Federal Court Rules Immigration Officer Applied Wrong Standard in H&C Case
The Case: Christianah Monisola Olanipekun, a Nigerian citizen who had been in Canada for 9 years as a student and worker, applied for permanent residence on H&C grounds after being denied under the temporary resident to permanent resident pathway due to technical timing requirements.
The Problem: The immigration officer rejected her application, stating that her level of establishment was not "uncommon" compared to others who had been in Canada for nine years. The officer also minimized evidence about the serious social stigma and potential hardships faced by childless women in Nigeria, focusing only on "unfavourable comments" while ignoring evidence of domestic violence, ostracization, and other severe consequences.
The Court's Decision: Justice Darren R. Thorne found two key errors:
Wrong Legal Test Applied: The officer incorrectly required the applicant to prove her circumstances were "uncommon" or "exceptional" compared to others. The correct test is whether the circumstances would motivate a reasonable person to want to relieve the applicant's hardships - not whether they are unusual compared to others.
Failure to Consider All Evidence: The officer cherry-picked the least serious aspects of the evidence about stigma against childless women in Nigeria, while ignoring substantial evidence of more severe consequences like domestic violence, family ostracization, and loss of inheritance rights.
Why This Matters: This decision reinforces that H&C applications should be assessed based on the individual's particular circumstances and their impact, not on how they compare to other applicants. It also emphasizes that officers must consider all relevant evidence, not just the aspects that support denial.
Read the Full Decision: Olanipekun v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), 2025 FC 1255
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