International students easy prey for immigration recruiters

By Fabiola Carletti and Janet Davison. Government trying to crack down on 'ghost consultants'
Vipul Patel thought that coming from India to study in Canada would be a good way to gain a foothold in a country he hopes will become his permanent home.
But nearly a year after making the move, the 23-year-old is frustrated, confused and not sure who to believe in the sometimes murky — and costly — world where ghost consultants mingle with legitimate agents wanting to help foreign students come to Canada.
"It's very hard for me to trust anyone," says Patel.
Patel's suspicions developed after he turned to Edu Edge, a Toronto-based consulting firm that, with the help of a sub-agent, was promoting "study and immigrate" packages to students in India.
Edu Edge isn't licensed to provide immigration consulting services, but its president, Naveen Kolan, says the firm hires such services as needed by seeking out Quebec lawyers who can offer them.
The company also hires subagents and in this case, the agent may have overstated what it was able to deliver, Kolan says. Edu Edge has told the subagent to take down the online ads in question. Read more...