With over 7 years of hands-on experience in the field of immigration, Waheed Jalalzada has established himself as a trusted advocate within the Afghan community, providing critical immigration support both in Canada and abroad. His extensive knowledge and practical expertise in navigating complex immigration policies stem from years of dedicated work as a licensed immigration consultant. Waheed’s commitment to empowering immigrants, particularly Afghans, through free legal consultations and public awareness efforts has made him a valuable resource for thousands seeking to build their lives in Canada. His unwavering focus on immigration justice and fraud prevention has further demonstrated his deep understanding of the challenges faced by newcomers.

Waheed is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Immigration and Settlement at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), where the program offers him exposure to advanced research and opportunities to network with leaders in the field, strengthening his advocacy for immigrants.

Waheed moved to the United States in 2014 after leaving Afghanistan and earned a master’s degree in public administration. In late 2016, he relocated to Canada to pursue personal and professional milestones. He became a member of the Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario (ATIO) in 2017 as an English-Farsi (Dari) translator.

After graduating from the Immigration Consultant Program at CDI College in Mississauga in mid 2018, Waheed spent 4 years working with immigration consultants in the Greater Toronto Area to learn immigration in practice. He earned his license to practice immigration in July 2021 and established Waheed Immigration Services. Waheed served the community by providing immigration legal support in Canada and abroad. The following is a brief indication of what he has accomplished in the last 6 years:

• Authored over 260 blog posts in Farsi (Dari) on immigration and everyday life in Canada, available for free at: www.waheedimmigration.ca/da
• Responded to over 5094 inquiries (Calls, texts, and emails) from Afghans in Canada and abroad, offering detailed free guidance. This equates to 203,793 minutes of consultation over 70 months, averaging 1.5 hours per day. (70 months are 3,024,000 minutes; spending an average of 40 minutes on each inquiry, a number of 5,094 inquiries equal to 203,793 minutes. On an average, close to one and half hours a day is spent to provide free legal immigration consultation in the last 70 months).
• Saved the Afghan community approximately $1,400,850 in immigration consultation fees, assuming an average of $275 per consultation ($275 x 5,094 consultations).
• Contributed to immigration fraud prevention efforts with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and the Canada Border Services Agency by raising awareness of fraudulent advertisements, ghost immigration firms, and human trafficking scams.
• Helped Afghans save over a million dollars by providing accurate information on immigration processes, preventing money from going to traffickers and fraudulent firms.
• Supported 14 families pro bono in their immigration process to Canada.

Waheed recently launched a new initiative to create a mobile-accessible marketplace to connect immigrants with employment and settlement services. He also co-founded the “Center for Newcomer Empowerment,” a Canadian non-profit organization established in December 2023 to make life easier for newcomers to Canada.

With over a decade of experience in media management in Afghanistan, Waheed has dedicated his career to empowering Afghan journalists and youth, helping them play active roles in decision-making processes both nationally and internationally. He has worked with various organizations including Faanoos Magazine as founder and director; the Media Coordination Group Afghanistan as steering committee member and projects coordinator; Radio Arman; Mashal and Woraz Magazines; Khorshid Film; the European Commission’s delegation to Afghanistan; Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU); Building Markets International; MedAir; the Italian Cooperation; the Afghan Organization for Human Rights and Environmental Protection (AOHREP); Afghanistan National Participation Organization; Social Volunteers Foundation; Afghan Ministry of Public Works; The Afghan Embassy in Washington D.C. and the Afghan Academy and the Society of Afghan Engineers in the United States of America.

During his career in Afghanistan, Waheed served his community in numerous ways, including providing free access to the internet and a library, as well as offering basic and advanced journalism training to over 5,000 young Afghans through Fanoos Magazine. He also led awareness campaigns for more than 1,200 journalists and media workers on the drafted Access to Information Law and the Afghan Journalists Employment Regulation as part of the Media Coordination Group Afghanistan. Additionally, he trained the management staff of over 80 nonprofit organizations on 13 different management topics at Building Markets International. Waheed also managed projects focused on civic education, women’s empowerment, and raising awareness about the presidential election process, benefiting over 500,000 people directly and more than 5 million indirectly.

Waheed has translated several books from English and Urdu to Dari in the fields of journalism, social justice, politics, and child healthcare. His contributions have earned him Kardan University’s “40 Under 40 – The Rising Stars” award, as well as recognition from the United Nations Special Representative in Afghanistan and the Consensus National Youth Political Party for his work in youth empowerment and democracy advocacy.

Waheed is committed to furthering his education, working toward a second master’s degree in Immigration and Settlement, and a PhD in Public Policy with a focus on immigration policy from Toronto Metropolitan University. He is married and father of three daughters.

Updated: November 2024