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| Subject: Problems in CIFA website |
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Hi there all, it has been about 1 month ago i joined to : " http://www.cifacanada.org " i have completed all forms and submitted my application , i have also sent the required payment and after all i received an email which was to Update My Profile information, i try to login to my Profile but cannot LOGIN and contineously recieved the ERROR that "Please enter a Valid USER NAME" , i was forced to tell to CIFA client care center i have sent about 6 emails to them but the reply was none , after that i sent email to webmaster@cifacanada.org and info@cifacanada.org and contienously tried all the contacts that i can contact but they doesn´t reply and i´m forced now to POST my problem here if someone of you or anyone can help me please help me out of this problem because i´m receiving email´s from Payment@Cifacanada.org , that i should update my profile but how can i update my profile as i cannot login to my profile and the Client Care center is not responding . Please help me .
True Regards:
Zaheer Abbas.
[29-12-2007,15:04]
[***.125.143.67]
Zaheer Abbas |
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CIFA (in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
Could you please explain what CIFA is... I would like to help you but I don´t know what that is...
[29-12-2007,15:25]
[***.229.236.217]
YALILI |
(in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
I checked out your website. You sent them money??? how much?
my friend, plan on kissing your money goodbye. The website is being accused of fraud, and the furums are shut down.
there is a saying ?f it is too good to be true it probably is!´
[29-12-2007,15:50]
[***.121.220.199]
Sharon |
CIFA Is..... (in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
C A N A D I A N I M M I G R A T I O N F I N A N C I A L A S S I S T A N C E . YOU can visit their website at: http://www.cifacanada.org
[29-12-2007,15:54]
[***.125.143.67]
Zaheer Abbas |
(in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
National
Imagine the freedom, for only $100
An online immigration lottery is creating a sense of hope for many wannabe Canadians -- and a fair bit of controversy
MICHAEL FRISCOLANTI | Feb 13, 2006
Today, a new headshot will appear on the bottom corner of the website, right underneath the "Winners" logo. Tomorrow, another photo -- another lucky contestant -- will take its place. Same thing the next day. And the next. And the next. It has been unfolding this way for more than a year now, a daily rotation of blank stares from across the globe. "Welcome to the Canadian Immigration Lottery," the home page says. "Join us and let your dreams become true."
The dream, of course, is a chance to live here, in a "peaceful nation" where health care is free, the scenery is "spectacular," and democracy reigns. "Elections are held every four years," the website boasts. Since its launch 13 months ago, thousands of hopeful foreigners -- from Kenya to China to New York state -- have bet their futures on www.canadianimmigrationlottery.com. To date, more than 10,000 people have paid US$100 for the chance to see their mug shots posted on the site. For nearly 400 of those entrants, the gamble has paid off. "You can´t imagine how much you put delight to my heart and my life," one winner wrote. "I love you all."
The man on the receiving end of all the love is Ehab Lotfi, an Egyptian-born Canadian who works as an immigration consultant in Montreal. His company, Canadian Immigration House, is the driving force behind the site. "A lot of people -- poor people -- they have very good education and they don´t have a chance to come to Canada," he says. "This is a fair and equal chance for everyone." The concept seems simple enough: for that $100 fee, Lotfi´s staff will give your file a once-over to see which of Canada´s numerous immigration programs -- "skilled worker," for example, or "entrepreneur" -- you might qualify for. If you make the grade, the company enters your file number into a computer that generates a random winner every day. The grand prize? An all-expenses-paid application to the Department of Citizenship and Immigration, which, depending on the size of a person´s family and the complexity of his paperwork, could be worth a few thousand dollars. "I am helping people," Lotfi says. "You cannot imagine the quality of the people we get from this program."
Quality is not quite the word everyone would use to describe his site. "It´s scary," says Benjamin Trister, a prominent Toronto attorney and former chair of the Canadian Bar Association´s immigration law section. "The implication is that people might read it and think that there is actually a lottery to get into Canada." There is not. The U.S. State Department operates such a system, handing out visas to 55,000 select winners every year. But in Canada, every aspiring immigrant is treated the same. No shortcuts. "It is a misleading come-on," says David Matas, a Winnipeg-based immigration lawyer. "For people who are not familiar with the difference in the two systems and just saw the title, they might think that there is a Canadian government immigration lottery."
The title is not the only red flag. The entire website is filled with enticing, albeit questionable, language . "Your unique getaway to Canada." University education "is very much subsidized by the government." The lottery program is "sponsored by official departments." Nowhere, by the way, does it mention the most obvious fact: that the winners´ prizes, and the company´s cut, are bankrolled on the backs of the many, many losers. In theory, any professional -- a brain surgeon, perhaps -- could run a similar scheme. But they don´t. In Matas´s opinion, "it´s a very unprofessional way of offering professional services. It demeans the profession."
Two years ago, Denis Coderre, then the minister of citizenship, announced a crackdown on immigration consultants, saying the trade is rife with "vultures" who prey on the naive and the desperate. The result was the creation of the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants, a group that licenses its own. Members must follow certain ethical guidelines, and as of now, the government only deals with consultants certified by CSIC. Ehab Lotfi is one of them.
Patrice Brunet, a spokesman for the society, said he was unaware of the lottery web page until a phone call from Maclean´s last week. An investigation is now under way. "What I can say at this point is that this website needs to be researched," Brunet says. "We need to look at the language being used, and whether or not it is creating illegitimate expectations to the public."
