The future is unknown for Dhruv Patel.
“It’s been a constant battle with (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) in terms of getting some sort of knowledge of where this application is headed or what agents are reviewing,” he said.
He’s been trying to get his wife to Winnipeg on spousal sponsorship for 15 months now, but said there’s been no progress and there’s been very limited communication from the federal government.
He added: “Staying here is very difficult.” “The long-distance relationship, and the costs associated with repatriation… are not feasible.”
The challenges seem to be endless for immigrants to Canada, like Patel’s wife.
This has recently been evident in the tense relationship between the country and India, and a federal announcement that promised to reduce admissions of new permanent residents by 21 percent by next year.
On October 24, Mark Miller, Canada’s immigration minister, defended the reduction, saying: “These changes will make immigration good for our country so that everyone can access the good jobs, homes and support they need to thrive. We have listened to Canadians, and we will continue to protect “The integrity of our system and the responsible growth of our population.”
Tony Siwicki, owner of Silver Heights Restaurant and Lounge, said many of his employees are subject to the same hassle Patel faces in the immigration process.
“I have two kitchen staff – two girls from India – with me since 2021. They have now been forced to stop working since July, and we are now almost into November, and they still have no idea when they will be allowed to.” “Back to work,” he said.
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“They both have rent, they both have bills to pay, they both can’t make any money. I always ask them, ‘When can you come back?’ And they keep saying, ‘It’s still processing,’” referring to their permanent residency application.
He said he also had a Mexican server down due to processing the order, and two Nigerians trying to get proof of their residency.
“They’ve been here for a long time, and any day now they could be told they can no longer work,” he said.
It’s a blow the reeling industry can’t take, noted Sean Jeffery, CEO of the Manitoba Food and Restaurant Association.
“The culinary industry in those rural areas of Manitoba has been really impacted, and they need, you know, temporary foreign workers to keep their business going,” he said. “This decision was made without any consultation… Unfortunately these decisions pose significant challenges to our industry and will cause some companies to cease to exist.”
But Patel said it’s also a big hit for many who want to see loved ones unable to take their wallets out of their wallets.
“There are people who have been avoided for two-and-a-half years, three years (and) there is no sign of their permanent residency application being transferred. Out of necessity, what a lot of individuals do, is withdraw the entire application, lose money, and then resubmit a new application and go from there,” he said. For some it works, for others it doesn’t.
“How many people will get money to apply for (temporary resident visa) or spousal sponsorship multiple times? They’re not because they’re not $100 or $200. “It’s thousands of dollars.”
With his wife’s permanent residency application still intact, he said it could lead to her leaving the country entirely. The uncertainty is very high.
“Until maybe two years ago, I never thought this was a possibility,” he said. “People’s requests that were approved, congratulations. Good on you guys. But it’s like a lucky draw. It’s like you either play bingo or you don’t.”
But he said he would not easily give up trying to reunite with his wife in Canada, where he has lived for 26 years.
&Copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
