JSHalifax

Hi we have been welcoming people to Halifax NS for a long time and over the years have met those people that use consultants and lawyers and those that dont....Now we are really promoting the Nova Scotia Nominee Program here we have had lots more people coming that route, in fact its now the quickest and easiest way....It seems that if you want peace of mind because you might fail then you cant say to yourselves "see I told you we should have used a lawyer" having said that we have also had lots of feedback about good companies and bad companies so do a lot of research.. it would be inappropriate to name names here..
In my view some of the funds spent on professional help could easily pay for two cheap airfares to Halifax and a free consultation with our government representatives who are a bus ride away on Brunswick street, they will review you qualifications and give you a direction to go in.. after that if you think your application might not be straightforward you can get a free consultation with an immigration lawyer and explain what you think your particular problem might be.....if you manage to stay a week here you might even go home with a job offer!
Hope that helps a little bit..
June

Dave+Jules

Well all I can say is you were lucky to get everything done within 7 months. In the UK unless you have a job offer or going the PNP route your timeline is probably unheard of. I perceive the main problem with delaying in resolving straight forward immigration visas applications is more to do with the processing capability of the office.

I know people have been saying we have polled this before but it would be interesting to see how many have used an immigration consultant / lawyer and if you application was successful regardless of the method you used to fill in the forms, how long it took to gain the visa. That will give you an indication of their value.

Surrey Expat

It is perhaps not helpful to speculate as to why one application was treated differently to another. Speculation is just that, without foundation of fact.

Using a paid assistant to submit an application is a personal choice. Even if the consultant/lawyer has a good track record, there is still no certainty the application will go through. However they may have prepared many cases and have learned from past experience. Most of us who have successfully submitted our own have done it once, and can only make comments based on that single experience.

As much as people who ask for 'Advice' would like to think, this does not make us experts in the field of immigration. I would not like someone to rest their dreams of immigrating on my experience of the immigration process. We were fortunate, our application was anything but simple and it went through without a hitch. This may have been down to the way the application was prepared, the help of the immigration officer or good fortune, perhaps a bit of each. From my own experience CIC were exceptionally helpful, they were outstanding.

Would we do it the same way again , probably, as it worked. Those that were not successful, might perhaps wish they had used some professional help.

I don't consider any of us can give solid advice on this, it is for each applicant to weigh up the pros and cons of each option and then make their own decision.

BristolUK

An absolutely fair point. Something that worked for one may not work for another so they shouldn't rely exclusively on that.

At the same time a bad experience of a supposedly 'straightforward' situation does serve to warn someone not to assume theirs is as straightforward as they think and that they may want to double check.

Mikelesley

We used a canadian lawyer - simply to make sure everything was ok on the first submission to avoid delays - they initially gave us a "test" to ensure that we would be ok on the points system then they gave us a money back guarantee. All in all we were very happy with them and would recommend using a lawyer just for peace of mind.

live to ski

For most banks you have to pay to keep an account for else have a c.$3,000 balance.

I have found banks to be very inconsitent here, both within and between staff and branches.

TD told us that we could have GIC or RSPs whilst just on WPs. So I went to Coast Capital who would let us have a GIC but not a RSP. So I got my RSP (through work) with HSBC who never questioned the fact that I was jsut on a WP, and Mr L2S got his through VanCity who wouldn't give him a VISA card.

I tried RBC because the advertise that they help immigrants, and made an appointment specifing this. I knew more than the advisor who ended up just pulling up CIC and Canada Tax's websites - I had already done all that by myself!

(for those who don't know, TD and HSBC are 'regular' banks, whereas VanCity and Coast Capital are credit unions which are like the old building societies in the UK).

Dave+Jules

That sounds good enough to me

live to ski

Sorry to pick on you Mikelesley but reading your post makes me cringe.

My company intitally hired an immigration lawyer for us, top lawyer firm in Vancouver, the one my company used for years for corporate law and does still - just. The immigration lawyer not only gave bad advise about which route to take - she never told me about BC PNP and instead implied my only route was new WP through LMO and then SW PR. I did my own research as well and hence found out about BC PNP. When I asked her about it she said that I wouldn't be eligable (I was).

She was also leaving EVERYTHING to the last minute, and because of the increase in waiting times, we would have been without WPs, whereas if we had submitted BC PNP as soon as she was retained we probably wouldn't have needed new WPs.

A few months after she was meant to be working on our case my Uncle died so we went back to the UK for the funeral. I asked her what we could collect whilst there e.g. birth certifcates etc. she couldn't even give us a list. I pieced it all together myself.

In the end I was getting so anxious about how slowly everything was going, and her BC PNP advice that I sacked her and just did it all myself.

So please please don't assume that by hiring a lawyer / consutlant it will all be and you can just sit back and wait. Apart from anything, even a good one will make you do all the legs work in getting your birth certificates, marriage certificates, proof of exams taken, proof of work experience etc together. And then who says that they are going to do it correctly or in the quickest time. So please, if you decide not to do DIY, keep on top of everything, and don't just assume the lawyer / consultant is always right.

