PNP processing can fast track applicants with specific skills that could benefit the province's economic development. "As B.C.'s economy keeps gaining strength, we need to attract more skilled workers and business people," said Minister Hansen. "Since creating the business skills category in 2002, business immigrants have invested over $351 million in our province, creating more than 1,300 new jobs. Today's agreement will help us to attract more applicants who are looking to invest in our province, create new jobs and contribute to economic growth."

B.C. business owners are equally supportive of the new MOU. Allen Born, Chairman of Tekion, a North American fuel cell company, stated: "British Columbia is considered to be the fuel cell capital of the world. The B.C. PNP played an instrumental role in our decision to start a company here. As a result, we have created Tekion, a micro fuel cell company now employing 75 people." Since 2001, more than 2,000 skilled and business immigrants and their dependants have made British Columbia their home through the B.C. PNP. Last year, through the PNP, over 800 skilled workers and entrepreneurs moved to B.C. from around the world.

To learn more about immigration to Canada, visit the CIC Web site at www.cic.gc.ca

For more information on B.C. government services, visit the province's Web site at http://www.gov.bc.ca/

Developing Nations Fuel Global Migration Pattern

The Associated Press 18.08.2006 WASHINGTON — Nearly 3 million people a year migrate from developing countries to industrialized nations, including 1 million to the United States, a population research group said Thursday. Almost half — 1.4 million — move to Europe, which is nevertheless facing unprecedented population losses from low birth rates. The U.S. attracts more immigrants than any other country, fueling a national debate on immigration policy. Other destinations include Canada, Australia and the United Arab Emirates, which has a better economy than much of the Middle East.

The biggest suppliers of immigrants are China, India and Mexico, according to the report by the Population Reference Bureau, a Washington research group. For some, it's the chance to escape poverty, whether they plan to raise families in their new countries or send money home. For others, it's the opportunity to flee political or civil unrest.

"The average Indian family earns the equivalent of $2,200 a year," said Carl Haub, a demographer. "If they migrate to Europe and have no skills, they can be a cabdriver. If they have computer skills, they can earn $50,000 a year, an amount unimaginable back home."