Every year Canada welcomes several immigrants. Their number is increasing each year, and so is the number of reported fraud. Many people become victims of fraud through fake websites, email, phone calls, and social media. Fraudsters make false promises such as guaranteed admission or faster application processing in exchange for money and personal information.
In many cases, immigrants themselves commit fraud by giving false documents, lying on their applications, or marrying just for entering Canada. These are considered crimes in Canada and must be avoided.
People can avoid these frauds if they are aware and alert if they face any suspicious activity. If immigrants stay updated and aware of official authorities and rules, they can easily stay safe even in foreign countries. Furthermore, if anyone faces any fraudulent activity, they must immediately report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) to help the government take care of such matters.
Fake websites and other Internet scams
Criminals can easily replicate a legitimate website or create one that appears legitimate. Scammers create a website that looks like the official Government of Canada or their partners’ websites. Sometimes they promise to offer unique immigration deals or jobs that will pay well. They do this in order to deceive people into paying money to them. This is all a fraud, and people must avoid such websites.
Immigrants must not deal with a website that offers exceptional deals, and they should never pay attention to assurances of guaranteed entry into Canada or expedited application processing. Some of these websites may even attempt to steal a person’s identity by requesting personal information.
People can protect themselves by never entering private information unless they see a padlock in the browser window or the web address starts with “https://”. They must make sure that their browser is up-to-date, and Browser filters can help detect fake websites. They must never give out personal information unless they are sure about the one asking for it. People must contact the website owner by telephone or email before doing anything if ever in doubt.
Email scams
People sometimes get an email that looks like it is from a genuine company or the Government of Canada. It may ask for private information, such as date of birth, passwords or credit card details. Sometimes the email will tell the person to visit a fake website.
Scammers also send emails that look just like the one from IRCC. They offer special immigration deals once someone enters some personal information. Immigrants must know that IRCC never sends an email asking for private information. If anyone gets this kind of email, they should not click on any links or give any information about themselves.
A fraud email can be distinguished when it is sent from a private address or a free Webmail address (e.g., Yahoo Mail, Hotmail or Gmail) and not from the Government of Canada “gc.ca” or “Canada.ca” email account. If the email uses a standard greeting such as “Dear customer” instead of the actual name of the person or sometimes Dear Client (in the case of official automated email), it is also a sign. Some other signs are that the sender asks for personal information or the message is an image instead of text.
Telephone scams
The government does not call over phone immigrants for more information or documents for processing an application, and they also do not ask for any payment by telephone. IRCC strictly keeps immigration information confidential as scammers can use telephone fraud to steal people’s money or identity.
People must stay very careful of scams asking for details like their credit card, bank account numbers, or other payment information.
If anyone gets a suspicious call, they must hang up right away and contact their local police to report it. They can also contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Document fraud
It is a severe offence to lie or send false information or documents to IRCC. It is called “misrepresentation” and is a significant form of fraud by immigrants.
Document fraud involves false or altered documents, such as passports and travel documents; visas; academic credentials; birth certificates; marriage, divorce, annulment, or death and police certificates. Lying on an application or in an interview with an IRCC officer is also fraud and is a crime.
If someone sends false documents or information, their application is refused. The government can also forbid them from entering Canada for at least five years or give them a permanent record of fraud. It can also take away their status as permanent residents or Canadian citizens, have them charged with a crime, or remove them from Canada.
Marriage Fraud
Marrying a Canadian citizen to enter Canada is very common these days. However, it is a fraud and offence for a foreign national to marry a Canadian citizen or permanent resident just for entering Canada.
A Canadian citizen should be careful before marrying or sponsoring someone to come to Canada with them. Some red flags to look out for include people they have just met or want to get married quickly, someone married or in a common-law relationship many times before, or not sharing very much information about their background or family.
Sponsorship is a legal contract with the Government of Canada. Any person applying for sponsoring a spouse must meet its terms. For example, they have to give their spouse financial support for three years even if the marriage or relationship fails. Also, they have to repay the money for any social assistance used by their spouse. The government does not allow them to sponsor anyone else until they repay the debt.
Adoption Fraud
Prospective parents sometimes try to speed up the adoption process by taking matters into their own hands. Even though the government smoothly processes most adoption applications, parents looking for adoption must stay cautious and alert throughout the process.
Proper documentation about the parents and the baby is required to ensure that the baby is legally available for adoption. As there have been many fraud and child trafficking cases, parents must stay aware of all documents and details of the child.
Adoptive parents should contact the government of the province or territory they live in to obtain the most up-to-date information about the adoption process and ensure the adoption meets all their requirements.
Newcomers fraud
Newcomers are an easy target for scammers, unaware of many things and can be threatened easily. A widespread fraud is when scammers impersonate a government official on the telephone. They call newcomers and scare them by saying they owe fees as they have done something wrong (like not filing proper paperwork). They may threaten the person to lose their immigration status or get deported if they do not pay right away.
Sometimes newcomers get a phone call or email saying that their computer has been infected with a virus. The caller or sender offers to remove the virus and try to get their computer passwords and other private information.
Newcomers must stay alert and aware of such scams and only trust officials for any services. They must never share personal information or documents with anyone unless they are sure.
How to Report a fraud?
If a person or someone they know has been the target of any fraud and gave personal or financial information by mistake, they must immediately contact the CAFC. People can call the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) Border Watch Toll-Free Line for any immigration-related fraud at 1-888-502-9060 or mail at IRCC.CitizenshipFraudTips-Fraudedecitoyennete.IRCC@cic.gc.ca. These include witnessing any suspicious activity at the border, a marriage of convenience, a person who has given false information on any immigration application, or a person wanted on an immigration warrant.
A person reporting fraud can ensure that their identity is protected as whatever they tell the tip line stays private.
Thus, moving to a new country can be challenging and dangerous. However, if people stay aware and alert, they can avoid all sorts of fraud and stay safe. They must know how to distinguish fraudulent activities and should report them immediately. Reporting fraud can be very useful for the government to track future activities, and it also helps them keep people safe and avoid future occurrences of similar frauds.
