Immigration Appeals

Immigration Lawyer in Abbotsford, BC

If you are a Canadian Citizen or a permanent resident and have sponsored your Spouse or Common-Law Partner to join you in Canada, but that application was denied by the reviewing visa officer outside of Canada; you have a right to appeal that decision.

Likewise, a few other decision may be appealed to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB).

Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents of Canada have the right to appeal certain decisions rendered by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). In certain cases, protected persons (those who have been conferred a convention refugee status) may appeal certain decisions to the IAD. The IAD has the jurisdiction to hear the following types of appeals:

  1. Sponsorship Appeals: (family class; spousal sponsorship applications filed outside of Canada and Parents or Grand Parents Sponsorship Applications which have been refused by visa officers). Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents who sponsored their spouses outside of Canada and/or their parents or grandparents and that sponsorship application has been refused may appeal the refusal to the IAD.
  2. Residency Obligation Appeals: Permanent Residents of Canada who failed to meet the residency obligation i.e. they did not remain in Canada 730 days in a five-year period may have lost their status. They have the right to appeal the decision made outside of Canada.
  3. Removal Order Appeals: A Permanent Resident, Protected Person or a foreign national holding a valid Permanent Resident Visa may appeal the decision made by an officer to remove them from Canada to the IAD.

Timelines to file an appeal:

Sponsorship Refusal:

In case of sponsorship application refusals, the sponsor (who submitted an application to sponsor) must appeal the decision to the IAD within 30 days of receiving the written decision. Appeals before the IAD are called de-novo hearings which means hear a fresh. In these hearings any new evidence which is considered credible, may be submitted to prove your case. If this appeal is allowed by the IAD, the refused application will be processed by the visa office further.

Residency Obligation Appeals:

If a Permanent Resident who made an application for a Permanent Resident Travel Document (PRTD) to a visa office outside of Canada and has been refused PRTD may appeal this decision to IAD within 60 days of receiving the written decision.

Removal Order Appeals:

The categories of persons may appeal the decision of an officer or the Immigration Division (ID) of the IRB to remove them from Canada i.e. Permanent residents, Protected Persons and Foreign Nations with Valid Permanent Resident Visa. They may appeal the decision within 30 days.


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