Call-in notice for an interview with CSIS

[lizardking]

Hello ,
I need some help/info if anyone ever had the same situation as mine ,
I got an email with the subject "call-in notice for an interview with CSIS " and I actually didn't take a look in details as the email was so simple one line and look like all spam emails I receive everyday, but when I looked at the attachment I found there are all information I have on my file regarding to citizenship and was asking me to go in person for this interview , later after 2-3 days I had a phone call to confirm if I will be there that day until then I wasn't worried and I thought it is something normal randomly asking people to go there , but I was asked if I bring a lawyer with me which I actually got a little bit worried after,
Long story short, I applied for citizenship April 2018 and got my status/AOR July 2018 and since then nothing , I called and emailed officer through the service online and got the same reply as it is still in process and nothing to worry about ( and I thought it all happened because of Covid-19 situation),
Did anyone have the same issue and what you guys think ,Do I really need a lawyer?
As far as I know I didn't do anything wrong , but since I was here in Canada with study permit/visitor permit before and I had always issue with immigration (delay/ lost passport/ wrong family name on my study permit, I also got declined once with permanent residency application) but I assume all these have been checked and passed before the last Federal Skilled worker application which I finally got my PR ,
I highly appreciate if anyone had this situation before and share it with me ,
Thanks

 

[PMM]

HI

Hello ,
I need some help/info if anyone ever had the same situation as mine ,
I got an email with the subject "call-in notice for an interview with CSIS " and I actually didn't take a look in details as the email was so simple one line and look like all spam emails I receive everyday, but when I looked at the attachment I found there are all information I have on my file regarding to citizenship and was asking me to go in person for this interview , later after 2-3 days I had a phone call to confirm if I will be there that day until then I wasn't worried and I thought it is something normal randomly asking people to go there , but I was asked if I bring a lawyer with me which I actually got a little bit worried after,
Long story short, I applied for citizenship April 2018 and got my status/AOR July 2018 and since then nothing , I called and emailed officer through the service online and got the same reply as it is still in process and nothing to worry about ( and I thought it all happened because of Covid-19 situation),
Did anyone have the same issue and what you guys think ,Do I really need a lawyer?
As far as I know I didn't do anything wrong , but since I was here in Canada with study permit/visitor permit before and I had always issue with immigration (delay/ lost passport/ wrong family name on my study permit, I also got declined once with permanent residency application) but I assume all these have been checked and passed before the last Federal Skilled worker application which I finally got my PR ,
I highly appreciate if anyone had this situation before and share it with me ,
Thanks

1. If I were you were you, I would spend the money and take a lawyer. There is a problem with your security clearance, it maybe simple or it maybe serious.

 

[lizardking]

HI



1. If I were you were you, I would spend the money and take a lawyer. There is a problem with your security clearance, it maybe simple or it maybe serious.

Thanks for replying , That's what I thought , will see if I can find one in this limited time I have

 

[dpenabill]

Assuming this is really an interview with CSIS, which from your description it appears to be . . .

I emphatically agree with @PMM here. Time to lawyer-up. Even if you need to go into some debt to do it.

It may be about little more than verifying your identity thereby confirming that whatever the concern, it is not about you. No problem.

But there is a real RISK it could be significantly more serious, if not a lot more serious, than that.

In following anecdotal reporting about citizenship applications for more than a decade, in this and other forums, yours is the first report of being called in for a CSIS interview I have seen. Seen it in IAD decisions (regarding PRs in other contexts) and Federal Court decisions (very small number of citizenship cases), but this is well outside the range of common non-routine processing for a citizenship application.

Given how long your citizenship application has been in process, and now this, the odds are that CSIS has serious concerns, at least from their perspective. That does not mean those concerns are well-founded or even really about you. But it does mean your background has been scrutinized and there are, at the least, some questions remaining, questions serious enough for CSIS agents to take the time to conduct an in-person interview, during a pandemic when government personnel are minimizing in-person in-office contacts.

This is NOT intended to cause alarm. However serious it is, it is NOT so serious that rather than knock on your door or otherwise intercept you in person, instead they invited you to voluntarily go in for an interview. That suggests your response to questions may indeed easily resolve whatever concerns there are. Maybe. So, maybe it will turn out as @Gatineau2020 rather recklessly assures it will. But the downside RISKS loom large enough it is nonetheless time to lawyer-up.

