Procedural Fairness Letter - Criminal History

[idkhowtowordthis]

Hi everyone. Long story short, my boyfriend was planning on coming to Canada, getting married and applying inland for a spousal sponsorship. He came in July of 2018 for two weeks and stated "no" to criminal history. In anticipation of the visa, we applied for the police check, which came back with results. 99% of what is listed is while he was a minor and cautions/warnings - the most of which he forgot he ever had. He received the following letter today in regards to his new eTA listing criminal history:

This refers to your application for an Electronic Travel Authorization.

Your application and all of the information you submitted in support of it have been reviewed and it appears that you may not meet the requirements for travel to Canada.

Subsection 11(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) provides that a foreign national must, before entering Canada, apply to an officer for a visa or any other document required by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. The visa or document shall be issued if, following an examination, the officer is satisfied that the foreign national is not inadmissible and meets the requirements of the Act.

I have concerns that you have not fulfilled the requirement put upon you by subsection 16(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act which states:

16(1) A person who makes an application must answer truthfully all questions put to them for the purpose of the examination and must produce a visa and all relevant evidence and documents that the officer reasonable requires.

Specifically, I have concerns the information you have provided in support of your application is fraudulent as you responded “No” to the statutory question:

- Have you ever committed, been arrested for, been charged with or convicted of any criminal offence in any country?

You have now applied for another eTA one year later and declared criminal offences. Please explain why this was not declared in your initial eTA application.

Please note that if it is found that you have engaged in misrepresentation in submitting your application for an Electronic Travel Authorization, you may be found to be inadmissible under section 40(1)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. A finding of such

inadmissibility would render you inadmissible to Canada for a period of five years according to section 40(2)(a):

40(1) A permanent resident or a foreign national is inadmissible for misrepresentation

(a) for directly or indirectly misrepresenting or withholding material facts relating to a relevant matter that induces or could induce an error in the administration of this Act

40(2) The following provisions govern subsection (1):

(a) the permanent resident or the foreign national continues to be inadmissible for misrepresentation for a period of five years following, in the case of a determination outside Canada, a final determination of inadmissibility under subsection (1) or, in the case of determination in Canada, the date the removal order is enforced.

I would like to provide you with the opportunity to respond to this information. You will have 10 days from the date of this letter to submit additional information in this regard.


How do we go about wording this? "I forgot" is not a legitimate excuse and we know this. Does anyone have any experience with this? Should we get a lawyer?

Thank you for your time.

 

[k.h.p.]

Why did he answer no the first time? Did he honestly not remember committing, being arrested for, or being charged with criminal offences? What was the 1% that was not a caution/warning when he was a minor?

If they are cautions/warnings, they are still offences "committed," even if not charged.

It's honestly hard to reconcile being arrested or at least having a long conversation with police and then answering "no" to that question. Your primary focus here should be on explaining why the two answers were different, apologizing, and trying to give them a reason not to ban him for five years.

I'd give up for a while on the idea of him getting inland sponsorship as well.

 

[21Goose]

Hi everyone. Long story short, my boyfriend was planning on coming to Canada, getting married and applying inland for a spousal sponsorship. He came in July of 2018 for two weeks and stated "no" to criminal history. In anticipation of the visa, we applied for the police check, which came back with results. 99% of what is listed is while he was a minor and cautions/warnings - the most of which he forgot he ever had. He received the following letter today in regards to his new eTA listing criminal history:

This refers to your application for an Electronic Travel Authorization.

Your application and all of the information you submitted in support of it have been reviewed and it appears that you may not meet the requirements for travel to Canada.

Subsection 11(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) provides that a foreign national must, before entering Canada, apply to an officer for a visa or any other document required by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. The visa or document shall be issued if, following an examination, the officer is satisfied that the foreign national is not inadmissible and meets the requirements of the Act.

I have concerns that you have not fulfilled the requirement put upon you by subsection 16(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act which states:

16(1) A person who makes an application must answer truthfully all questions put to them for the purpose of the examination and must produce a visa and all relevant evidence and documents that the officer reasonable requires.

Specifically, I have concerns the information you have provided in support of your application is fraudulent as you responded “No” to the statutory question:

- Have you ever committed, been arrested for, been charged with or convicted of any criminal offence in any country?

You have now applied for another eTA one year later and declared criminal offences. Please explain why this was not declared in your initial eTA application.

