URGENT - Loss of Job while waiting for PR Application (CEC) to be processed

[antpgomes]

Hi all,

Firstly, I just joined the forum so apologies in advance if this isn't the correct section to ask this question but I was hoping someone could provide me with advice/insights before I try and get on the phone with CIC in the morning.

I have a pending PR application (AOR Jan 4 2019) and back in February 21 I lost my job due to mass layoffs. I was hired for that job under the LMIA program. I immediately informed CIC of this change of circumstances and was advised by immigration lawyers that because I was applying under CEC this wouldn't be a problem. I searched a bit the forum and have seen the same info from senior members, e.g.

Has he already applied for PR? If he had CEC experience then losing the job won't change that. There is still a good chance he will get PR - assuming all his papers and experience are in order.

Today I received a message from CIC stating the following:

This refers to your application for permanent residence in Canada. I am writing you this letter to express my serious concerns regarding your application.

I have concerns you may no longer hold a valid arranged employment offer.

Therefore I am asking you to submit any additional information/documentation that would allay my concerns. You have 7 days from the date of this letter to submit the additional information using your MyCIC account.
If you choose not to respond with additional information, or if your submission does not allay these concerns, your application may be refused.

I did apply for a BOWP and have a job offer from a different employer that I was hoping to start as soon as I get a new permit. After reading this message i'm tremendously concerned about my PR application.

Did anyone have to deal with a similar experience? I just re-checked the requirements for CEC and it doesn't mention a valid job offer so I'm a bit confused about how concerned i should be.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thank you kindly
Antonio

 

[Raising Star]

At that time of application how much years of validity you had on the work permit ?

 

[antpgomes]

At that time of application how much years of validity you had on the work permit ?

My work permit is/was valid until Sep 26, 2019.

I received my AOR on Jan 4 and estimated completion date for PR application was July 4

 

[Raising Star]

My opinion is the assessing officer is not aware of the rules because for CEC job offer is not minimum criteria for CEC even if you claimed points for job offer. Please refer the below link for change in circumstances after AOR. Please refer the section change in circumstances after AOR. Between what is your lawyer opinion and how he is going to tackle this ?
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/operational-bulletins-manuals/permanent-residence/express-entry/assessing-electronic-application-on-section-a11-2.html

 

[antpgomes]

I don't currently have a lawyer helping me with my application but when I talked to an immigration consultant they too assured that I did not need a valid job offer in order for my application to move forward. Should I get a lawyer to help me draft a response letter?

 

[Raising Star]

I think you should hire a lawyer and send them a response. Try Kubier Kamal professional services which might work out cheaper.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

I don't currently have a lawyer helping me with my application but when I talked to an immigration consultant they too assured that I did not need a valid job offer in order for my application to move forward. Should I get a lawyer to help me draft a response letter?

You don't need a lawyer. You can respond to IRCC yourself. It was likely just an error.

 

[antpgomes]

You don't need a lawyer. You can respond to IRCC yourself. It was likely just an error.

That was the advice I got over the phone from IRCC. Here's the letter I drafted as a response:

Dear Consulate Officer,


I am providing this letter of explanation as a response to your request letter dated May 15, 2019. Thank you kindly for communicating your concerns regarding my application to become a permanent resident of Canada.


I would like to clarify that I am applying under the Canadian Experience Class. Your concern that I may not hold a valid arranged employment offer appears to be related to the Federal Skilled Worker Program. I confirmed with the agent I spoke with at 8AM morning that my application is being considered under CEC.


I would also like to clarify that upon losing my job, I immediately contacted CIC to notify them of this changes in circumstances,


I had the opportunity to speak with one of your representatives this morning who confirmed that having a valid job offer is not a requirement to apply under CEC. I would like to add however that immediately after losing my job on February 21st, which occurred through no fault of my own, I took the following steps:


• February 22 – Obtained letter of explanation from Employer and forwarded this information to CIC. Please see document attached on Page 2

• February 25 – Applied for Bridge Open Work Permit. Please see document attached on Page 3

• February 27 – Received confirmation from CIC that the information I provided regarding loss of job was communicated to the responsible office for their consideration. Please see document attached on Page 4

• May 1 – Signed Job Offer with Canadian Employer (start date pending issuance of BOWP or PR). Please see document attached on Pages 5-6


Lastly, the agent did express a concern over 15 points awarded for the previous job offer. While I understand that concern, the cutoff score at the time of my application was around 449, whereas my score was 539. Even if those points were to be withdrawn, I believe this wouldn’t hinder my application.


I hope the above information is sufficient to mitigate your concerns.


If you have any other questions please don’t hesitate to contact me.


Regards,

Do you think this would sufficiently address their concerns? I'll be providing the documents referenced in that letter.

Thank you for your help, I really appreciate it

 

[canuck_in_uk]

That was the advice I got over the phone from IRCC. Here's the letter I drafted as a response:



Do you think this would sufficiently address their concerns? I'll be providing the documents referenced in that letter.

Thank you for your help, I really appreciate it

Looks fine.

 

[jes_ON]

Hi all,

Firstly, I just joined the forum so apologies in advance if this isn't the correct section to ask this question but I was hoping someone could provide me with advice/insights before I try and get on the phone with CIC in the morning.

