A couple from Sharjah has been refusing to leave the office of a Dubai immigration company for four consecutive days, alleging that the firm did not secure their permanent residency in Canada despite receiving advance payments.
RB and his wife SB, who have been camping out in the company's office located in the Plaza Building at Al Rigga, Deira, since Monday morning, claim that the firm has not processed their documents nor refunded the money they paid. "We didn't want to resort to this, but we were left with no choice," SB, a primary school teacher, stated. The couple disclosed that they had paid CAD 40,000 (approximately Dh106,958) over three years without receiving any updates or refunds.
RB, employed in sales, explained that their initial application under the Canadian government's Atlantic Immigration Programme (AIP) in 2019 was unsuccessful. The consultants then suggested they apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), required for employers in Canada to hire foreign workers. "They arranged a job interview for me, and that was the last we heard from them," SB recounted. The couple's last payment of CAD 15,000 (Dh40,100) was made 10 months ago in October.
On Monday, the couple moved into the firm's fifth-floor office, vowing not to leave until they received a definitive response. "We slept on the couch, ordered take-out food, and used a common washroom in the building," RB described. When Khaleej Times visited the office on Thursday afternoon, staff confirmed the couple's presence but declined to comment further. The couple is now contemplating legal action.
An email sent by Khaleej Times to the company has not received a response. This follows a similar complaint from a Pakistani couple, whose email also went unanswered despite reminders. The Pakistani couple has now taken the matter to court, with the first hearing scheduled for August 12. Additionally, Mohammad Javed from Oman reached out to Khaleej Times, stating that he paid the company Dh70,000 for immigration to Canada but received no positive response during his recent visit with his family.
In recent years, numerous residents have had their immigration aspirations thwarted by unscrupulous companies that either fail to deliver on their promises or vanish overnight with their clients' money.