Please note that if it is found that you have engaged in misrepresentation in submitting your application for an Electronic Travel Authorization, you may be found to be inadmissible under section 40(1)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. A finding of such

inadmissibility would render you inadmissible to Canada for a period of five years according to section 40(2)(a):

40(1) A permanent resident or a foreign national is inadmissible for misrepresentation

(a) for directly or indirectly misrepresenting or withholding material facts relating to a relevant matter that induces or could induce an error in the administration of this Act

40(2) The following provisions govern subsection (1):

(a) the permanent resident or the foreign national continues to be inadmissible for misrepresentation for a period of five years following, in the case of a determination outside Canada, a final determination of inadmissibility under subsection (1) or, in the case of determination in Canada, the date the removal order is enforced.

I would like to provide you with the opportunity to respond to this information. You will have 10 days from the date of this letter to submit additional information in this regard.


How do we go about wording this? "I forgot" is not a legitimate excuse and we know this. Does anyone have any experience with this? Should we get a lawyer?

Thank you for your time.

He has a very strong chance of being banned for misrepresentation. You should immediately talk to a lawyer, but there's not much anyone can do here.

 

[k.h.p.]

Sorry, OP, I see from your post history that we've interacted on this file a few times. I had hoped that this wouldn't happen to you, but now it has.

The challenge here is to try to avoid the ban by being contrite, admitting that there was inadvertent misrepresentation, acknowledge that the eTA will not now be granted, and commit to not making an error like this again.

The problem is that if your partner's memory is so poor, but he did remember a pitch invasion and a no-charge assault - the assault being the operative part here - you need in your response to say that you had included them in this eTA to correct the record and apologize for the inadvertant misrepresentation. But don't listen to me, I'm not a lawyer. You really need a lawyer, now.

 

[idkhowtowordthis]

I'm guessing withdrawing it would be a silly idea at this point as, eventually, he will have to reapply and will be in the same situation again.

I am just lost for words. Thank you for your responses.

 

[k.h.p.]

They will not let you withdraw once an PFL has been issued.

 

[idkhowtowordthis]

Just an update. It appears that he was not banned. His new eta has been updated with criminal inadmissibility but has the chance to apply for rehabilitation. Not the best outcome but certainly not the worst!

Thanks everyone for your insight.

 

[21Goose]

Just an update. It appears that he was not banned. His new eta has been updated with criminal inadmissibility but has the chance to apply for rehabilitation. Not the best outcome but certainly not the worst!

Thanks everyone for your insight.

That's good news. You should talk to a lawyer and then file for rehabilitation.

 

[SAO]

Hello everyone I am little bit confuse... can anyone let me know how procedural fairness letter and document request letter looks like. I have received a letter requesting more documents, mentioned in order to continue assessment of your application. It is a PFL?

 

[zardoz]

Hello everyone I am little bit confuse... can anyone let me know how procedural fairness letter and document request letter looks like. I have received a letter requesting more documents, mentioned in order to continue assessment of your application. It is a PFL?

Probably not. You would know if it was a PFL and not need to ask.

 

[SAO]

Probably not. You would know if it was a PFL and not need to ask.

Thanks for the reply....someone told me it was PFL but based on what I have seen here mine doesn't stated anything about paragraphs or sections

 

[Avinashsk]

Hello everyone, i am not sure if this is the right place to post my question but i am going to try.

I have received a procedural fairness letter from immigration Canada. Just to give you a little bit of background i did got caught and was charged with DUI to which I pleaded guilty. I was prohibited from driving for one year which completed in March this year. Last year i applied for PR under the provincial nominees program, i have passed my medical and was asked to submit the PR fee, which I did. And now i have received a letter which reads;

This is in reference to your application permanent residence in Canada.
After careful and thorough consideration of all aspects of your application and the supporting information provided it appears that you do not meet the requirements for a permanent residence visa. Because you are a person described in paragraph 36(1) (a) of the immigration and refuge protection act. You would therefore be criminally inadmissible to Canada.
1) paragraph 36(1) (a) renders inadmissible a foriegn national on grounds of criminality for having been convicted in Canada of an offence under an act of parliament punishable by way of indictment or of two offenses under any act of parliament not arising out of a single occurrence.
You have been convicted in Canada on about March 05 2018 of an offence under article 253(1)(B) 255(1)CC with a blood alcohol content of 80 mg namely driving under influence_ Blood alcohol content this offence would be punishable by way of indictment under section 320.14(1) of CCC punishable by upto 10 years imprisonment.
Sub section 11(1) of the act states that the visa or document shall be issued if following an examination the officer is satisfied that the foriegn national is not admissible and meets the requirements of this act. It appears that you are inadmissible for the reasons set out above. Before I make a final decision, you may submit additional information relating to your criminal background.
You must provide any additional information within 30 days from the date of this letter.

