Canadian Immigration & Citizenship Lawyers

Larson Sohn Embarkation Law Group

Main Office

600 - 609 West Hastings Street
Box 26, Princess Building
Vancouver, British Columbia V6B 4W4
Canada

(604) 662-7404 or (877) 804-3230

www.elgcanada.com

Contact Mr. Joshua B. Sohn

Published Articles

Law Firm Overview

Embarkation Law Group is a Canadian law firm that provides a full range of services in all areas of immigration and citizenship law. It is a team of professional lawyers experienced in helping people find their way through the bureaucracy and into Canada. Whether you are coming to Canada as a permanent resident, foreign worker, or international student, we can make sure that you are properly prepared.

We provide a full range of services in the area of immigration and citizenship law, including applications for temporary and permanent residence in Canada. As a team of lawyers, we not only handle immigration and citizenship applications, but are fully qualified to represent our clients with respect to appeals and litigation as well.

Canada's new immigration system presents both new opportunities and new obstacles. People who work or study in Canada enjoy a greater chance of being able to remain permanently. People in common law relationships will now enjoy an entitlement to sponsor their partners. Processing within Canada will become easier but only for those with status. Penalties for misrepresentation and other offenses increase. Some individuals once entitled to an appeal lose their right to do so.

Year this Office was Established: 1997

Languages: English, French, Farsi, Cantonese, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Spanish, Portuguese.

Practice Areas

Additional Practice Areas: Citizenship Law; Criminal Rehabilitation; Immigration Appeals.

Practice Areas Description

At Embarkation Law Group, our experienced Vancouver immigration lawyers provide clients throughout Canada and worldwide with a full range of legal services in the area of Canadian immigration and citizenship law, including, but not limited to, the following:

- Permanent Residence

Our team of experienced Canadian permanent residence lawyers is available to assess your eligibility and then guide you through the process. As a law firm dedicated exclusively to immigration and citizenship, we regularly help clients immigrate under the following criteria:

• Economic class immigration : If you are interested in immigrating to Canada on the basis of your employment or investor status, we can help you review your options and apply for permanent residence under the category that best fits your circumstances.

• Family class immigration : Canadian citizens and permanent residents may sponsor their spouses, common-law partners, dependent children, parents and other relatives for permanent residence in Canada. Our firm assists clients with this process.
Humanitarian and compassionate applications: Our lawyers are also experienced with making humanitarian and compassionate applications for individuals where the necessary criteria exist.

- Work Permits and Labour Market Opinions

At Embarkation Law Group, our team of immigration lawyers is dedicated to competently and diligently assisting clients with the Canadian work permit process. Based in Vancouver, we help clients worldwide obtain permits to work in all areas of Canada.

Our lawyers help clients apply for Labour Market Opinions (LMO), North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) permits, Canada–Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) permits, General Agreement on Trade and Services (GATS) permits, intra-company transfers and information technology (IT) work permits.

- Business Immigration

We help investors, entrepreneurs and self-employed applicants obtain permanent residency through both federal and provincial immigration programs.

- Temporary Status

You may wish to obtain temporary status in Canada for any number of reasons. At Embarkation Law Group, based in Vancouver, our experienced immigration lawyers help clients worldwide pursue temporary status in Canada, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Work permits : Whether you wish to work in Canada on a purely temporary basis or as a step leading to permanent residence, our lawyers can help you apply for a work permit.
• Study permits : If you need help filing a study permit application, or if your application has been turned down, our firm can help you apply for a study permit.
• Temporary resident visas : Citizens of many countries need visas in order to gain temporary entry into Canada. Our lawyers are experienced at helping clients obtain temporary resident visas.
• Temporary resident permits: If you have been found inadmissible for entry into Canada, we may be able to help you secure a discretionary permit for temporary residence.
• Status extensions: If you are interested in extending your temporary status in Canada, our lawyers can help you time and complete all relevant applications appropriately.
• Restoration of status: If your status has expired, we may be able to help you file an application to restore your status.
• Business Visitors: Business Visitors are not required to obtain work permits for certain types of visits, including business meetings and seminars. We can advise you on these policies.

- Citizenship

At Embarkation Law Group, based in Vancouver, our experienced Canadian citizenship lawyers help clients nationwide take the next step from permanent residence to citizenship. While permanent residence gives you the unrestricted right to live, work, study and receive government benefits in Canada, citizenship carries additional benefits, including the following:

• Relief of residency obligations: As a permanent resident, you can lose your status if you spend too much time outside Canada. Becoming a citizen removes this issue.
• Canadian passport: The Canadian passport is treated with a great deal of respect worldwide. As a Canadian citizen, you may have much greater access to other countries.
• Stability of Canadian status: Permanent residents who are convicted of serious crimes can lose their status. It is very difficult to deprive a Canadian citizen of citizenship.
• Political rights: Permanent residents may not vote or run for public office in Canada. Once you become a citizen, you have the right to fully participate in Canadian civic life.

- Inadmissibility

At Embarkation Law Group, our team of experienced Canadian immigration lawyers advises and represents clients worldwide with respect to issues involving all types of criminal and medical inadmissibility, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Criminal inadmissibility : If you have been convicted of a crime in Canada or elsewhere, you may be found inadmissible to Canada on criminal grounds. The rules for criminal inadmissibility are different for foreign nationals and permanent residents of Canada.
• Medical inadmissibility : Foreign nationals can be found inadmissible to Canada for public health reasons or if it appears that they will excessively burden Canadian health or social services.
• Misrepresentation: You can be found inadmissible and excluded from Canada for two years if you misrepresent material information on an application or during an examination by an officer. Misrepresentation includes both commission and omission of material information.
• Immigration law violations: You can be found inadmissible if you are found to have worked or studied illegally in Canada.
• Security grounds: If you are considered a threat to security or accused of violating human or international rights, you can be found inadmissible on those grounds.

- Immigration Hearings and Appeals

At Embarkation Law Group, our Vancouver litigation lawyers are highly experienced at representing clients throughout Canada and worldwide in adversarial proceedings before the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) and the Federal Court, including the following:

• Immigration Division hearings : A person who has been detained or found inadmissible is entitled to a hearing before the Immigration Division. A hearing is often a necessary step in the process of pursuing an immigration appeal or judicial review.
• Immigration Appeal Division cases : Canadian permanent residents and citizens are entitled to appeal findings of inadmissibility and sponsorship denials to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD).
• Refugee Protection Division cases: There are many countries in the world where certain groups may fear persecution based on their race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership to a particular social group. These people are able to seek Canada's protection through the refugee process.
• Federal Court applications for leave and judicial review : If your immigration application has been denied, one remedy you may have is to pursue judicial review in Federal Court. As lawyers, we are qualified to represent clients before the Federal Court.

Affiliations

Canadian Bar Association

Lawyers

	Mr. Adrian D. Huzel Lawyer Immigration, Judicial Reviews		Mr. Darryl W. Larson Lawyer Immigration, Naturalization and Citizenship, Visa, Work Permit, Judicial Reviews
	Mr. Joshua B. Sohn Lawyer Immigration, Naturalization and Citizenship, Visa, Work Permit, Criminal Rehabilitation Applications