Judicial Review
Judicial Review
Under Canada’s immigration law, you may be able to file a request to have the Federal Court of Canada review a negative decision made on your visa or immigration matter. The application must be filed by a lawyer in Canada, we work with a member of a law society in Canada to file the request on your behalf.
What Types of Decisions can be Reviewed?
A judicial review may be filed if IRCC did not follow the correct procedures when assessing your application. For example, if the visa officer did not assess the application properly and take into consideration the facts presented and the documentation provided, then there may be grounds for a successful request for judicial review. Note that in order to be granted leave via judicial review one must prove that IRCC did not perform their job properly. You must show the Court that an error was made in the decision, or the decision was not fair or reasonable.
Although technically the judicial review decision is not based on the merits of your case but rather the process that lead to the decision, if the original application being reviewed was not complete and did not present a strong case for approval then in practice it is difficult to obtain a favorable decision. Most types of visa applications can be reviewed, but there are exceptions.
Judicial Review Process
Review by the Federal Court is a two-stage process. In the first stage, which is known as the “leave”stage, the Court reviews the documents related to your case. If the judge feels there is merit to your case then leave is granted. This means the Court has agreed to examine the decision in depth. At the second stage, called “application for judicial review,” your lawyer ( and you if you are in Canada) can attend an oral hearing before the Federal Court and explain why you believe the original decision was wrong. Should the court be persuaded, the decision will be set aside and the matter turned back to IRCC for reconsideration.
Reapply or Judicial Review
Often in the case of a visa refusal there is only two options: reapply or judicial review. Which option is better depends upon the circumstance of your case and whether there are grounds to file for judicial review. But even if judicial review is legally an option this does not mean it is practical to apply for most people, because it is a long and fairly expensive process. Therefore, most people that apply for judicial review are extremely motivated to obtain their visa often because they have family or business ties in Canada.
Time Deadlines for Filing for Judicial Review
To apply to review an officer’s decision for a matter arising in Canada, the judicial review must be commenced within 15 days on which the person concerned is notified of the decision. For decisions made on matters arising outside of Canada, the judicial review must be commenced within 60 days.
How can We Help?
As mentioned above we can’t file the judicial review for you as only members of a provincial law society can do this. However, we have a standing agreement and relationship with a lawyer in Canada who has significant expertise and experience in successfully handling judicial review leave applications and hearings. The fee which we charge is very competitive compared to most law firms.
If you have been refused a visa don’t worry we are here to help! We specialize in helping clients overcome refusals and have assisted numerous clients obtain a visa after they have been refused. Please contact us and one of our Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants will revert to you within 48 hours.
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