International

Canada set to deport Nigerian family over fake university acceptance letter

Published

5 months ago

August 3, 2024

Nigerian woman, Lola Akinlade and her family

Canada set to deport Nigerian family over fake university acceptance letter

A Nigerian woman, Lola Akinlade and her family are facing deportation from Canada after it was discovered that she used a fake university acceptance letter to secure a study and work permit.

Lola, who graduated from the Nova Scotia Community College in 2019, told CBS News she was unaware the letter provided by an agent in Lagos for the University of Regina in 2016 was fraudulent.

A few weeks before graduation, the international student from Nigeria received a letter from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

It said one of the documents she had used to enter Canada in 2016 was a fake, and asked her to explain herself.

It’s a charge Akinlade said she knew nothing about before IRCC told her. She said the issue has left her and her family in Canada with no immigration status and little to fall back on if they return to Nigeria.

Akinlade said the realization that she had relied on a fake document to get her study permit left her devastated.

“That was the beginning of my trauma.”

Statistics released to CBC by IRCC, and the experience of people working in the field, suggest there could be many other international students in Canada in a similar situation.

Since IRCC began a new process to screen international student acceptance letters in December 2023, it has found more than 9,000 examples of fake letters, suggesting Akinlade’s case is far from unique.

Akinlade wants IRCC to reexamine her case, arguing she was a victim of a “rogue agent” who supplied her with a fake letter of acceptance to a Canadian school.

“Please look into my file,” she said. “I just want this to be sorted out.

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Akinlade started thinking about studying in Canada in 2015. She was working for a pharmaceutical company in Lagos as a medical sales representative with a business administration degree from a Nigerian university.

She said at an office outside Lagos, she met with a man who said he worked as an immigration consultant and would guide her through the process of becoming an international student by applying for a master’s degree in business administration for her.

Akinlade said she did not discuss a particular university with the agent, and just explained that she wanted to study at a high-quality Canadian institution.

Akinlade said she gave the agent documents such as her passport and university transcripts, along with payment. Several months later, he gave her a study permit to enter Canada, plane tickets and an acceptance letter to the University of Regina.

Akinlade flew to Canada in late December 2016, thinking she would start classes in January 2017.

However, she said while she was stopped over in Winnipeg en route to Regina, she got a call from the agent, who told her there were no spaces available at the university and she’d have to go on a waitlist.

“I said my primary aim was to come here to study. I don’t want to be on the waitlist.”

Akinlade began to search on her own for a new school and a new program, and stayed with relatives in Winnipeg until she was accepted at the Nova Scotia Community College for social services for a September 2017 start.

She said she decided to switch to social services because it better aligned with the work she’d already done in the medical field.

Akinlade said she never contacted the University of Regina directly until two years later, when she received the letter from IRCC telling her the acceptance letter was a fake.

“I was kind of skeptical [after getting the IRCC letter] because I thought that wasn’t real, like a miscommunication or something,” she said. “So immediately I contacted [the] University of Regina.

“And that was when I learned the truth.”

Akinlade said since arriving in Canada she’s had little contact with the agent in Nigeria.

But CBC exchanged text messages with Babatunde Isiaq Adegoke, the agent Akinlade said she used to co-ordinate her Canadian university and study permit application.

Adegoke told CBC he guided Akinlade through the process of applying to enter Canada.

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He agreed that he gave Akinlade the acceptance letter to the University of Regina. But he said the letter was given to him by a company called Success Academy Education Consult that he hired. He said it was located in the city of Ejigbo but has since moved to an unknown location.

He said he was surprised to learn the acceptance letter was fake, and he denied telling Akinlade she’d have to go on the waitlist at the University of Regina.

Adegoke told CBC he was no longer offering study permit services, he had no contact information for Success Academy Education Consult and had not dealt with the company since 2018. He declined to do a video call for more information.

CBC was not able to find a business that matched Adegoke’s description. CBC made phone calls and sent emails to businesses with similar names, but none of the business owners said they recognized Lola Akinlade’s letter.

Akinlade lost her study permit in Canada because of the fake letter, and was denied when she attempted to apply for a post-graduate work permit and a temporary resident permit.

An IRCC officer wrote to her in March 2023, telling her the department believes she knew the document was fake, “as per balance of probabilities.”

Her husband, Samson Akinlade, and eight-year-old Nigerian-born son, David, joined her in Nova Scotia in 2018, and have now lost their temporary resident status.

Their younger son was born in Canada in 2021, and while he has Canadian citizenship, he does not have medical coverage because of his parents’ status.

The three oldest members of the family have been asked to leave the country voluntarily. They cannot work or go to school.

“We’ve been surviving on our savings and I don’t know how long we can keep surviving on that,” she said. “It’s really, really hard.”

Akinlade said the family sold their home in Nigeria to fund the tens of thousands of dollars required for her Canadian tuition.

She and her husband worked in Nova Scotia as caregivers before losing their immigration status.

“We already invested our lives in Canada, so there is nothing to go back to fall on [in Nigeria],” she said

Akinlade’s lawyer, Amanat Sandhu, said the family is filing a humanitarian application to stay.

Sandhu said it’s common for her downtown Toronto firm to see what she describes as “rogue agents” supplying immigrants with bad information.

“Overall, there’s a lot of people that get into this sticky situation where they trust an agent and then the agent doesn’t perform the way that they’re supposed to,” she said.

Canadian schools are also concerned about the actions of these agents, said Graham Barber, the assistant director of international relations at Universities Canada.

Barber said in his more than 10-year career he’s seen a “handful” of times when students actually showed up on a university campus believing they were enrolled when they were not.

