Immigration
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October 06, 2025
Canada signals renewed interest in attracting U.S. technology H-1B visa applicants
Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed that the federal government is examining measures to draw skilled workers affected by the recently announced US$100,000 H-1B fee, with particular attention to technology professionals. The initiative comes amid concerns over policy uncertainty in the United States, positioning Canada as an alternative destination for specialized talent.
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October 02, 2025
Line crossed: IRCC’s proposed administrative monetary penalties should alarm all Canadian bars
The federal government is quietly implementing a regulatory framework that should alarm every lawyer in Canada, regardless of practice area. Under the guise of addressing immigration “ghost consultants,” Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has crafted administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) that grant it unprecedented authority to discipline lawyers — the same lawyers who routinely challenge that department’s decisions in court.
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September 29, 2025
UN and Palestine: Recognition, refugees and Canada’s role
This week at the United Nations General Assembly, history was made. Several Western nations, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, France and Portugal, formally recognized the State of Palestine. In doing so, these countries joined the overwhelming majority of UN members — now 157 of 193 — that formally acknowledge Palestinian statehood.
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September 26, 2025
Ontario opening of the courts ceremony highlights digitization, reform of Rules of Civil Procedure
On Sept. 25, judges, attorneys general, leaders of law associations and others met for Ontario’s opening of the courts ceremony, discussing various strategies that have been and will be undertaken to improve access to justice. This included digitization and reformation of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
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September 24, 2025
Looking beyond the hype: Canada’s muted benefit from the new US$100,000 H-1B visa fee
The Trump administration recently unleashed a sweeping overhaul of the H-1B visa program by imposing an unprecedented $100,000 application fee on new visa petitions, effective Sept. 21, 2025. The policy aims to prioritize American workers by discouraging companies from broadly recruiting foreign talent.
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September 22, 2025
Immigration program plagued by backlogs and uncertainty
Immigration has always been central to Canada’s growth, with governments arguing that newcomers are vital to the economy, diversity and innovation. However, in 2025, immigration became the subject of sharp public debate.
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September 22, 2025
Canadian government should abolish immigration detention
A 39-year-old Somali man, Abdurahman Hassan, died at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre in June 2015 after being transferred from the Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, Ont., where he had been restrained by 10 individuals attempting to control him.
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September 19, 2025
Foreign worker program needs reform, not elimination
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre’s recent statement that the foreign worker program should be shut down is nothing more than opportunistic political posturing. He was joined by an unlikely bedfellow: B.C. Premier David Eby. Both are trying to capitalize on the frustration of young Canadians who face high unemployment.
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September 17, 2025
CBA offers Parliament ‘better way’ forward to reform beleaguered immigration and refugee system
As parliamentary debate resumed yesterday over the Liberal government’s proposed ad hoc fixes for Canada’s creaky immigration and refugee system, the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) is offering legislators a detailed roadmap for wholesale modernization that charts an effective, fair and constitutionally sound way forward, members of the immigration bar say.
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September 16, 2025
Cabinet says new criminal legislation coming in ‘matter of days’ but federal budget not till Nov. 4
With MPs back in the capital for the fall, the first two days in the House of Commons were busy ones for legislators. On Sept. 16, 2025, Justice Minister Sean Fraser disclosed some of the Liberal government’s immediate plans and timing for new criminal justice legislation, while Finance and National Revenue Minister François-Philippe Champagne informed the Commons today that he will deliver a somewhat tardy federal budget on Nov. 4, 2025 — not in October, as Liberal House Leader Steven MacKinnon stated when he laid out the minority government’s fall agenda at a press conference the previous day.