Language tests to help tackle illegal Canadian immigration

Mr Kenney hopes that by ensuring potential migrants have sufficient language skills, it can identify immigrants who have cheated or simply bypassed the Canadian immigration system to enter the country illegally.

"Some of the people who have lower language proficiency have come in through these investor schemes that we've had to shut down they were quite dodgy, and some provinces were allowing consultants to run fast and loose and attract people who had a lot of money but no language skills" said Mr Kenney.

Under Mr Kenney's proposed changes to the immigration system, the Canadian government would work in tandem with provincial governments to reduce immigration fraud. By implementing language tests, Mr Kenney said Canada can eradicate "bottom feeding, unscrupulous immigration agency consultants" who manipulate the system with false documents and non-existent job offers.

Mr Kenney hopes that his proposals will not only reduce illegal immigration, but go some way to helping migrants who are granted a Canada visa legally. According to Mr Kenney, migrants with adequate language skills are more likely to succeed in employment and in turn benefit provincial and national economies.

The Canadian government has taken steps recently to combat illegal immigration and Mr Kenney was quick to point out the success of the Provincial Nominee Program which allows provinces to cherry pick those migrants who best fit the province's employment needs at that time.

The Provincial Nominee Program was responsible for 36,000 migrants earning a permanent residency Canadian visa in the seven years since its implementation, second only to the Federal Skilled Worker Program.

 

---

The Canadian Visa Bureau is an independent migration consultancy specialising in helping people make their application to the Canadian Embassy.