Visas are processed only through the Canadian High Commission

They use the internet to craft official-looking documents to make victims believe that the Canadian government has issued work permits and visas. In several cases, the victims are offered high-paying jobs in Canadian hotels or on offshore ships.

There is always the promise that one can make several thousand dollars a week working as a dishwasher or a cook in these hotels or ships.

In one recent case, the job offer was “signed” by Canada’s Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Monte Solberg.

There is always the ubiquitous fax number where the generous employer can be reached — and in this case, the phone number to the office of the Honourable Monte Solberg.

The final flourish, the icing on the cake, is the officious sounding ‘Office of Solicitor and Barrister Colin Baker’. Once the bait is taken, the sleek fraudsters ask their victim to send the visa processing fee and other fees, usually a couple of hundred dollars in US funds, through MoneyGram or Western Union.

And in all the cases, according to officials at Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the duped victims never see their hard-earned money again.

“These frauds originate mostly from West Africa, specifically Nigeria where fraudsters continue to perfect the original 419 crimes,” said one agent familiar with the crime.

The original Section 419 (named after the relevant section of the Nigerian Criminal Code) frauds involved asking the victim to front money so that a huge fortune, usually belonging to a dead relative, can be transferred to the victim’s account.

One of biggest 419 scams in history was pulled off against a Brazilian bank which lost millions of dollars for which a Nigerian court sentenced a woman named Amaka Anajemba to two and half years jail in July 2005.

However, according to officials at CBSA, alert members of the public can easily spot the scams. Foremost, as a matter of policy, the Government of Canada does not go looking for people to employ.

That is the role of potential employers, the company or individual who has a job to fill. Where the employer, say in a construction business cannot find a Canadian to fill that job, an application must be submitted to Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, showing evidence that there is potentially no Canadian to do the job. Once approved, the employer can look abroad for the personnel to fill the job.

For example, the government of Canada recently announced “Regional Occupation Under Pressure List” for certain jobs in the provinces of Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta that are considered difficult to fill.

In other words, there are not enough qualified Canadians to fill those jobs, consequently giving employers the green light to apply to hire temporary foreign workers to fill them.

For Ontario, the list includes senior financial managers, managers in banks, financial and investment analysts and biologists.

Meanwhile the booming Alberta oil economy urgently needs engineering managers, computer and information system managers, construction managers, loan officers, retail managers and others.

British Columbia is putting out the welcome mat for the scientific community especially biologists, geophysicists, geochemists, astronomers, geologists and so on. There are also other jobs that may not be listed but for which there are opportunities for foreign workers.

However, warns CBSA officers, regardless of the type of job, potential workers must be on the lookout for tell-tale signs of fraud. The Canadian government, for instance, will never ask a visa applicant to send money through MoneyGram or Western Union.

“Visa fees are only processed through the Canadian consulate or High Commission in the particular region or through an officially designated bank, never through money order or anything of that nature,”said a CBSA agent.

Even the type of font used in the so-called “official letter” can tip off the potential victims of fraud. Bold fonts or coloured fonts in the body of the letter are never used by the Government of Canada. Moreover, spelling typos, colloquialism, and improper grammar are all further indications that there is a fraudster lurking behind the letter.

At the end of the day, those really keen to immigrate to Canada should visit the official Citizenship and Immigration Canada website at http://www.cic.gc.ca where all the relevant information and applications are freely available.

You can even evaluate your chances of being accepted to Canada as an immigrant. And for those who choose to work with a Canadian immigration consultant, the first stop must be at the website of the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants (http://www.csic-scci.ca) which lists all the current members in good standing, suspended members and members who have given notice to resign.

The point here is very simple, before jumping at what appears to be a great opportunity to immigrate to Canada, do the simple legwork (and please do not send any more queries about potential employers to this columnist — he is swamped with requests) to find out whether someone is out to separate you from your hard-earned money or if it is a genuine opportunity.

Just remember that there are currently more than 800,000 people on the immigration back-log waiting to get into Canada. Simply put, expect a very long delay —unless you have the right skills urgently needed to do a job for which there are no Canadians to fill.

Opiyo.oloya@sympatico.ca