THUNDER BAY — A man with roots in India but currently living in Saudi Arabia has been denied permission to move his family to Canada and set up a clothing store in Thunder Bay.
He planned to establish a retail store selling women's clothing and accessories, and to rapidly expand the business elsewhere in Ontario and Canada.
In 2022, an immigration officer in the Canadian embassy in Saudi Arabia refused the man's application for a work permit under the entrepreneur/self-employed persons category of the International Mobility Program.
This month, the Federal Court of Canada dismissed his request for a judicial review of that decision, saying the officer's decision was reasonable and procedurally fair.
The man had applied for a three-year work permit, his spouse had applied for a dependent open work permit, and their three children had applied for dependent study permits.
The success of all the applications hinged on the outcome of his application, which the immigration officer denied, partly because he was not satisfied the man would leave Canada at the end of his approved stay.
He also had reservations about the applicant's business plan.
The man indicated he intended to import clothing and accessories from manufacturers in India, and that the business would focus on combining tradition with the latest industry trends.
He submitted no evidence of any contracts with suppliers, but identified the location of a temporary office space that he would rent initially for $203 per month.
He said he would hire three staff members in the first year, and 13 by the fourth year, that he would engage with co-op and graduate students from the college and university, and he would grow his revenue from $19,000 in year one to $322,000 by year five.
The man also committed $200,000 to the business, saying he had over $300,000 in savings and stock assets, and that he could provide additional funding as needed over time.
Although supporting documentation was provided, the immigration officer wasn't persuaded that the business plan was viable.
He felt the proposed income sources were speculative, there was insufficient evidence of potential or actual vendors or clients, and had concerns about the business being set up with such a low rent.
The officer also noted that ongoing economic reforms in Saudi Arabia, where "Saudization," a government effort to give Saudi citizens better access to jobs currently held by foreigners, could impact the man's ability to return there after his permit expired in Canada.
Finance, the field in which he works, is one of the sectors subject to Saudization, potentially impacting his chances of finding a job there again.
Furthermore, the applicant's temporary status in Saudi Arabia had already expired, prompting the judge who heard the application for review to refer to similar cases in Federal Court where it was observed that uncertainty over future status in another country may incentivize foreign nationals to remain in Canada.
In this case, he said, "on arrival the [applicant], his spouse and children will all have their immediate family in Canada. It is obvious to me and needs no further explanation that this will result in weakened/limited ties to Saudi Arabia for all five applicants. For the same reasons their ties to India will also be weakened."
In dismissing the request for review, the judge referenced other cases where the court deferred to immigration officers' assessment of applications, and which made it clear that its role "is not to reweigh and reassess the evidence unless there are exceptional circumstances."
Canada receives upwards of a million applications each year for various types of shorter-term visas, of which hundreds of thousands are unsuccessful.
