Immigration lawyer · Surrey, BC
I’m Maja Lindqvist. I help people come to Canada to work, study and join family, and help small employers in the Lower Mainland hire the person they’ve found abroad.
A 45-minute consultation is $150, by phone, video or at my Surrey office. If you go ahead, it comes off your fee, which we agree in writing before anything is filed.
Applications I handle
Processing times are set by the government and change every week, so I don’t quote them from memory. At your consultation we look up the current published time for your country and your type of application together.
Employer-specific and open work permits, including spousal open work permits and post-graduation work permits, plus extensions and changes of employer.
Good to know: depending on your situation, some applications can be made from inside Canada rather than from abroad.
For businesses hiring a foreign worker, often for the first time: the job ad, the recruitment record, the LMIA application and then your new hire’s work permit.
Good to know: the job usually has to be advertised for at least four weeks before the LMIA is submitted. Start early.
First study permits, extensions, changing schools or programs, and the step from studying to working once you graduate.
Good to know: you’ll need a letter of acceptance and, for most programs, a provincial attestation letter before you apply.
Your profile, a realistic look at your score, and a complete permanent residence application once an invitation arrives.
Good to know: after an invitation you have 60 days to file, so we gather documents while you wait in the pool.
Skills Immigration streams for workers with a BC job offer: registration, the nomination application, then the federal permanent residence application.
Good to know: it runs in stages, and each stage has its own form, fee and timeline. I map all of them out at the start.
Spouses, common-law and conjugal partners and dependent children, with the relationship evidence put together so it tells your story clearly.
Good to know: inland or outland changes what your partner can do while waiting. We decide together which fits your family.
Visitor visas for family coming to see you, super visas for parents and grandparents, and extensions for visitors already here.
Good to know: apply to extend before your status runs out, and you can usually stay while it’s decided.
Adult and minor citizenship applications, including a careful count of your days in Canada and help preparing for the test.
Good to know: you need 1,095 days physically present in the last five years. I check your count against your travel history first.
I don’t take refugee claims or Federal Court appeals and judicial reviews. They deserve a lawyer who does them every day, and I’ll give you names of colleagues who do.
Not sure which this is? Ask anyway. I’ll tell you plainly whether I’m the right person.
Lindqvist Immigration Law is a private law practice. It is not part of, or connected to, the Government of Canada, IRCC or the Province of British Columbia. Only the government decides applications.
Who I work with
Some clients are still abroad and planning. Others have been here for years on a permit and want something more permanent. Most are somewhere in between.
You have a job offer, a place at a college, or a high enough score, and you want the paperwork done right the first time.
A partner overseas, children who need to join you, or parents who want to visit for a long summer with the grandchildren.
Restaurants, trades, care homes and small tech teams in the Lower Mainland who have found the right person and need a clear path to get them here.
How it works
No surprises halfway through. You see the plan, the price and the list of documents before you commit to anything.
We talk through where you are, where you want to be and which routes are realistic. I’ll tell you honestly if one isn’t.
You get a written plan, a fixed-fee letter and a checklist of every document, with notes on what “good” looks like for each one.
I review every document, prepare the forms and letters, and file. You see the final application before it goes in.
I handle requests for more documents, medicals and biometrics reminders, and tell you what the decision means for your next step.
Most refusals I see come from a missing or weak document, not a bad case. So your checklist is shared, kept up to date by my assistant, and nothing is filed until every line is done.
Fixed fees
My fee is fixed for the application we agree on and set out in a letter you sign. Government fees are paid to the government, not to me, and are listed separately.
| Application | My fee | Government fees (paid separately) |
|---|---|---|
| Consultation45 minutes, phone, video or in person | $150 | None. Credited to your fee if you go ahead. |
| Work permitEmployer-specific or open, including extensions | $1,800 | $155 permit · $100 open-permit holder fee if open · $85 biometrics |
| LMIA for an employerOne position, recruitment review included; $400 per extra position in the same role | $2,400 | $1,000 per position |
| Study permitNew permit, extension or change of school | $1,600 | $150 permit · $85 biometrics |
| Express EntryProfile and permanent residence application; $600 more with a spouse | $3,400 | $950 processing · $575 right of permanent residence · $85 biometrics (per adult) |
| BC Provincial NomineeRegistration and nomination application; PR application after nomination $1,900 | $3,200 | $1,475 BC PNP application fee, then federal PR fees as above |
| Spousal or partner sponsorshipInland or outland, relationship evidence and letters included | $3,000 | $85 sponsorship · $570 processing · $575 right of permanent residence · $85 biometrics |
| Dependent child sponsorshipPer child | $2,000 | $85 sponsorship · $175 processing |
| Visitor visa or super visaInvitation letter included | $850 | $100 visa · $85 biometrics |
| Visitor extensionVisitor record for someone already in Canada | $600 | $100 |
| CitizenshipAdult; $300 for each child added to the same application | $950 | $649.75 adult · $100 minor |
Half when you sign the fee letter, half before I file. E-transfer, cheque or card. If your plans change before filing, you pay only for the work already done, as set out in the letter.
Languages
If you’d be more comfortable in another language, an interpreter is welcome to join any meeting, at your cost. Bring someone you trust or ask me for the names of interpreters I’ve worked with. Documents not in English or French need a certified translation.
Jag hjälper gärna till på svenska.
About Maja
I moved to British Columbia from Gothenburg on a study permit, and spent years on work permits before I became a permanent resident and then a citizen. I know the waiting.
I practise on my own, on purpose. When you hire me, I’m the lawyer who reads your documents, writes your letters and signs off on your application. My assistant, Noor, keeps your checklist up to date and is often the one who calls to say a document has arrived.
I keep my practice to the applications I do well and refer the rest. If your case is better handled by someone else, I’ll say so at the consultation and point you to them.
Consultation
Send a short note about what you’re hoping to do. My assistant or I will reply within one working day to suggest a time for a consultation. Nothing is booked until we’ve agreed a time with you.
This website gives general information, not legal advice. Contacting us doesn’t make you a client until we confirm it in writing.
Questions
No, and please be wary of anyone who does. The government makes every decision. What I can do is make sure your application is complete, well explained and filed on the right route, which is where most avoidable refusals come from.
No. Many people apply on their own, and the forms are public. People usually come to me when the stakes are high, the case has a complication like a past refusal or a gap in status, or they simply don’t have the time to get every detail right.
No. I’m a private lawyer. I represent you in front of the government; I don’t work for it, and I can’t speed up a decision.
I can review the refusal, ask for the officer’s notes and tell you whether a new, stronger application makes sense. If the better route is a Federal Court judicial review, I refer you to a colleague who does that work, and the deadline is short, so contact someone quickly.
Because they go straight to the government, they change from time to time, and you deserve to see exactly what you are paying me. Your fee letter lists both, so the total is never a surprise.
Yes, for federal applications like work and study permits, Express Entry, sponsorship and citizenship. We meet by phone or video. The BC Provincial Nominee Program is only for people with a job or plans in British Columbia.
No. Refugee claims and Federal Court cases are referred to colleagues who focus on them. If that’s your situation, call anyway and I’ll point you in the right direction.