#######
I made a big mistake i know that. But i have learned my lesson, i gave up drinking the very day i was caught, trying to help a friend reach home after he broke his car in front of my house.

I have worked really hard to come this far. I am in a situation that i can not figure out how to handle.

What do you guys think, what do i need to do to get myself out of this situation and get my permanent residence.

I went to see a pardon officer who said that i can not apply for pardon as of now because its too early. She pointed out that in the letter it says the charge is indictment which as per her means someone was hurt, but no one was hurt / there was no accident. They pulled me over and took me to police station for the test. I just checked on the court papers it says summary conviction not indictment.

 

[k.h.p.]

Hello everyone, i am not sure if this is the right place to post my question but i am going to try.

I have received a procedural fairness letter from immigration Canada. Just to give you a little bit of background i did got caught and was charged with DUI to which I pleaded guilty. I was prohibited from driving for one year which completed in March this year. Last year i applied for PR under the provincial nominees program, i have passed my medical and was asked to submit the PR fee, which I did. And now i have received a letter which reads;

This is in reference to your application permanent residence in Canada.
After careful and thorough consideration of all aspects of your application and the supporting information provided it appears that you do not meet the requirements for a permanent residence visa. Because you are a person described in paragraph 36(1) (a) of the immigration and refuge protection act. You would therefore be criminally inadmissible to Canada.
1) paragraph 36(1) (a) renders inadmissible a foriegn national on grounds of criminality for having been convicted in Canada of an offence under an act of parliament punishable by way of indictment or of two offenses under any act of parliament not arising out of a single occurrence.
You have been convicted in Canada on about March 05 2018 of an offence under article 253(1)(B) 255(1)CC with a blood alcohol content of 80 mg namely driving under influence_ Blood alcohol content this offence would be punishable by way of indictment under section 320.14(1) of CCC punishable by upto 10 years imprisonment.
Sub section 11(1) of the act states that the visa or document shall be issued if following an examination the officer is satisfied that the foriegn national is not admissible and meets the requirements of this act. It appears that you are inadmissible for the reasons set out above. Before I make a final decision, you may submit additional information relating to your criminal background.
You must provide any additional information within 30 days from the date of this letter.

#######
I made a big mistake i know that. But i have learned my lesson, i gave up drinking the very day i was caught, trying to help a friend reach home after he broke his car in front of my house.

I have worked really hard to come this far. I am in a situation that i can not figure out how to handle.

What do you guys think, what do i need to do to get myself out of this situation and get my permanent residence.

I went to see a pardon officer who said that i can not apply for pardon as of now because its too early. She pointed out that in the letter it says the charge is indictment which as per her means someone was hurt, but no one was hurt / there was no accident. They pulled me over and took me to police station for the test. I just checked on the court papers it says summary conviction not indictment.

It doesn't matter if it was prosecuted as a summary conviction, it is a hybrid offense so it is treated as if it was indictable.

You are inadmissible to Canada for a period of five years from the completion of the sentence, and afterwards you may need a pardon.

 

[Avinashsk]

It doesn't matter if it was prosecuted as a summary conviction, it is a hybrid offense so it is treated as if it was indictable.

You are inadmissible to Canada for a period of five years from the completion of the sentence, and afterwards you may need a pardon.

Thanks for the reply, so where do I start. I am in Canada with my family and my visa expires in January 2020.

 

[k.h.p.]

Thanks for the reply, so where do I start. I am in Canada with my family and my visa expires in January 2020.

You have to wait to 2024 to be eligible to apply.

You can certainly submit all your paperwork in relation to this PFL but you can expect your PR application to be refused. You will need to leave Canada as you are inadmissible, though as your family is here you may have some slim hope of humanitarian considerations.

You really, really need a lawyer.