Hello ,
I need some help/info if anyone ever had the same situation as mine ,
I got an email with the subject "call-in notice for an interview with CSIS " and I actually didn't take a look in details as the email was so simple one line and look like all spam emails I receive everyday, but when I looked at the attachment I found there are all information I have on my file regarding to citizenship and was asking me to go in person for this interview , later after 2-3 days I had a phone call to confirm if I will be there that day until then I wasn't worried and I thought it is something normal randomly asking people to go there , but I was asked if I bring a lawyer with me which I actually got a little bit worried after,
Long story short, I applied for citizenship April 2018 and got my status/AOR July 2018 and since then nothing , I called and emailed officer through the service online and got the same reply as it is still in process and nothing to worry about ( and I thought it all happened because of Covid-19 situation),
Did anyone have the same issue and what you guys think ,Do I really need a lawyer?
As far as I know I didn't do anything wrong , but since I was here in Canada with study permit/visitor permit before and I had always issue with immigration (delay/ lost passport/ wrong family name on my study permit, I also got declined once with permanent residency application) but I assume all these have been checked and passed before the last Federal Skilled worker application which I finally got my PR ,
I highly appreciate if anyone had this situation before and share it with me ,
Thanks

 

[Fallen_Warrior]

Assuming this is really an interview with CSIS, which from your description it appears to be . . .

I emphatically agree with @PMM here. Time to lawyer-up. Even if you need to go into some debt to do it.

It may be about little more than verifying your identity thereby confirming that whatever the concern, it is not about you. No problem.

But there is a real RISK it could be significantly more serious, if not a lot more serious, than that.

In following anecdotal reporting about citizenship applications for more than a decade, in this and other forums, yours is the first report of being called in for a CSIS interview I have seen. Seen it in IAD decisions (regarding PRs in other contexts) and Federal Court decisions (very small number of citizenship cases), but this is well outside the range of common non-routine processing for a citizenship application.

Given how long your citizenship application has been in process, and now this, the odds are that CSIS has serious concerns, at least from their perspective. That does not mean those concerns are well-founded or even really about you. But it does mean your background has been scrutinized and there are, at the least, some questions remaining, questions serious enough for CSIS agents to take the time to conduct an in-person interview, during a pandemic when government personnel are minimizing in-person in-office contacts.

This is NOT intended to cause alarm. However serious it is, it is NOT so serious that rather than knock on your door or otherwise intercept you in person, instead they invited you to voluntarily go in for an interview. That suggests your response to questions may indeed easily resolve whatever concerns there are. Maybe. So, maybe it will turn out as @Gatineau2020 rather recklessly assures it will. But the downside RISKS loom large enough it is nonetheless time to lawyer-up.

100% agreed.

Normally, CSIS interviews are before PR applications. This reporting of citizenship CSIS interview is new to me as well.

Get the lawyer!

 

[blingyrie]

Hello ,
I need some help/info if anyone ever had the same situation as mine ,
I got an email with the subject "call-in notice for an interview with CSIS " and I actually didn't take a look in details as the email was so simple one line and look like all spam emails I receive everyday, but when I looked at the attachment I found there are all information I have on my file regarding to citizenship and was asking me to go in person for this interview , later after 2-3 days I had a phone call to confirm if I will be there that day until then I wasn't worried and I thought it is something normal randomly asking people to go there , but I was asked if I bring a lawyer with me which I actually got a little bit worried after,
Long story short, I applied for citizenship April 2018 and got my status/AOR July 2018 and since then nothing , I called and emailed officer through the service online and got the same reply as it is still in process and nothing to worry about ( and I thought it all happened because of Covid-19 situation),
Did anyone have the same issue and what you guys think ,Do I really need a lawyer?
As far as I know I didn't do anything wrong , but since I was here in Canada with study permit/visitor permit before and I had always issue with immigration (delay/ lost passport/ wrong family name on my study permit, I also got declined once with permanent residency application) but I assume all these have been checked and passed before the last Federal Skilled worker application which I finally got my PR ,
I highly appreciate if anyone had this situation before and share it with me ,
Thanks

I agree a lawyer isn’t a bad idea given your history. I’ve never heard of this until your case. So get the lawyer and if it turns out to be nothing alarming, good! but if it turns out to be serious, then you are well prepared. Goodluck.

 

[CitizenSoon]

Do not meet CSIS without your lawyer. Your lawyer will ask them to send him / her details and/ or documents. Then, your lawyer will be able to advise you on weather to meet with them or not. Please let him answer on your behalf. They may wanna hire you to work for them for cash. They may want to gather information about others from you, voluntarily. They may wanna get information about yourself or something else.

You may hire a lawyer that is clever in matters related to CSIS or mandamus cases.

If CSIS contacts anyone, he/ she have to ask them to contact his/ her lawyer. This is the only official correct way to handle this matter.

