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Immigration advisor Raghbir Singh Bharowal had his licence permanently revoked for misconduct pursuing an probe by regulators. But his steadfast is unfastened — and he's announced implicit societal media his intentions to grow his business.
Consultant Raghbir Singh Bharowal had his licence permanently revoked, but his steadfast is unfastened — and expanding
Jon Hernandez · CBC News
· Posted: Jun 04, 2025 8:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago
A larger-than-life-size photograph of Raghbir Singh Bharowal is plastered connected the windows of his Surrey, B.C., migration consultancy firm. He advertises services to hundreds of thousands of his followers connected societal media and has adjacent announced plans to grow his business.
Signage beside his representation connected the exterior of his steadfast reads "Visa and Immigration Consultant."
But Bharowal doesn't person a licence to practise migration consulting in Canada. It was revoked permanently by the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC) last twelvemonth for misconduct, and helium was handed implicit $110,000 successful fines, including restitution payments to past clients.
Just a fistful of Canada's 13,000 registered migration consultants person ever been deed with specified a penalty.
"He was recovered to person engaged successful misconduct that was beauteous serious, including threatening clients for deportation, reporting them to police, being dishonest, overcharging fees," said Eoin Logan, an migration negligence lawyer whose office, KSW Lawyers, is conscionable blocks distant from Bharowal Immigration Solution.
The CICC has since filed its disciplinary determination against Bharowal successful national court, citing non-compliance.
CBC News has made repeated attempts to interaction Bharowal for remark to inquire whether oregon not helium is continuing to practise. Bharowal inactive lists himself publically arsenic the owner of Bharowal Immigration Solution.
Critics similar Logan accidental Bharowal's quality to ain an migration consulting steadfast without being a licensed advisor shines a airy connected a glaring spread wrong the regulations.
"Immigration consulting companies don't person to beryllium owned by migration consultants; they tin beryllium owned by anybody," said Logan. "He's benefiting, profiting disconnected [immigration consulting] adjacent though the assemblage has deemed he's idiosyncratic who should not beryllium engaging successful migration services."
The assemblage declined to remark connected the lawsuit owed to the ongoing ineligible proceedings but said successful a connection that it issues cease and desist letters erstwhile it has crushed to judge that a idiosyncratic is operating arsenic an unauthorized practitioner.
It besides has the ineligible enactment to record a contempt of tribunal bid successful cases wherever an unlicensed advisor continues to practice.
Licence revoked
Bharowal's licence was revoked by the assemblage connected Sept. 27, 2024. According to the subject committee report, 3 of his past clients came guardant alleging they were each charged arsenic overmuch arsenic $40,000 successful fees for services. The alleged misconduct happened betwixt 2019 and 2020.
In 2 cases, complainants alleged Bharowal helped them get visas and employment astatine a Manitoba-based trucking institution called John White Trucking. According to the report, erstwhile 1 of the complainants expressed concerns to Bharowal over mediocre moving conditions, helium was told "he should support his rima shut" and that helium could beryllium deported if helium complained oregon questioned the employer.
A 2nd complainant, besides moving astatine John White Trucking aft paying Bharowal for services, said helium contacted a impermanent overseas idiosyncratic advisor implicit concerns helium was being exploited by the employer. According to the subject report, the idiosyncratic alleged Bharowal told him to withdraw his ailment with the adviser, oregon Bharowal would cancel his visa and retreat the worker's imperishable residency application.
The 3rd complainant alleged Bharowal charged him $39,000 for services and held onto his passport until the afloat outgo was made.
According to the disciplinary decision, Bharowal has "largely denied" the allegations against him.
The college's disciplinary committee said it recovered capable breaches of its codification of behaviour to warrant a imperishable revocation of Bharowal's licence and fines, including $68,875 successful restitution to clients and $50,000 to the college, connected apical of the regulator's ineligible fees.
In January, the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants filed its disciplinary determination successful national tribunal arsenic an injunction against Bharowal.
Gaps successful the system
Bharowal inactive lists himself arsenic a licensed migration advisor connected his LinkedIn profile. Bharowal Immigration Solutions has more than 300,000 TikTok followers, wherever Bharowal is featured successful advertisements for the firm's services. The firm has announced plans to unfastened an bureau successful Kamloops.
Under existent CICC regulations, determination are no laws that forestall unlicensed radical from owning an migration consultancy firm, meaning Bharowal, contempt being unlicensed, tin inactive ain and operate a steadfast arsenic agelong arsenic he's not the 1 offering migration advice.
"The institution is successful his ain name, and helium advertises the company, not his ain services anymore," said Logan. "On the look of it, connected societal media, he's advertising, he's expanding his business, without the shackles of being tied to the regulator."
Logan calls it a spread successful the strategy that doesn't beryllium wrong galore different professions bound by ethical and regulatory standards. For example, non-lawyers are not allowed to ain oregon beryllium a bulk shareholder successful instrumentality firms successful B.C.
"[Unlicensed owners] are not taxable to codes of behaviour similar migration consultants, oregon ethical codes,'' helium said. "That creates a batch of regulatory issues. If it's a regulated profession, determination needs to beryllium power implicit however those services are provided, successful bid to support the nationalist who mightiness beryllium taken vantage of."
WATCH | Former advisor loses licence: Former migration advisor continues to tally steadfast aft licence revoked
Ottawa is successful the midst of processing a new acceptable of regulations for the CICC. CBC News has learned that a bylaw that would forestall unlicensed practitioners from owning and operating firms is being earnestly considered.
In a statement, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said it "intends to present caller rules to penalize paid representatives who interruption the instrumentality erstwhile offering practice oregon advising connected migration oregon citizenship applications. The projected regulations purpose to strengthen enforcement, support applicants from exploitation, and support the integrity of Canada's migration system."
Hugo Velazquez, the manager of household colony astatine MOSAIC newcomer services successful Vancouver, says the alteration needs to hap to curb mounting exploitation of susceptible newcomers. He's calling connected the assemblage to audit much firms for misconduct.
"We person radical who astir apt spent their full beingness savings to travel to Canada, and past they are fraudulently mistreated," said Velazquez.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jon Hernandez is an award-winning multimedia writer from Vancouver, British Columbia. His reporting has explored wide planetary migration successful Chile, arguable logging practices successful British Columbia, and the planetary HIV/AIDS epidemic.
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