Andrew Miller

Corporate lawyers are not immigration lawyers - although many will claim that they can do it all. As you found out through your experience they can't - they don't have experience dealing with immigration (or very limited experience) and they simply read the law and instructions you have read yourself. That is all. They don't know the process, nuances of such as they never or rarely worked on immigration. They are not up to date with rapidly changing rules and options, even if they claim having immigration lawyer on staff. Such claims are b.s. in most cases anyway - who in right mind in corporate law firm would keep an immigration lawyer? Just in case avery once in few years their corporate client may have need for immigration assistance? Are you really believe in it? And what experience such lawyer would have with immigration, trying to work on a case once every few years?

So please, don't put corporate, criminal, family or property lawyers on par with lawyers or consultants who deal exclusively with immigration. Regardless what the corporate law firm told your employer they have no idea about immigration and your own experience proved it.

Using corporate lawyer for immigration is like going to pediatrist for brain surgery.

Now I understand why you are unhappy with lawyers - the only problem is you believed (as your employer did) that any lawyer can properly deal with immigration matters. Non-immigration lawyers claim that they can, but they know nothing beyond reading what law says and have no expertise nor experience in immigration field. Don't blame immigration lawyers and consultants for the fault of corporate law firm your employer used.

And of course it is always the applicant who must collect all the evidence - representative cannot legally do it for you. If you expected lawyer to do your part then you were wrong.

YYZlover

You took the words right out of my mouth.

You did it again. Taking the words.... etc.

Mikelesley

Sorry if our experience made you cringe but it did not us - Our experience was through an immigration lawyer - not a corporate lawyer - yes we had to collect the evidence - get it notorized etc etc - our lawyer only put everything together and based on our evidence gave a recommendation. They did not cause any problems at all - everyone has different experiences - ours was excellent and I would recommend them to anyone.
Lesley

Andrew Miller

A warning to all who shop for least expensive lawyer. Don't.

Why? Because of section 13.1(3) of Regulations here:

http://www.canlii.org/ca/regu/sor2002-227/sec13.1.html

As most of you probably don't know when rules for regulating immigration representatives where being created we consultants had nothing to say - lawyers created it all and pushed above, greatly benefiting them section into Regulations.

Ever wondered why some large law firms with huge and very expensive downtown offices offer immigration services at such bargain prices, a fraction of what lawyers there would be charging if billing you per hour? Above section explains.

Law students in order to gain experience in renowned law firms, experience needed when looking for job after graduation, simply volunteer their work there. Big law office pays them nothing. And students in those offices prepare immigration packages - lawyer only signs them.

YYZlover

Makes sense. I wouldn't use an immigration lawyer in a firm doing corporate law. I'd use one in a firm specializing in immigration. Then hopefully the clerk/intern will be one who has an interest in immigration law and be a little clued up on it.

I did see a lawyer when I was over last and we did get along fine. He also had contacts in the entertainment industry so I asked him about doing that. He was honest enough to tell me point blank "I'm an immigration lawyer. I don't do entertainment law. I know lawyers who do and would be happy tp recommend a couple."

I like people who tell me, "sorry I don't know but know someone who do". They most likely get my money because they are honest.

However - I won't be using them and that has nothing to do with them not being good or the quoted fee, which was very reasonable.

I have other reasons to use another lawyer.

emmyb

Has anyone heard of/dealt with www.***************.com?

I've just received all their bumf and they appear to deal with all your visa, job applications, finding a house/school, greeting you when you land etc.

It looks really good on paper but is it too good?

live to ski

Andrew & YZRlover, if you had properly read my posts, (and all my previous ones on the topic) who would have seen I said that she was an immigration lawyer.

It is a law firm with differeing areas of practice. We deal with their corporate lawyers, and asked them to put us on their immigration lawyers. Differing areas of law - same practice.

The so called lawyer who fncked up our case practices immigration law, NOT corporate law.

I KNOW THERE ARE DIFFERING AREAS OF LAW

I also know when someone is not doing their job properly - luckily for us, I realised this in time to do something about it.

I worry for people who think that by hiring an immigration lawyer / consultant they can just switch off, sit back and all will be ok. I have jsut tried to warn people that they need to be on top of their case as well.

I know that you still have to collect all the eveidence yourself, and hence was pointing out that no matter how much you pay an immigration lawyer / consultant you have to do the hard work of evidence collecting (in my opinion) yourself. This is a discussion on why use an immigration lawyer, and I was wanting to point out that you still have to do the hard work.

I would never just put my health in the hands of a doctor and not question what they were doing it, why, what alternatives there are, so why would I with my immigration process (with an immigration lawyer / consultant before some smart arse asks why I would get a doctor to handle my immigration!)

I do my research Andrew, hence how I managed to get to Canada, and stay. I researched this immigration lawyer, and on paper she looks fantastic. Neither me or my employer would ever dream of hiring a corporate lawyer or a lawyer practicing another area to handle my immigration, and I am extremely offended by your comment that you believe that I did.