Docket: IMM-106-04
Citation: 2005 FC 166
Toronto, Ontario, February 2nd, 2005
Present: The Honourable Mr. Justice Campbell
BETWEEN:
GUPREET SINGH
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION
Respondent
REASONS FOR ORDER AND ORDER
[1] The present application concerns a young man living in Delhi who, in July 2003, applied for a student visa to study in Canada. From the Tribunal Record, I can see that he supplied a very detailed statement of his circumstances. A critical element of his application is that his expenses for his studies in Canada will be primarily borne by a Canadian citizen sponsor. As part of the application, the sponsor also filed detailed information of his circumstances.
[2] In the Applicant's application for the visa his relationship to his sponsor is clearly stated in at least six places; the sponsor is a family friend. However, in the computer generated notes of the Visa Officer's rejection of the Applicant's application, on which I put weight, the following statement is made: "no proof of relationship to the sponsor in Canada provided so his financial documents cannot be relied upon" (Applicant's Application Record, p.12). It is clear from the decision that this is a central finding in the rejection of the Applicant's application. Given the clarity of the relationship provided in the Applicant's filed material, I find that the Visa Officer's statement is unsubstantiated and, thus, constitutes a reviewable error.
[3] In my opinion, the erroneous finding made by the Visa Officer works an injustice to the Applicant because, as a result of the error, he was not provided with a full opportunity to have his application carefully considered. Therefore, I find that the reviewable error renders the visa officer's decision as patently unreasonable.
ORDER
Accordingly, I set aside the Visa Officer's decision and refer the matter back to a different visa officer for redetermination. I direct that the redetermination be on the basis of the existing record supplied in the visa application under review, but also on the basis of any past or current additional information that the Applicant may wish to submit.
"Douglas R. Campbell"
J.F.C.
FEDERAL COURT
NAMES OF COUNSEL AND SOLICITORS OF RECORD
DOCKET: IMM-106-04
STYLE OF CAUSE: GUPREET SINGH
Applicant
and
THE MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND
IMMIGRATION
Respondent
PLACE OF HEARING: TORONTO, ONTARIO
DATE OF HEARING: FEBRUARY 2, 2005
REASONS FOR ORDER
AND ORDER BY: CAMPBELL J.
APPEARANCES BY:
Chantal Desloges For the Applicant
John Provart For the Respondent
SOLICITORS OF RECORD:
Green and Spiegel
Barristers and Solicitors
Toronto, Ontario For the Applicant
John H. Sims, Q.C.
Deputy Attorney General of Canada For the Respondent