Filing a Spousal Appeal to the IAD,
You just received a REFUSAL LETTER of your spousal sponsorship application from IRCC giving you (30) thirty days to file a Spousal Appeal to the IAD. You’re angry because there are no reasons given in that refusal letter why they refused your spouse. Don’t panic and give yourself more stress by checking out various Immigration Lawyers quoting you $15,000.00 to represent you at your appeal. Your best option is to submit the spousal appeal form to the IAD and NOT LIST any authorized Immigration Counsel as your representative.
How can any Immigration Lawyer quote such a high fee at this time when he/she has no idea why your application was refused? Which newlywed couple can afford such a high fee? Was there a big mistake or a minor mistake in your application? Will you be offered an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) hearing, or will you have a Full Appeal hearing? ADR’s take approximately 20 minutes to complete while full appeals can take 4 hours or longer. Should the cost the same?
I recommend that you wait to retain any authorized Immigration Counsel until you receive the Ministers evidence called the (Record) detailing why your spouse was refused before making any decisions. The mistakes may be so great you may want to cancel your appeal and reapply. The mistakes may be minor and can be easily explained in an ADR. There may be one or two larger mistakes which you want an IAD member to rule on during a full appeal after you and your spouse testify.
In Ontario you can be represented by any Lawyer that belongs to a Canadian Law Society. If you choose a Lawyer, make sure they have Spousal Appeal experience.
There are plenty of former Hearings and Appeals Officers now members of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC) who have far more experience than any Immigration Lawyers when it comes to Spousal Appeals. These CICC members charge much less and can prove their experience by allowing you to review their past IAD positive decisions.
You know you’re in a genuine relationship. Always retain a Counsel that will spend the time to learn everything about your relationship so they will be able to convince the IAD member your appeal should be approved.
