Canada gets just six applicants for
millionaire immigration program
VANCOUVER, JULY 23
Canada has received just six applications for its pilot immigration program for millionaires, far fewer than for its investor class visa that was scrapped last year amid criticism it was allowing rich Chinese to buy their way into Canada.
"I knew it wasn't going to work. It was poorly designed," said Richard Kurland, a Vancouver immigration lawyer who filed an Access to Information request for the data.
Canada said in December it was looking for 50 wealthy foreigners to join the pilot run of the Immigrant Investor Venture Capital plan, under which applicants must be far richer than those who entered under the previous program.
Kurland said the revamped program will likely "wither on the vine and quietly go away" given the clear lack of demand from would-be immigrants who balked at the high price tag and uncertainty about their investment.
Officials at the office of Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander and at his department were not immediately available for comment.
Under the new program, would-be immigrants must invest a minimum of C$2 million ($1.5 million) in Canada for a 15-year period and must have a net worth of at least C$10 million. Among other criteria, they must also meet a new requirement that they speak English or French.
"Few were prepared to throw good money away, and C$2 million dollars is a lot of money to get a visa," said Kurland. "There was no monitoring oversight and control after the investment is made ... (and so) this is not a wise financial decision to take. I'm not surprised to see just six takers."
The federal government started accepting applicants in January, and had received the six applications as of June 8, the documents show.
Launched in the mid-1980s, the previous immigrant investor program promised a fast-track visas for foreigners with a net worth of C$800,000 and C$400,000 to invest. The minimums were later upped to a net worth of C$1.6 million and C$800,000 to invest. There was no language requirement.
The program was wildly popular, particularly with Chinese investors, first from Hong Kong and Taiwan, and later from mainland China. The Pacific Coast city of Vancouver, with its proximity to the Asia-Pacific region, was the preferred destination.
Applications surged over the past decade, and the program was frozen in 2012 as officials scrambled to clear the backlog.
($1=$1.30 Canadian) (Reporting by Julie Gordon in Vancouver and Andrea Hopkins in Toronto; Editing by Peter Galloway)
The Source:http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/23/canada-immigration-millionaires-idUSL1N1032DB20150723
Comment:
"European
Trades Workers, Chinese Millionaires, Parents and Refugees
Canada’s quota for trades workers is 3,000
families. Despite hundreds of thousands of illegal workers in Ontario, Ottawa
issued 90 trades visas in 2014.
Canada’s quota for millionaire immigrants
is 50. Ottawa could find only 6 applicants.
Canada has an intake quota of parental
immigration applicants. There is no actual quota on how many parents will
actually be accepted.
Canada has an intake refugee process for persons
from designated counties. The intake process is complex. It assures a quota
approaching zero.
The above numbers simply reconfirm that
Ottawa is incapable of managing any immigration program.
It’s not that Ottawa lacks the expertise to
get the job done. The bureaucrats are very qualified.
The problem is that Ottawa cannot stand up
to the pressure groups that pretty much dictate program mismanagement.
Ottawa is like a casino. The immigration
bureaucrats set up beautiful, fair games. But then individual commercial
interests grab control of each table. The bureaucrats watch as the boys make
the money. After the boys scam the system, the bureaucrats then start worrying
about “integrity”. This leads to the retention of the programs accompanied with
a systemic delay in file processing. This in turn leads to massive backlogs
which in turn lead to the program being shut down.
A new program “table” is then set up in the
casino. The boys come back. The game goes on. Only this time, the bureaucrats
and the boys realize that they both benefit by making sure that nobody but the
boys can play. By restricting access to the program tables, the bureaucrats
avoid work and are assured “integrity”. The boys select which sheep should be
fleeced. By not allowing European trades workers to apply, there is no backlog
of trade’s workers. By not allowing parents to apply, there is no back log of
parents. By not allowing refugees to apply, there is no backlog of refugees. By
not allowing millionaires to apply, there is no backlog of millionaires.
It’s amazing how much money the boys can
make when the bureaucrats restrict access to the tables.
Every wins except Canada."
Richard Boraks, July 24 2015
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