Should I Hire a Consultant for Canada Immigration?

One of the questions we get asked a lot by potential clients is, “Do I really need to hire a rep?”  It’s usually followed up by, “I’ve looked through all of the forms and they don’t look that difficult.”

If only immigrating to Canada was a matter of filling out a few forms. That would make our jobs as licensed immigration consultants much less stressful!

Completing the forms is a no-brainer.  Almost anyone can take information from one place and put it into the proper line on a form.  Immigration consultants are not needed to fill out a form or two – but Canadian immigration is way harder than that.

Let’s compare it to building a house.  Anyone can read online how to build a house, and then purchase their own hammer and start pounding nails.  But – can online learning from the Internet really show you how construct a building you would want to live in?  Would you even try to build your own house?

No, because building a house involves knowing all the systems that go into it. Nailing a few boards together is like filling out the forms – that’s the easy part. Your house requires you follow numerous building code rules, know how hook up electrical and plumbing systems, deal with the ground underneath that might have issues, and compensate when weather derails your plans. With home building, as with many things in life, it’s often the things you are not aware of that trip you up.

It’s the same with applying for immigration to Canada.  The forms are not what matters most.  The process is what matters in Canadian immigration.  And if the process is not managed correctly, you can find yourself permanently separated from your loved ones, unable to work for months at a time, or even refused admission to Canada.  The stakes are high in an immigration application.

Here are some questions worth considering if you are trying to decide whether to pay for professional immigration services or manage the process on your own. If you answer “No” to one or more of these, that may be a good sign you need professional advice:

Do I understand the process of what happens from start to finish, how long it should take, and what is required along the way?

How important is it for me to be successful on the first attempt with this application?  Can I make a second attempt if I’m not successful this time?

Do I understand what the government of Canada is looking for in this type of application?  Do I understand every point in the guide and all instructions on the website?

Does it matter how long it takes before I have an approval for this application, or do I just need it to happen eventually? What if I am required to leave Canada during the process?

Do I know what to do, or how to access the right contact if something gets lost at IRCC or the normal process that I am expecting doesn’t seem to occur?

Do I understand exactly why I am eligible and any potential weaknesses of my case and how to address them?

Can I advocate on my own behalf if IRCC is not responsive, or makes a mistake (which is unfortunately too common)?

Is this application a once in a lifetime opportunity, or will I be able to apply again if I do something wrong on the first attempt? (Anytime an invitation to apply is involved, consider it a once in a lifetime opportunity, because there is no guarantee that you will receive another invitation if something goes wrong).

These questions can help you decide if it is worthwhile to pay a licensed professional to represent you, or at least have a consultation to review your situation and discuss what the fees would be.

Here are just a handful of scenarios we have seen with people who chose to manage their own application, and then realized after the fact that they wished they had obtained professional help. We could literally write sad stories for hours.

A lovely young couple was working in Canada and entered their details into the Express Entry pool.  They assumed they had implied status on that basis, and stayed in Canada, working, past the expiry of their permits.  When they came to us, we advised they were out of status, working illegally and the only way to fix their situation was to leave Canada as soon as possible.  They went from planning their future in Canada to buying tickets home in the space of an hour. The things they were assuming about immigration law were simply not true.

A newly married couple did not submit an Express Entry application properly and it was returned as incomplete.  As a result, the bridging open work permit was refused.  The couple faced a choice between moving abroad in order to work, or waiting inside Canada without working until their new PR application was finalized.  As of the time of this writing, they have been out of work for months and are living on their credit cards, waiting for their PR to come through. Again, immigration law can be brutal.

A lucky couple received an invitation to apply to sponsor their parents and managed the application on their own.  They called our office, panicked, and unable to sleep or eat, because they discovered that their package was delivered to IRCC after the deadline for submission.  IRCC returned their application because it was received late, their parents are still overseas, and there is no way to know if they will ever receive another invitation to sponsor.

At our firm, we are licensed professional Immigration Consultants, authorized to advise the public on immigration law and policy. We of course understand that the fees needed to pay for professional services are usually driving the decision to apply on your own. We note that Canada Immigration also encourages people to apply on their own. But of course, when things go wrong — which they can very easily do –Canada Immigration has no qualms about rejecting your application for the smallest error.

It’s true. Professional services are not free. But rather than make assumptions, you can book a consultation and get a quote. The fee is going to reflect the work involved in your specific situation, then you can assess things on an informed basis. But when considering the cost of hiring a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) or immigration lawyer for your journey, ensure that you also factor in the losses you will incur if you decide to manage the application on your own but are not successful.

Every single week, our office gets calls from panicked folks who realize too late that they missed something important with their immigration application.  Sometimes we can help them rectify their situation, and other times there is no way to fix the mistake.  Tears are common during these meetings.  If we are able fix it, the costs of that can be substantial too.

Most of the time, the costs of the lost opportunity through making a mistake on your own ends up to be significantly higher than hiring a representative in the first place. 

Losing a future life in Canada, flying home on short notice, not being able to work for months on end, living on the other side of the world from your parents indefinitely….these are the hidden costs of representing yourself on an immigration application and all too real consequences for unsuccessful applicants.

The best decision is yours alone to make – people have different circumstances and different levels of comfort with government procedures. At the end of the day, ask yourself, “What is my worst-case scenario with this application, and can I live with that?”  If the answer is yes, then you’re fine to proceed on your own.  If the answer is no, then we would recommend you consider professional services from a reputable Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant to provide assistance at reasonable fees. At least have someone review your situation.  It’s a competitive industry, so you can have a consultation with more than one professional and see how confident you are in their advice and find out their rates.

At The Way Immigration , we can assist people to resolve immigration messes they may have created on their own, and ensure that our own clients submit proper files the first time.  We are Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants (RCICs) and members in good standing of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants. We believe in direct interaction with our clients throughout the process. We have been through the same process thousands of times, and know the limitations of people doing their own applications and the benefits of working with a licensed consultant.  Contact our office for an appointment today – you might be surprised at what you may not have thought of when setting your immigration goals.