On Wednesday, June 7, 2023, the committee adopted the following two motions:
That, following news reports that international students admitted into Canada with valid study permits were issued fraudulent college acceptance letters by immigration consultants, and are now facing deportation, the committee issue a news release to condemn the actions of these fraudulent ‘ghost consultants’ and call on the Canada Border Services Agency to immediately stay pending deportations of affected international students, waive inadmissibility on the basis of misrepresentation and provide an alternate pathway to permanent status for those impacted, such as the Humanitarian and Compassionate application process or a broad regularization program, and that the committee invite the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship for one hour, the Minister of Public Safety for one hour, and department officials for one hour each to provide a briefing on the situation, for a total of four hours.
That, pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), the committee undertake a study into the targeted exploitation scheme faced by 700 Punjabi international students in which they were unknowingly defrauded by a "ghost" immigration consultant who used inauthentic admission letters for their student visa application; that this study be comprised of two meetings; and that the study consider:
a) how this situation was allowed to happen;
b) why fraudulent documents were not detected until years later when the students began to apply for permanent status;
c) the significant harm experienced by students including financial loss and distress;
d) measures necessary to help the students to have their deportation stayed, inadmissibility on the basis of misrepresentation waived, and provide a pathway to permanent status;
and
e) that the committee also examine how to prevent similar situations from occurring in the future.