I have a pending PR application (AOR Jan 4 2019) and back in February 21 I lost my job due to mass layoffs. I was hired for that job under the LMIA program. I immediately informed CIC of this change of circumstances and was advised by immigration lawyers that because I was applying under CEC this wouldn't be a problem. I searched a bit the forum and have seen the same info from senior members, e.g.

Today I received a message from CIC stating the following:

I did apply for a BOWP and have a job offer from a different employer that I was hoping to start as soon as I get a new permit. After reading this message i'm tremendously concerned about my PR application.

Did anyone have to deal with a similar experience? I just re-checked the requirements for CEC and it doesn't mention a valid job offer so I'm a bit confused about how concerned i should be.

The issue is not eligibility for CEC. It is eligibility for EE - the issue (appears to be) that you claimed 50 points for having a valid job offer, and that job offer is no longer valid.

If the VO actually wrote "15" that is a typo. You have 50 points on the line.

This means the VO has to deduct 50 points from your CRS score, which *could* make you ineligible for your draw. If your verified CRS was 539 before, your revised CRS would be 489, and you would still be eligible under your draw if the cutoff score was 449. This is the ONLY point you have to make in your response. It's a pity that the VO did not do the math, but, it is easy to respond to.

It is OK to talk about your new job offer, but it's not really relevant to the matter.

RE the BOWP, you have to be within 4 months of the expiry date of your current permit to be eligible. So if you have already submitted your BOWP application, and your current permit does not expire until September 26, it will likely be refused, because you were not eligible at the time you applied.

You could submit a case specific inquiry about the BOWP, inform them of the layoff and the new job offer - the VO *might* approve it anyway. No guarantees, but it's worth a shot to save you from having to re-apply for the BOWP.

 

[antpgomes]

The issue is not eligibility for CEC. It is eligibility for EE - the issue (appears to be) that you claimed 50 points for having a valid job offer, and that job offer is no longer valid.

If the VO actually wrote "15" that is a typo. You have 50 points on the line.

This means the VO has to deduct 50 points from your CRS score, which *could* make you ineligible for your draw. If your verified CRS was 539 before, your revised CRS would be 489, and you would still be eligible under your draw if the cutoff score was 449. This is the ONLY point you have to make in your response. It's a pity that the VO did not do the math, but, it is easy to respond to.

It is OK to talk about your new job offer, but it's not really relevant to the matter.

RE the BOWP, you have to be within 4 months of the expiry date of your current permit to be eligible. So if you have already submitted your BOWP application, and your current permit does not expire until September 26, it will likely be refused, because you were not eligible at the time you applied.

You could submit a case specific inquiry about the BOWP, inform them of the layoff and the new job offer - the VO *might* approve it anyway. No guarantees, but it's worth a shot to save you from having to re-apply for the BOWP.

Thanks so much for sharing your insights. I may have misunderstood the 50 as 15 during my phone chat with the CIC agent. Nonetheless, like you mentioned, even with the 50 I should be well over the cutoff score so I'm hoping that's the only issue they're seeing with my application.

RE BOWP: My hope is that because be the time the BOWP is processed i will be within 4 months of expiry date they would make an exception and allow it. I did provide a letter of explanation fully knowing that they might not.

Thanks again to everyone who's been helping me with this, you guys are awesome

 

[canuck_in_uk]

The issue is not eligibility for CEC. It is eligibility for EE - the issue (appears to be) that you claimed 50 points for having a valid job offer, and that job offer is no longer valid.

If the VO actually wrote "15" that is a typo. You have 50 points on the line.

This means the VO has to deduct 50 points from your CRS score, which *could* make you ineligible for your draw. If your verified CRS was 539 before, your revised CRS would be 489, and you would still be eligible under your draw if the cutoff score was 449. This is the ONLY point you have to make in your response. It's a pity that the VO did not do the math, but, it is easy to respond to.

It is OK to talk about your new job offer, but it's not really relevant to the matter.

RE the BOWP, you have to be within 4 months of the expiry date of your current permit to be eligible. So if you have already submitted your BOWP application, and your current permit does not expire until September 26, it will likely be refused, because you were not eligible at the time you applied.

You could submit a case specific inquiry about the BOWP, inform them of the layoff and the new job offer - the VO *might* approve it anyway. No guarantees, but it's worth a shot to save you from having to re-apply for the BOWP.

Good catch Jes.

 

[Raising Star]

Jes On : even if the CRS drops below that round it is still not a problem right ? Because the points gets locked on the date of AOR as long as the minimum eligibility is met

 

[Raising Star]

As per this link https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/operational-bulletins-manuals/permanent-residence/express-entry/assessing-electronic-application-on-section-a11-2.html

 

[iiqra]

As per this link https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/publications-manuals/operational-bulletins-manuals/permanent-residence/express-entry/assessing-electronic-application-on-section-a11-2.html

This gives me a little bit of hope because I also lost 50 points because of not being able to work anymore in Canada. My BOWP was also refused because I was stupid enough to travel outside of Canada while under implied status. I applied and got an acknowledgment of receipt on 28th October 2018. At that point I still had the job and a valid job offer as well. I lost my job on 10th January 2018 due to my BOWP being refused as I left the country.

However my application has been delayed and is still stuck on eligibility review which makes me so nervous. Hoping for the best outcome!