Document requests holding up Gaza exit visas, lawyer says
Applicants who've lost homes unable to access and send documents
A southwestern Ontario immigration lawyer who represents clients trying to flee Gaza though a new temporary Canadian residency program said the application process is far too cumbersome for people struggling to stay alive in a war zone.
"I have clients whose whole home and neighbourhoods have been decimated," said Hagar Elsayed, an immigration lawyer working with about 35 clients in the London and Windsor area trying to access the program. "Obviously they don't have access to any of the documents. Sometimes, they're just fleeing with the clothes on their back."
Announced earlier this month, the program aims to create a fast-track to safety for people in Gaza as the Israeli ground assault and aerial bombardment against Hamas continues. Gaza's health ministry says more than 26,750 Palestinians have been killed in a war that began with the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas. The vast majority of those killed are civilians.
Successful applicants to the program can get temporary three-year visas, if a relative in Canada agrees to sponsor them.
However, rather than providing a quick way out of the line of fire, Elsayed said the program has an onerous application process, one that requires applicants to submit everything from decades-old documents to descriptions of their scars.
Elsayed said it amounts to an impossible ask in many cases, especially when so many Palestinians have had to flee their homes or had them destroyed in the conflict.
One of Elsayed's clients had to file an application while grieving four children killed in the war. His house was also destroyed in the conflict.
"They keep on asking for more documents, more documents," she said. "Understandably he doesn't have access to anything or the ability to get these documents," she said. "That's what they're facing: Not being able to access the documents even though they meet the program's criteria."
Also, she said the program's cap of 1,000 applicants won't come close to meeting the need.
"With the 1,000 person cap it's going to be impossible to get everyone and their family out of that situation," she said.
Government responds
Immigration Minister Marc Miller has said the government intends to show some flexibility on the application cap. A statement sent to CBC News about the program from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said the program is treating each application on a case-by-case basis and working to meet the need.
"IRCC continues to be flexible as we assess the situation, including the volumes of applications received and the ability to facilitate eligible family members to leave Gaza and reach a safe third country," the statement said.
"Where possible, we are flexible in our approach and assess each situation individually. It will be important for applicants to indicate clearly any challenges related to documents," the statement said.
Elsayed said even English-speaking lawyers are finding the application rules difficult to understand.
"The clarity just isn't there," she said. "Even reaching out to officers in the program, it doesn't seem that they're so clear on what's happening. Sometimes you'll get one piece of information, apply, and you're faced with an absolutely different response, which leaves people not knowing how to proceed."
Elsayed believes the program's hasty creation may be the source of some of its problems. She suggests removing the 1,000 applicant cap and relaxing some of the document requirements as immediate changes that would make the program work better.
LISTEN: The Minister of Immigration explains the rules and why they're in place
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
