Do I Need An Immigration Lawyer?

[bambooleaves]

I am applying for the Express Entry Skilled Worker category. I'm pretty competent in filing my own paperwork, but a couple of factors made me wonder if hiring an immigration lawyer would be advisable:

1) I am a freelance writer, editor and content manager (full-time for one company), but my job role doesn't fit neatly within a specific NOC category. I do a bit of writing, a bit of copy-editing/proofreading, and I coordinate and manage other freelance writers and translators, but it doesn't fit perfectly within NOC 5121, 5122, 5123, or 0124. Perhaps an immigration lawyer could help me determine the most appropriate NOC code?

2) I may or may not have trouble asking for proof of employment from my employer. Given that I'm technically a freelancer, they may not be too willing to provide stamped documentation for my full-time hours. Would an immigration lawyer be able to advise me on how best to approach my current employer? (After all, I don’t want to jeopardize my current job by pressing on the issue too hard with my employer)

Is an immigration lawyer worth it, in this case? I believe I would have to fork out around US$3,500 for lawyer fees (from pre-ITA to post-ITA), and obviously I don’t take this lightly.

Any advice, suggestion, or experience would be appreciated.

 

[santhkum90]

I am applying for the Express Entry Skilled Worker category. I'm pretty competent in filing my own paperwork, but a couple of factors made me wonder if hiring an immigration lawyer would be advisable:

1) I am a freelance writer, editor and content manager (full-time for one company), but my job role doesn't fit neatly within a specific NOC category. I do a bit of writing, a bit of copy-editing/proofreading, and I coordinate and manage other freelance writers and translators, but it doesn't fit perfectly within NOC 5121, 5122, 5123, or 0124. Perhaps an immigration lawyer could help me determine the most appropriate NOC code?

2) I may or may not have trouble asking for proof of employment from my employer. Given that I'm technically a freelancer, they may not be too willing to provide stamped documentation for my full-time hours. Would an immigration lawyer be able to advise me on how best to approach my current employer? (After all, I don’t want to jeopardize my current job by pressing on the issue too hard with my employer)

Is an immigration lawyer worth it, in this case? I believe I would have to fork out around US$3,500 for lawyer fees (from pre-ITA to post-ITA), and obviously I don’t take this lightly.

Any advice, suggestion, or experience would be appreciated.

For normal scenarios, where you are sure about all the above, I would say immigration lawyers are not needed. In your case, I would still suggest to try your best to obtain the details without an immigration consultant. But, if you feel you don't have a definitive answer after that, then you can go for the consultant as a last resort. My personal opinion is, it is not worth it.

 

[OdinNguyen]

I am applying for the Express Entry Skilled Worker category. I'm pretty competent in filing my own paperwork, but a couple of factors made me wonder if hiring an immigration lawyer would be advisable:

1) I am a freelance writer, editor and content manager (full-time for one company), but my job role doesn't fit neatly within a specific NOC category. I do a bit of writing, a bit of copy-editing/proofreading, and I coordinate and manage other freelance writers and translators, but it doesn't fit perfectly within NOC 5121, 5122, 5123, or 0124. Perhaps an immigration lawyer could help me determine the most appropriate NOC code?

2) I may or may not have trouble asking for proof of employment from my employer. Given that I'm technically a freelancer, they may not be too willing to provide stamped documentation for my full-time hours. Would an immigration lawyer be able to advise me on how best to approach my current employer? (After all, I don’t want to jeopardize my current job by pressing on the issue too hard with my employer)

Is an immigration lawyer worth it, in this case? I believe I would have to fork out around US$3,500 for lawyer fees (from pre-ITA to post-ITA), and obviously I don’t take this lightly.

Any advice, suggestion, or experience would be appreciated.

Immigration consultant does not change the fact that you still need to gather those proofs on your own. Unless you are going to go with the fishy one. I don't think it's worth anyway.

 

[zagcollins]

I am applying for the Express Entry Skilled Worker category. I'm pretty competent in filing my own paperwork, but a couple of factors made me wonder if hiring an immigration lawyer would be advisable:

1) I am a freelance writer, editor and content manager (full-time for one company), but my job role doesn't fit neatly within a specific NOC category. I do a bit of writing, a bit of copy-editing/proofreading, and I coordinate and manage other freelance writers and translators, but it doesn't fit perfectly within NOC 5121, 5122, 5123, or 0124. Perhaps an immigration lawyer could help me determine the most appropriate NOC code?

2) I may or may not have trouble asking for proof of employment from my employer. Given that I'm technically a freelancer, they may not be too willing to provide stamped documentation for my full-time hours. Would an immigration lawyer be able to advise me on how best to approach my current employer? (After all, I don’t want to jeopardize my current job by pressing on the issue too hard with my employer)

Is an immigration lawyer worth it, in this case? I believe I would have to fork out around US$3,500 for lawyer fees (from pre-ITA to post-ITA), and obviously I don’t take this lightly.

Any advice, suggestion, or experience would be appreciated.

bamboo, i am applying using NOC 5121. While I have had the luxury of having multiple jobs, make sure the experience letter you get matches one single NOC - it does not have to be word for word, rephrase what's in the NOC. What you can do is give the company that you are working for the content and get them to sign off on it. Don't waste money on an immigration lawyer!