| There has always been confusion between an | | | | - Members of the Canadian Society of Immigration |
| Immigration Consultant and an Authorized | | | | Consultants |
| Representative. There is a major difference between | | | | - Good standing members of the Chambre des |
| the two, especially when it comes to applying for | | | | notaires du Quebec |
| immigration to Canada. | | | | The government of Canada is very particular in not |
| As per the rules set by the Government of Canada, | | | | dealing with representatives who are not authorized |
| there are only a few representatives who are | | | | yet offer paid services. |
| authorized who can represent applicants at the | | | | Unpaid Representatives - Those representatives who |
| Citizenship and Immigration Canada. | | | | offer their services completely free of cost are known |
| According to the Canadian government, an Immigration | | | | as Unpaid Representatives. These mainly include |
| Representative is defined as someone who provides | | | | family members or friends, non - governmental |
| with his expertise and guidance to the applicants | | | | personnel or from any other religion association. |
| applying for Immigration to Canada. | | | | However, to maintain the privacy of all the applicants, |
| Here, an applicant has a choice to appoint a | | | | the Citizenship and Immigration Canada does not give |
| representative to present their case and act on their | | | | out any information without prior conformation from |
| behalf. This means that the representative would be in | | | | the applicant. To do so, the applicant must submit |
| touch with the CIC as well as the Immigration and | | | | consent in writing and he has to submit the IMM 5476 |
| Refugee Board and also the Canada Border Services | | | | form. |
| Agency. | | | | Apart from the above two, there are others who |
| The Canadian government recognizes two kinds of | | | | provide with immigration guidance. However, they |
| Immigration Representatives. These are the following: | | | | cannot be accepted as being authorized |
| Paid Representatives - Those representatives who | | | | representatives. This also means that they might not |
| offer paid services for immigration and other related | | | | be adequately skilled and would be imparting wrong |
| issues are known as Paid Representatives. These | | | | advice. They might not be updated with the latest. |
| include refugee cases with reference to the Canadian | | | | In such cases, it is best recommended to seek |
| government. These mainly include: | | | | professional advice such as those from law societies, |
| - Attorneys who are also the members of the | | | | CSIC and so on. |
| Canadian Provincial or the Territorial Law Society | | | | |