'Incredibly frustrating' visa delays could thwart another Montreal conference
Another global conference in Montreal risks being derailed by Canada's delays in processing visas as well as rejections that critics argue punish those from poorer countries.
"It's incredibly frustrating and difficult for us to manage," said Mark Boyer, head of the International Studies Association, which is based at the University of Connecticut.
"There's a myth that it's harder to bring people here, to the United States, but it's actually a problem in Canada."
The group holds conferences across North America on social science, inviting historians and political scientists to present their research and hold panel discussions.
Yet entire panels planned for next month in Montreal are on hiatus because, in multiple cases, six participants on a panel all lack a visa to enter Canada.
Others like Maria Gabriela Vargas have been rejected. The Colombian political scientist studies gender in justice systems, but is now spending her time trying to recoup $2,600 in hotel, application and flight costs.
"It is so complicated, and it seems this is common for young people and (those from) the Global South," Vargas said in an interview from Colombia.
"We are trying to create international networks, decoloniality, non-discriminatory spaces and more equitable access to knowledge. This is completely opposite to that idea."
Vargas applied for a visa in December and was refused within a month, on the grounds she did not demonstrate financial means to support her stay in Canada.
She applied a second time with more documentation, but the consulate again denied her on the grounds she lacked "a legitimate business purpose in Canada."
Vargas said a Colombian agency that handles foreign visas told her that Canada is notoriously unreliable for issuing visas. She has filed a Privacy Act request to find out why she was so swiftly denied a visa.
Jennifer Fontanella, the ISA's operations director, said she's aware of about 600 of the 6,000 invited academics having visa issues, with 80 declined, hundreds waiting for a decision and at least a hundred withdrawing.
Numerous delegates reported similar issues when they tried to attend the Montreal conference of the American Political Science Association last September.
Last summer, IRCC caused an uproar when it denied visas for multiple African delegates for the International AIDS Conference, also held in Montreal, leading to on-stage accusations of racism.
The ISA faced visa delays for a Toronto conference in 2019. This time around, organizers worked with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to try preventing such snags.
Fontanella says the department issued an event code, which the ISA gave to visa applicants so IRCC could fast-track applicants and confirm they had been invited to present at the conference.
In granting visas, IRCC normally puts a heavy weight on the likelihood an applicant will actually return home, but the event code is meant to help alleviate this concern.
ISA still braced for visa issues, moving the conference registration deadline ahead so that applicants would have extra months for their visas to be processed.
Applicants from numerous countries are facing delays, and ISA has a large cohort in India where visas seem to take five months to be processed.
IRCC data updated Tuesday shows that visa applications take 217 days to process for people based in Britain and 212 days for people in France.
While citizens of those countries don't need visitor visas to come to Canada, academics from many developing countries based in Paris or London need a visa to attend a conference in Montreal.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada did not provide a comment Tuesday.
Fontanella said just one of 30 consulates she's contacted about the ISA's issues have responded, adding that emails to immigration officials have gone unanswered.
"We're constantly writing to the Canadian government and getting no response," said Fontanella. "I'm expecting the next three weeks to get ugly."
The group picked Montreal as it is one of about 10 cities in North America that has relatively cheap hotels clustered together, along with conference rooms, avoiding a need to rent an entire convention centre.
That system allows the ISA to contain registration costs.
The group is pondering virtual conferences, but Boyer warned that this leaves out people in several developing countries. "We're subject to the peculiarities of the Canadian immigration system."
In December, hundreds of delegates from developing countries missed out on the COP15 conference in Montreal due to visa issues that partly stemmed from the United Nations issuing late accreditations.
The issue has become so prevalent that a group of Ottawa researchers won a federal grant to study who is affected by Canada's visa refusals, including people attending one-time events and those seeking years-long study permits.
"It's hurting Canadians," said Meredith Terretta, a University of Ottawa history professor leading the VisaBarrier.ca project.
Her group is collecting data from those refused visas, and said the issue is hurting Canadian universities' attempt to have a more global student body.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2023.
IN DEPTH
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Trudeau, key election players to testify at foreign interference hearings. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions are picking back up this week. Here's what you need to know.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW What Canada is doing about the toxic forever chemicals in drinking water
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Arrest made, manslaughter charge pending in 2022 death of Calgary toddler
Calgary police have arrested a man and a charge is pending in connection with the death of a toddler in 2022.
Prince William returns to public duties after wife Kate's cancer revelation
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson Airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Here's why experts don't think cloud seeding played a role in Dubai's downpour
Scientists say it's highly unlikely cloud seeding is responsible for the heavy rains that have caused flooding in the United Arab Emirates this month, and that climate change is the more likely culprit.
Local Spotlight
Marmot in the city: New resident of North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale a 'rock star rodent'
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
Relocated seal returns to Greater Victoria after 'astonishing' 204-kilometre trek
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Ottawa barber shop steps away from Parliament Hill marks 100 years in business
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
'It was a special game': Edmonton pinball player celebrates high score and shout out from game designer
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
'How much time do we have?': 'Contamination' in Prairie groundwater identified
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
'Why not do it together?': Lifelong friends take part in 'brosectomy' in Vancouver
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
Grain-gobbling bears spark 'no stopping' zone in Banff National Park
A popular highway in Alberta's Banff National Park now has a 'no stopping zone' to help protect two bears.
Deer family appears to accept B.C. man as one of their own
B.C. resident Robert Conrad spent thousands of hours on Crown land developing an unusual bond with deer.
Doorbell video shows family of black bears scared off by dog in Sudbury, Ont.
A Sudbury woman said her husband was bringing the recycling out to the curb Wednesday night when he had to make a 'mad dash' inside after seeing a bear.