Canada set to deport Nigerian family over fake university acceptance letter

Related Topics:acceptance letter Canada Nigerian family

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International

UK visa: British govt raises financial requirements for students, workers

Published

4 hours ago

January 1, 2025

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UK visa: British govt raises financial requirements for students, workers

International students and skilled workers applying for visas to the United Kingdom will face higher financial requirements beginning January 2, 2025.

These changes, announced by the UK government, require applicants to show more money in their bank accounts to cover living expenses during their stay.

These updated regulations affect those hoping to study or work in the UK, with new financial thresholds set for students and skilled workers.

These changes are aimed at ensuring that applicants have the necessary financial resources to support themselves during their time in the UK.

Increased financial requirements for students

International students seeking a UK study visa will now need to show higher amounts of money to cover their living expenses. For students attending courses in London, the required amount is £1,483 per month, while students studying outside London will need to show £1,136 per month, TravelBiz reports.

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For a typical one-year master’s program, students must show £13,347 if studying in London, and £10,224 for those outside London. The funds must be held in the applicant’s bank account for at least 28 consecutive days before submitting the visa application.

Comparison with current financial requirements

According to reports, currently, the financial requirements are lower. For students in London, the monthly amount is £1,334, while those studying outside London need to show £1,023 per month. Under the new rules, these amounts will increase, placing additional financial burdens on prospective students.

Changes to skilled worker visa financial requirements

Skilled workers applying for a visa to the UK will also face new financial thresholds. According to reports, to qualify for a skilled worker visa, applicants must have an annual income of at least £38,700 to cover living expenses and accommodation. In addition, applicants must secure sponsorship from an employer approved by the Home Office.

Like student applicants, skilled worker visa applicants must demonstrate that they have the required funds in their account for at least 28 consecutive days before submitting their application if they do not have employer sponsorship.

Updated UK visa fees and exemptions

Visa application fees for 2025 have been revised to reflect inflation and improved services. The new fees for various visa categories are as follows:

Short-term Visit (6 months): $153
Long-term Visit (2 years): $573
Long-term Visit (5 years): $1,023
Long-term Visit (10 years): $1,277
Skilled Worker Visa: $827
Student Visa (Outside UK): $647
Parent of Student Child Visa: $845

Priority visas are priced at $550, while super-priority visas cost $1,050. However, certain groups such as individuals with disabilities, carers, and professionals in specific sectors like healthcare, the armed forces, and talent-based roles will continue to benefit from fee waivers.

The 28-day rule for financial documentation

A key new regulation is the “28-day rule”. Applicants must ensure that the required funds remain in their bank account for at least 28 consecutive days, without dipping below the required amount.

Bank statements or certified letters submitted as part of the financial documentation must show that the closing balance is no older than 30 days when the visa application is submitted. Failure to comply with this rule may result in visa rejection

UK visa: British govt raises financial requirements for students, workers

International

Moscow attacks Ukraine with drones, missiles

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20 hours ago

December 31, 2024

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Moscow attacks Ukraine with drones, missiles

Kyiv said Tuesday that Russia had launched a barrage of drones and missiles across Ukraine, conceding that there were successful strikes in the east of the country and near the capital.

Authorities did not elaborate on what had been hit but in the wider Kyiv region, the governor said debris from a downed projectile had damaged a private home and wounded a woman.

Moscow said its forces had used attack drones and precision weapons in a “combined” assault on a military airfield and a munitions production facility, claiming that the targets were struck.

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International

Catholic priest sentenced to 11 years for criticising his president

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1 day ago

December 31, 2024

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Catholic priest sentenced to 11 years for criticising his president

A Catholic priest in Belarus on Monday was convicted on charges of high treason for criticising the government and handed an 11-year sentence, in the first case of politically-driven charges against Catholic clergy since Belarus became independent after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

The conviction and sentencing of Rev. Henrykh Akalatovich comes as Belarusian authorities have intensified their sweeping crackdown on dissent ahead of the Jan. 26 presidential election that is all but certain to hand authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko a seventh term in office.

The Viasna Human Rights Centre said Akalatovich, 64, rejected the treason charges. The group has listed him among 1,265 political prisoners in the country.

“For the first time since the fall of the Communist regime, a Catholic priest in Belarus was convicted on criminal charges that are levelled against political prisoners,” said Viasna’s representative Pavel Sapelka. “The harsh sentence is intended to intimidate and silence hundreds of other priests ahead of January’s presidential election.”

Akalatovich, who has been in custody since November 2023, was diagnosed with cancer and underwent surgery just before his arrest. The priest from the town of Valozhyn in western Belarus, who was critical of the government in his sermons, has been held incommunicado, with prison officials turning down warm clothing and food sent to him.

Arkatovich is among dozens of clergy — Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant — who have been jailed, silenced or forced into exile for protesting the 2020 election that gave Lukashenko a sixth term. The disputed vote that the opposition and the West said was marred with fraud triggered mass protests,. The authorities then responded with a sweeping crackdown that saw more than 65,000 arrested and thousands beaten by police.

Catholic and Protestant clergy who supported the protests and sheltered demonstrators at their churches were particularly targeted by repressions. Belarusian authorities openly seek to bring the clergy into line, repeatedly summoning them for “preventive” political talks, checking websites and social media, and having security services monitor sermons.

While Orthodox Christians make up about 80% of the population, just under 14% are Catholic and 2% are Protestants.

Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus for nearly 30 years and describes himself as an “Orthodox atheist,” lashed out at dissident clergy during the 2020 protests, urging them to “do their jobs,” and not fuel unrest.

Lukashenko is one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest allies, allowing Russia to use his country’s territory to send troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and to deploy some of its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.