(Ottawa) A young Frenchman entered CEGEP at the last minute on Monday. Gaston Quénéhervé was able to obtain his study permit after The Press was interested in his case. His parents were stuck in the administrative maze of the federal Immigration Department.
“I feel like I’ve done a nightmare marathon,” exclaimed his mother, Cécile Quénéhervé. She had just learned that her son would finally be able to start his program at Cégep de Saint-Laurent. He missed the entire fall semester because he was unable to obtain his study permit on time while his brother was already studying there.
The Immigration Department’s decision came on January 4, 10 months after the initial request. A long period during which Mme Quénéhervé sent seven messages to inquire about the status of his application without ever being informed of the missing document. Even his representations to his MP, the Minister of Immigration, Marc Miller, had no effect.
“Your application, as presented, has been refused,” the Immigration Department wrote to him on January 4, less than three weeks before the start of the winter session. The sentence had the effect of a blow to the family, who learned that she had failed to provide the CEGEP admission letter. However, Cécile Quénéhervé is categorical, this letter did not appear in the list of supporting documents to be provided in the online application form. As she had already submitted it for the Quebec acceptance certificate, she believed that everything was compliant.
Where is humanity in there? This is a file that took 10 months to reach someone’s desk. And without qualms, because a piece is missing, we delete the thing with all the consequences that lie behind it.
Paol Quénéhervé, Gaston’s father
Cécile and Paol Quénéhervé feared that their son would end up losing a full year of studies. The family settled in Montreal four years ago and has temporary resident status. Mr. Quénéhervé is a pilot for Air France, and they take the opportunity to live for a few years on different continents. This is the first time they have encountered this type of difficulty and yet they have submitted several other study permit applications for their three children.
“Immigration Canada is not in the habit of requesting additional information, unlike the Quebec Ministry of Immigration which sends a letter of intent to refuse which, in fact, means additional information. We then have 60 days to follow up,” explains immigration lawyer Krishna Gagné. She notes that at the federal level, “it’s really at the discretion” of the civil servant.
Me Gagné emphasizes that the CEGEP admission letter is mandatory to apply for a study permit and that it can be attached in the “Client Information” section online. This box is found under the “Optional documents” section in the Quénéhervé family application form. The Press was able to view a screenshot.
The “least human” ministry, says the Bloc
“It should be the most humane ministry, but it is probably the least humane,” laments the Bloc Québécois spokesperson for immigration, refugees and citizenship, Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, who frequently has to intervene to resolve these types of cases. The Bloc Québécois believes that Quebec should manage study permit applications alone.
“It’s the “house that drives you crazy” in The twelve labors of Asterix, except that Asterix gets by, while most people don’t, he imagines. It’s unfortunate, because we have the impression that the civil servants are not good, but it’s really structural as well as problematic. »
The correspondence of the Quénéhervé family gives a good overview. “ Thank you for contacting Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada », we respond to Cécile, a month after her first message, although written in French like all of her exchanges with the Ministry.
Each time, she receives a general response written sometimes in French, sometimes in English, without being able to obtain answers to her questions.
“We acknowledge receipt of documents and would like to inform you that they have been added to the file. Please note that for technical reasons, they may not be visible through your online account,” the Ministry wrote to him on several occasions.
Although Cécile explains to them that her son must begin a program at LaSalle College in September, that the study permit application was sent months in advance, in March, to avoid this type of situation, nothing can be done. do. Gaston and his family are waiting. September, October, November and December pass. Gaston even has to get an acceptance letter from another institution along the way in hopes of starting his post-secondary studies in January. It is impossible to start your program at LaSalle College during the winter session.
The family also receives the same kind of general response at Minister Miller’s constituency office. “Please note that only correspondence from the Ville-Marie – Le Sud-Ouest – Île-des-Sœurs constituency will receive a direct response from our team,” employees responded to the family in August. They will never receive another response from them even if they live in the constituency and have provided their address to prove it.
Finally approved
No longer knowing where to turn, they contacted The Press. They also wrote a letter to the Ministry to reconsider its decision. The Quénéhervé family informed us last Thursday that Gaston’s study permit had finally been approved a few days after our intervention.
After four requests for additional time to answer our questions, the Ministry of Immigration confirmed Monday evening that Gaston was able to obtain a study permit valid until July 31 after re-examination of his file. The officials did not respond to our further questions and our requests for an interview with Minister Miller were all refused.
The family now hopes to obtain the official document quickly. The Cégep de Saint-Laurent has agreed to let Gaston register for its courses temporarily, while it takes time to sort out the final administrative details.