 

[Das67]

• Incidental Letter – provided to CIC when the Service has information that the applicant is or was involved in non-security-related activities described in section 19 of the Immigration Act (for example, war crimes or organized criminal activity) or any other matter of relevance to the performance of duty by the Minister of IRCC, as set in section 14(b) of the CSIS Act.

CSIS forwards its reports, briefs, and letters to the Intelligence Branch, which follows up and advises visa officers. When there is an indication of security concerns, an interview may be scheduled to discuss these findings with the applicant.

https://gcmsnotes.com/all-about-security-screening/

 

[kzehra]

Hi @lizardking ,
Did you got your interview done? What was the reason they called you out? My husband’s security clearance is pending For a long time so I am also getting worried. Please guide if you can...

Hello ,
I need some help/info if anyone ever had the same situation as mine ,
I got an email with the subject "call-in notice for an interview with CSIS " and I actually didn't take a look in details as the email was so simple one line and look like all spam emails I receive everyday, but when I looked at the attachment I found there are all information I have on my file regarding to citizenship and was asking me to go in person for this interview , later after 2-3 days I had a phone call to confirm if I will be there that day until then I wasn't worried and I thought it is something normal randomly asking people to go there , but I was asked if I bring a lawyer with me which I actually got a little bit worried after,
Long story short, I applied for citizenship April 2018 and got my status/AOR July 2018 and since then nothing , I called and emailed officer through the service online and got the same reply as it is still in process and nothing to worry about ( and I thought it all happened because of Covid-19 situation),
Did anyone have the same issue and what you guys think ,Do I really need a lawyer?
As far as I know I didn't do anything wrong , but since I was here in Canada with study permit/visitor permit before and I had always issue with immigration (delay/ lost passport/ wrong family name on my study permit, I also got declined once with permanent residency application) but I assume all these have been checked and passed before the last Federal Skilled worker application which I finally got my PR ,
I highly appreciate if anyone had this situation before and share it with me ,
Thanks

 

[lizardking]

Hi @lizardking ,
Did you got your interview done? What was the reason they called you out? My husband’s security clearance is pending For a long time so I am also getting worried. Please guide if you can...

Yeah , Some Basic questions about my profile/work experience and where I have been working since I landed , I did talk to a citizenship lawyer few days before that and She said I don't need to worry about , it is normal for people from some countries to have this type of interview , which she was right , and I was told It might take a month to update CIC for that but no update yet

 

[CitizenSoon]

Yeah , Some Basic questions about my profile/work experience and where I have been working since I landed , I did talk to a citizenship lawyer few days before that and She said I don't need to worry about , it is normal for people from some countries to have this type of interview , which she was right , and I was told It might take a month to update CIC for that but no update yet

Did your lawyer join the interview?

 

[lizardking]

Did your lawyer join the interview?

No

 

[CitizenSoon]

Ok, wish you the best.
Please let us know if there is any development.

 

[rajkamalmohanram]

Hello ,
I need some help/info if anyone ever had the same situation as mine ,
I got an email with the subject "call-in notice for an interview with CSIS " and I actually didn't take a look in details as the email was so simple one line and look like all spam emails I receive everyday, but when I looked at the attachment I found there are all information I have on my file regarding to citizenship and was asking me to go in person for this interview , later after 2-3 days I had a phone call to confirm if I will be there that day until then I wasn't worried and I thought it is something normal randomly asking people to go there , but I was asked if I bring a lawyer with me which I actually got a little bit worried after,
Long story short, I applied for citizenship April 2018 and got my status/AOR July 2018 and since then nothing , I called and emailed officer through the service online and got the same reply as it is still in process and nothing to worry about ( and I thought it all happened because of Covid-19 situation),
Did anyone have the same issue and what you guys think ,Do I really need a lawyer?
As far as I know I didn't do anything wrong , but since I was here in Canada with study permit/visitor permit before and I had always issue with immigration (delay/ lost passport/ wrong family name on my study permit, I also got declined once with permanent residency application) but I assume all these have been checked and passed before the last Federal Skilled worker application which I finally got my PR ,
I highly appreciate if anyone had this situation before and share it with me ,
Thanks

Watching this. Never seen one of these before.

Please keep us posted if you get any updates.

Thanks.

 

[lizardking]

Watching this. Never seen one of these before.

Please keep us posted if you get any updates.

Thanks.

Ok, wish you the best.
Please let us know if there is any development.

As I explained above I had an interview for about 4-5 hours asking so many questions about almost everything , and the guy at the end said it is just to make sure there is no security risk giving me citizenship(something like that) , he then said he will update CIC about it in 2-3 weeks , after they changed the layout of application status of citizenship I can see my background check has been finished/completed exactly 2 weeks after that interview, but the others remaining in progress and not started