About Russell

Russ is first and foremost a family man with a wife and two children.  Before working in the immigration business Russell held senior management positions (at the C.E.O. level) for over two decades in the Middle East.  The firm's clients represented many of the top one hundred Fortune 500 companies, like General Motors, Halliburton, Schlumberger, City Group, Johnson and Johnson, and Conoco/Dubai Petroleum.

He got his start in the Canadian immigration field as the General Manager of one of the largest Immigration Consultancy firms in the Middle East in 1994. After processing hundreds of successful cases, he moved to Canada himself. What better city to choose to settle down in than the top ranked city in the world, Vancouver!

After settling in Vancouver with his family, Russell started his own immigration firm, Avatar Immigration.  While running AI, Mr. Monsurate kept himself busy by constantly upgrading his professional skills and keeping abreast of the latest changes to the Immigration Act and Regulations.

After joining AICC, Mr. Monsurate had the honour of being invited to create a DACUM for future Immigration Consultants.

• Mr. Russell Monsurate was the past National Treasurer of the Association of Immigration Counsel of Canada (AICC) and was at one time the past BC Chapter Secretary.
   

  "The Association of Immigration Counsel of Canada
  (AICC) is an organization committed to serving
  and protecting the public and promoting the
  profession of Immigration Advocacy in Canada."

  

• Mr. Russell Monsurate is now a member of the Canadian Association of Professional Immigration Consultants. (CAPIC), which was formed when AICC on the West coast and OPIC on the East coast merged.

• He is now on the National Board of Directors of CAPIC. In addition to immigration consultants the membership includes senior immigration officers, visa officers, an Immigration and Refugee Board Adjudicator, paralegals, and lawyers
   

• He was at one time on the Board of Directors, (Steering Committee) for the BC Chapter of the Canadian Association of Professional Immigration Consultants (CAPIC)
   

• Mr. Monsurate is also a member of the Immigration Practitioners Alumni Association of Canada (IPAAC)
   

• As a Director of CAPIC Russell helps to organize professional seminars that tackle the newest information regarding the state of immigration in Canada, and possible changes to the Immigration Act and Regulations in the future.

In addition, Russell has also completed the Immigration Practitioners Course at the University of British Columbia, which covers all the various facets of Canadian Immigration, including Family Class Sponsorships, Refugee Cases, Student Visas, Investors, Caregivers, and HRDC arranged employment applications.  The course covers the entire Canadian Immigration Regulations and Act.*

*To see a summary of the University of British Columbia Immigration Practitioners Course curriculum, click here.

He was one of only 9 Immigration Practitioners from across Canada who were invited to create a DACUM. Their findings were forwarded to the Advisory Committee for the Immigration Minister, His Excellency, Denis Coderre.

Click below to see some of Russell's Certificates:

Russell Monsurate also has a blog (work in progress).