Using an Immigration Representative

You are not required to hire a representative. Using one will not speed up processing times or guarantee your application will be approved.

If you do appoint a representative, they will receive communications from government immigration offices on your application.

Representatives can be paid or unpaid and must be one of the following:

• a close family member, as defined in The Foreign Worker Recruitment and Immigration Services Regulations (FWRISA);
• a lawyer in Canada in good standing with a provincial law society; or
• an Immigration Consultant or Foreign Worker Recruiter licensed in Saskatchewan to provide services to foreign nationals.

Immigration Consultants and Foreign Worker Recruiters must be licensed by the Government of Saskatchewan under FWRISA before they can work in Saskatchewan. Lawyers in Canada can act for clients without a licence if they are members in good standing with their provincial law society. However, lawyers acting as recruiters require licensing as recruiters.

Only use Licensed Immigration Consultants and Licensed Foreign Worker Recruiters. Otherwise, you may:

• lose FWRISA protection as a foreign worker; or
• have your SINP application refused.

If you are hiring a consultant or recruiter, you need to ensure they are on Saskatchewan's list of Licensed Immigration Consultants or Licensed Foreign Worker Recruiters. If your recruiter or immigration consultant is not listed, contact the Foreign Worker Recruitment and Protection Unit.

You can also learn about Saskatchewan's laws that protect foreign workers from exploitation and mistreatment during the recruitment and immigration process by visiting Protection for Immigrants and Foreign Workers.

You should ensure your representative can legally represent you. If you are paying your representative, you should also ensure they are authorized to work in Saskatchewan. If your appointed representative doesn't meet one of the requirements above, your application won't be processed.

Immigration representatives charge different amounts of money for their services. Find out what services they provide and how much the services cost. It's also a good idea to compare services and prices of different representatives. If you're not happy with the fees charged by a consultant, you don't have to sign a contract with them.

When using the services of a paid representative:

• Don't sign any blank forms or documents.
• Don't sign any forms or documents that you don't understand.
• Get a copy of all documents prepared for you immediately after you sign them, for your records.
• Don't leave your original documents or photos with your representative. They do not need to keep your original documents.
• Get a written receipt each time you give money to your representative. Make sure it says what service you're paying for and how much you paid.

Once you choose to use an immigration representative, please complete the Government of Canada's Use of a Representative form. Find instructions to help you fill it out at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

If you have issues with your representative, first speak with them and try to fix any problems. If the problems continue, you can make an complaint about the immigration or recruitment process.

If your representative is a Registered Canadian Immigration Consultant, you can also make a complaint to the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants.