Canada visa row: Immigration minister says genuine students won’t be deported

Genuine international students who are here to study and are not found to be involved in fraud will remain in Canada, said Canadian Immigration Minister Sean Fraser.

Canada: Sean Fraser, Canadian Immigration Minister reassured that genuine students who have been defrauded by agents would not be deported and will be issued Temporary Resident Permits in Canada so that their intent to study will not be hampered. Several Indian students were facing deportation after their letters of acceptance were found fabricated.

I want to make it clear that international students who are not found to be involved in fraud will not face deportation. Therefore, if the facts of an individual case are clear that an international student came to Canada with a genuine intent to study, and without knowledge of the use of fraudulent documentation, I have provided instructions for officers to issue a Temporary Resident Permit to that individual. This will ensure that these well-intentioned students and graduates can remain in Canada, and ensure that they are not subject to the 5-year ban from re-entering Canada, the Canadian Immigration Minister re-assured.

Talking to the media, the Canadian immigration Minister said, "International students who are genuine applicants that came to Canada to study and were victimised by fraudsters will be given permission to remain in Canada."

He also warned that those who were complicit in a fraudulent scheme "will be held accountable for their actions" and "will bear the full consequences of Canadian law for their illicit behaviour in this particular instance." We need to do what we can to protect the ability of those innocent people to remain in Canada, he said.

Taking to Twitter, Fraser said, "I issued a statement regarding the distressing situation faced by international students with fraudulent acceptance letters. Your well-being remains our priority, and we’re taking action to address this issue."

"Taskforce formed to protect & help fraud victims; Imminent deportations halted during review; Genuine students victimized by fraud won’t face deportation and will be eligible to remain in Canada; Those complicit in fraud will face removal," he further said in the tweet.