Lotfi is shocked that anyone would question his ethics. "Maybe they´re jealous," he says of his detractors. "I don´t know. I don´t have any complaints from my clients." In fact, Lotfi goes so far as to insist that the Canadian Immigration Lottery is not a lottery at all. "It´s a marketing tool," he says, a catchy domain name meant to grab the attention of people trolling the Internet for information about the American visa lottery. But the connection ends there, he says. Everyone who pays their $100 knows exactly what they are buying: a chance to win a free, professionally crafted application. No false promises. No guarantees. "It´s misleading if I´m not explaining the rules exactly," he says. "But the rules are explained clearly and when you read it carefully, you understand."
What´s not as clear is Lotfi´s profit margin. At US$100 a pop, his 10,000 applicants have forked over, at the very least, a combined $1 million(or approximately C$1.14 million). Divide that between the lottery´s 400 or so winners, and it equals $2,850 per client -- more than enough to cover a person´s $550 visa application and $975 right of permanent residence fee. Lotfi does point out that some of his clients have spouses(an additional $550 processing fee)and dependent children($150 each), but in the end, he and his associates are still poised to pocket a substantial share. "We don´t cheat anybody," he says. "I´m running a business. It´s not a one-way business. It´s two-way. The client, he has benefit. We have benefit also."
Don´t forget, Lotfi says, that every applicant receives an assessment in exchange for their $100. If a person decides to go it alone, pay all the necessary government processing fees, and is later rejected by the government, the sale is final. Better to lose $100, he says, than $1,000. Perhaps, but it remains to be seen whether any of the lottery winners actually claim the ultimate prize. Not a single one has arrived in Canada yet.
[29-12-2007,16:05]
[***.121.220.199]
Sharon |
(in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
do you understand what you bought?
you paid $100US for someone to enter your name in a contest. (how do you know they actually draw a name... from a picture they post?)
IF your name is drawn, they will fill out your application for free and pay the $1,000 in fees.
If your name is not drawn - you get nothing.
IF you are lucky enough to get your name drawn, there is still no guarantee that you will receive Canadian immigration.
1) you still need the points
2) you still have to wait in line like everyone else
3) and you still need to pass the medical and police clearance
Like I said before - I can appreciate your anxiousness to come to Canada but thinking you have found the easy or fast way is a guaranteed signal that you are been deceived.
[29-12-2007,16:19]
[***.121.220.199]
Sharon |
Please deal with Government of Canada (in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
Hi Zaheer,
Sorry, if I reply to your message with bit emotion because I?m really afraid of those kind of fishing techniques used by some people to make money on the back of vulnerable people.
When surfing the Web site http://www.cifacanada.org, fist of all, I notice that it says ??CIFA is a non-profit organisation willing to pay for your dream to immigrate to Canada. Join us and let your dreams come true!? on home page.
Then I don?t believe that you should accept to pay for nothing to a non-profit organisation.
Also when I clicked on ?contact us? page, there is no mailing address and I also couldn?t find their address on the footer of the page. Then, I would not make any payment to someone I don?t know his address and full name.
If you want to come to Canada, please, please and please deal with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, ?with Canadian Government not someone else. The link to the Web site:www.cic.gc.ca.
There is a French expression saying: when I need to ask god for something, I don?t have to go through the priest, I directly ask god.
If you want to come to Canada, please, apply trough CIC, Government of Canada not someone else. There are lots of people around who are waiting to make money on the back of na?ve people.
If you were already in Canada and you have a proof of payment you did to http://www.cifacanada.org/ then I would suggest to contact Customer Protection Office at http://www.gov.on.ca/mgs/en/General/STEL02_047599.html, Better Business Bureau at http://www.ccbbb.ca/ and Customer?s Protection of Canada http://www.consumer.ca/1653.
You can always try to file a complaint to all of them and they will tell you if they can or not help you in your case. You will not be required to pay.
Sorry for what happen to you, please take a time before you make any of you decisions, don?t rush. Hope it helps.
Regards,
[29-12-2007,16:31]
[***.129.76.96]
Fishing Fighter. |
(in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
Sorry Zaheer, I forgot to mention Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants, you can always file a complaint to them, their Web site is http://www.csic-scci.ca/
Please remember that you are not required to make payment for any of the links I mentionned in my replies
[29-12-2007,16:44]
[***.129.76.96]
Fishing Fighter(ex need help or can help) |
(in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
Oh man, this smells fishy. Doesn´t matter how much you pay to a consultant or a lawyer you have to qualify under the category you are applying for. Under the skill worker category you have to meet the 67 point requirement PERIOD.
Sometimes the best learning lessons in life are FREE.
Cheers
Bill
[29-12-2007,20:59]
[**.65.0.48]
Bill |
(in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
I have paid them $115 Canadian dollars and i have a proof of the payment to them also . I paid them through Westren Union , also on the CIFAcanada.org homepage and in Contact page i found the following but none of the following replies to me:
Due to the high volume of communications, we can not answers the phone, to better serving our clients and to keep records
We suggest you to e-mil your questions
For question regarding a payment or to report a payment already made please contact payment@canadianimmigrationhouse.com
For question about your official assessment please contact evaluation@canadianimmigrationhouse.com
If you are a winner and need more information about your file please contact winners@cifacanada.org
If your profile has expired or you would like to ask for an extension please contact clientcare@cifacanada.org
For other questions please contact questions@cifacanada.org
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Also can anybody tells me what can i do now? and which is the better site for immigration to canada? and can i complain CIFA?
[30-12-2007,03:34]
[***.125.143.66]
Zaheer Abbas |
Canadian immigration (in reply to: Problems in CIFA website)
Zaheer, this is the official site:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/index.asp
http://www.cic.gc.ca/francais/index.asp
This is how I immigrated: downloaded my forms, completed them and sent them. Total duration: 2 1/2 years. No glitch.
You don´t need a laywer, better to do it yourself. Good luck!
[30-12-2007,05:17]
[**.90.26.212]
Almost Canadian |
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