Every time Prashant Vashista thinks of Bls International, the only company sanctioned by the Indian consulate to handle services such as visas and passport renovations in Canada, his mind dates back to two years to the death of his mother.
Directed, he drove an hour to the location of BLS in Brampton to organize emergency visas to see his family in India.
Although he picked up the visas, Vashista said employees demanded that he pay a messaging rate of $ 45 by himself, his daughter and his wife, totaling $ 135.
“I had a great need. So I had to pay,” Toronto told CBC.
It was not the first or last time BLS supposedly pushed him to pay for the services he did not need, and his experience is not unique.
CBC spoke with numerous people who described being pressured to pay additional positions in BLS, many of whom felt their ability to visit India or legally stay in Canada depended on it.
The former employees of the ONE BLS branch say they are not surprised, saying that the staff were encouraged to charge customers as much as possible and find minor errors in their forms or photos to sell services or reduce the accumulation of applications.
“I knew 100 percent that we are wrong … and we are [over]charge customers, “said a former supervisor.
BLS says he has a reputation for ‘excellence in the service’
BLS has locations throughout the country that provide services such as passport renewal, police record controls and citizenship cards abroad (OCI), which function as visas for life.
A fast web search reveals a treasure of Public Publications of Facebook, Reddit threads and online requests, one of which has more than 7,000 signatures, created by frustrated bls customers. The company has also received a “F” qualification from Better Business Bureau.
In response to CBC Toronto questions about complaints, BLS said the company has a “long -standing transparency, compliance and excellence in service.”
“We remain completely aligned with the standards and expectations of the governments and the authorities we work with,” wrote BLS communications manager, Pooja Arora.
“When the concerns are raised, we will always investigate them thoroughly and take the appropriate measures to improve.”
For its part, the Consulate General of India in Toronto says that it is committed to a “rapid and efficient” service, and adds that Bls International was selected “through a competitive bidding process.”
The client describes the ‘legalized looting’
During a visit to the Mississauga location in April, a client says that his OCI application said when the staff pressed it to obtain additional documents not mentioned on the BLS website and found minor problems with their photos and application forms.
CBC Toronto agreed to protect his identity because he fears the repercussions of the bls during future visits.
In a complaint that he later sent to the company, he says that the staff used “fear tactics” to push him to pay additional rates, he called his wife “silly” and threatened the blacklist when he asked to see a detailed receipt before paying.
Harpreet time, a Kenora -based lawyer, Ontario, says he had similar experiences during two separate visits to Toronto Bls locations.
“They forced me to take a messaging service … I had never asked for,” he said.
Although later he received reimbursements after complaining both to the company and the consulate, he described the tests as “obviously stressful” and “a kind of harassment.”
“You will see that this is a legalized looting of people,” he said time, noting that few people have time or patience to pursue reimbursements.
Another client, Shivam Nehra by Oakville, says he was pressured to pay $ 100 for a “premium living room” to avoid long alignments outside while facing an imminent deadline for permanent residence application.
“I went there three to four times to correct my documents and every time, these guys will point out any different error,” he said.
History inside
It seems that the situation was not better on the other side of the counter.
Three former employees, all of whom worked in the Location of Brampton in the last five years, say they remained in short -term contracts and felt pressured to find problems with applications or add additional charges.
CBC Toronto has agreed to protect its identities about concerns about impacts on their careers.
“You must find a reason where you can get money from a customer,” said one.
“If you are not selling, they will begin,” they continued, describing the internal staff of personnel about who could sell most of the services, with gift baskets that go to the winners.
With little orientation on official standards, the reasons for rejecting requests could be as lower as a “bird” missing writing. instead of “Avenida” in a form. They also said that some errors were inevitable due to how the company’s online application forms were formatted.
Two employees also said they would push customers not willing to use their messaging service and charge families several times, despite the fact that deliveries go to the same address.
‘I know what you are doing’
The same employee who described commas out of place said that he finally left the company because they were disturbed by having to lie to customers with whom they often sympathized.
“There are students who are making their requests for their permanent residence, they have no jobs … or obtaining a minimum wage, but still Bls is charging them about two or three hundred dollars [for] one thing that could be done [for] $ 40. “
The three also say that they finally found them returning to BLS for services, where they or their families were accused of accessories they did not want.
“I thought, ‘Man, I have worked in this place and I know what you are doing'”, recalled the same employee who told a Bringon staff member, who charged them an unnecessary messaging rate, who say they had no “other option” but to pay.
The search for responsibility
As a private company hired by a non -Canadian consulate in Canada, BLS operates outside the reach of any federal or provincial immigration ministry.
Global Affairs Canada says that although it authorizes “the establishment of consular positions”, it has no authority over a company hired by a foreign state, instead recommending that people with problems communicate with their local consumer protection office or, in case a criminal complaint, the police.
Meanwhile, the protection of the Ontario consumer says that he has received only one complaint related to BLS International in the last three years, but refused to comment on the result.
The only body with authority to shoot or disciplinary BLS is the Consulate General of India, who said in a statement to CBC Toronto that “all efforts are made, even through internal reviews, coordination with BLS and improvements in the process, to ensure that service standards improve continuously.”
The former Harpreet client is not so safe.
During the last three years, BLS has been found, including several requests for the right to information with the Indian government about how many complaints have received about the company.
“To my surprise, the Indian consulate says they have no data on this,” he said. The Consulate did not comment on the claim that he had no data on the complaints, when CBC Toronto asked him.
“I feel deceived by the Indian consulate,” Tienco said. “The reason is … I am making you complaints and you are not taking action.”
