How This Student Avoided Fake Consultants and Applied Independently
Ranjit from Amritsar came close to losing ₹1.8 lakh to a fake consultant before catching the signs. Here's how he identified the fraud and applied successfully on his own.
Ranjit from Amritsar — one CICC lookup before a second payment
Ranjit Bains had already paid ₹40,000 as an initial fee to a consultant operating from a well-branded office near Hall Bazaar in Amritsar. The office had a Canadian flag in the window, a wall covered in success photos, and a file of supposed approval letters. Ranjit was about to pay the second instalment of ₹1.4 lakh when something made him pause.
He asked to see the consultant's CICC registration number. The CICC — the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants — is Canada's regulatory body for authorized immigration consultants. All legitimate Canadian immigration consultants must be registered. The consultant gave him a number that, when checked on the official CICC public register at college-ic.ca, returned no match.
The Red Flags He Almost Missed
- No verifiable CICC registration number — never accept a verbal number, always verify at college-ic.ca
- Guarantee of approval — no legitimate consultant can guarantee a visa decision
- Unusually low processing fee (₹40,000 initial) — legitimate CICC consultants charge ₹80,000–₹2 lakh+ for full service
- Pressure to pay the full amount quickly before 'intake closes'
- Unable to show references or connect him with past clients
- The approval letters on the wall were undated and had no IRCC watermarks
They had a Canadian flag, professional photos, testimonials on the wall. It all looked real. But a legitimate consultant's CICC number takes five seconds to verify online. That five-second check saved me ₹1.4 lakh.
— Ranjit Bains, Amritsar
What He Did Instead
Ranjit recovered his ₹40,000 partially (₹25,000 after dispute) and applied independently to College of the North Atlantic in Winnipeg for an Information Technology diploma. He used the IRCC official website, the DLI (Designated Learning Institutions) list, and YouTube guides by registered consultants who offer free educational content. Total cost for self-application including IELTS, application fees, and GIC: ₹6.2 lakh. His student visa was approved.