Dear Friends,
I am a freelance immigration consultant based in India. About almost a year ago, I had forwarded some 7 clients to a local agent to get the WP process (un-skilled category) done for Canada. The local agent claimed to be a partner with some recruiting agencies in Canada. In the beginning he said that he shall get the employment offers within 3 months but he failed. After giving several false promises, he finally obtained the employment contracts for my clients in the last week of June 2011 from a Nova Scotia based employer through his recruiting partners. My clients signed the contracts and the same were returned to the employer via the recruiting agency somewhere in second week of July 2011. As per the agent, the employer had filed for LMO on July 15 2011. The agent had said that since the LMO is pre-approved, it will take a week or so to get the LMOs in the name of respective clients. It's been more than 3 months now and there is no sign of LMO. Upon inquiring with agent for a proof that LMO has been applied -file number or any genuine document from Service Canada-, the agent said HE CANNOT ASK HIS RECRUITING PARTNERS OR EMPLOYER TO GIVE SUCH PROOF AS IT IS AGAINST THEIR POLICY. Let me mention here, that when the employment contracts were sent by the employer, it were not signed by the employer. Upon asking the agent, why so, he said in Canada, the employers never sign the contracts first. They sign the same after signed by the employees and then applies for the LMO and then after a copy of signed contract is sent back to the employee, which too the agent has not provided yet.
Friends, I am very much tensed as money is involved. The agent quoted me the processing fee of $5000 and I have paid him Rs. 25000 (appr. $500) as initial amount for each client after collecting the same from the clients. Rest amount was to be paid after visa. The clients are pressuring me to either give them a satisfactory outcome or refund back the money. On the other side, the agent does not clearly refuse to refund but is avoiding to refund back the amount saying he has paid thousands of $$$ to his Canadian counterparts, so he is concerned about the security of his that money hence he is not refunding money. Sometime he says he has paid to his immigration lawyer in Canada, sometimes he says he has paid to recruiting agency to get the employment and some times he says the recruiting agency has paid to the employer to issue a job offer. Each time he changes his statement. All he wants is we should wait till his Canadian Godfathers have mercy on the clients. Here, the clients are in no mood to give any more time. They are threatening me of legal action against me if any further delay is done either in refunding their money or in getting a full-proof document.
Please advice me what should I do in this situation. Or if you could atleast guide me how I should check with the Service Canada whether the LMO application has at all been done or not. If the LMO is not applied at all, then it would mean that the local agent has given a fake job offer. In such case, I don't know how far the recruiting agency / employer is involved. I would definitely file a fraud complaint against the local agent, but could I drag his Canadian counterparts also? If yes, then how? Where should I file a complaint against his Canadian counterpart?
Please advise.
Thank you
I am a freelance immigration consultant based in India. About almost a year ago, I had forwarded some 7 clients to a local agent to get the WP process (un-skilled category) done for Canada. The local agent claimed to be a partner with some recruiting agencies in Canada. In the beginning he said that he shall get the employment offers within 3 months but he failed. After giving several false promises, he finally obtained the employment contracts for my clients in the last week of June 2011 from a Nova Scotia based employer through his recruiting partners. My clients signed the contracts and the same were returned to the employer via the recruiting agency somewhere in second week of July 2011. As per the agent, the employer had filed for LMO on July 15 2011. The agent had said that since the LMO is pre-approved, it will take a week or so to get the LMOs in the name of respective clients. It's been more than 3 months now and there is no sign of LMO. Upon inquiring with agent for a proof that LMO has been applied -file number or any genuine document from Service Canada-, the agent said HE CANNOT ASK HIS RECRUITING PARTNERS OR EMPLOYER TO GIVE SUCH PROOF AS IT IS AGAINST THEIR POLICY. Let me mention here, that when the employment contracts were sent by the employer, it were not signed by the employer. Upon asking the agent, why so, he said in Canada, the employers never sign the contracts first. They sign the same after signed by the employees and then applies for the LMO and then after a copy of signed contract is sent back to the employee, which too the agent has not provided yet.
Friends, I am very much tensed as money is involved. The agent quoted me the processing fee of $5000 and I have paid him Rs. 25000 (appr. $500) as initial amount for each client after collecting the same from the clients. Rest amount was to be paid after visa. The clients are pressuring me to either give them a satisfactory outcome or refund back the money. On the other side, the agent does not clearly refuse to refund but is avoiding to refund back the amount saying he has paid thousands of $$$ to his Canadian counterparts, so he is concerned about the security of his that money hence he is not refunding money. Sometime he says he has paid to his immigration lawyer in Canada, sometimes he says he has paid to recruiting agency to get the employment and some times he says the recruiting agency has paid to the employer to issue a job offer. Each time he changes his statement. All he wants is we should wait till his Canadian Godfathers have mercy on the clients. Here, the clients are in no mood to give any more time. They are threatening me of legal action against me if any further delay is done either in refunding their money or in getting a full-proof document.
Please advice me what should I do in this situation. Or if you could atleast guide me how I should check with the Service Canada whether the LMO application has at all been done or not. If the LMO is not applied at all, then it would mean that the local agent has given a fake job offer. In such case, I don't know how far the recruiting agency / employer is involved. I would definitely file a fraud complaint against the local agent, but could I drag his Canadian counterparts also? If yes, then how? Where should I file a complaint against his Canadian counterpart?
Please advise.
Thank you
