+1(514) 937-9445 or Toll-free (Canada & US) +1 (888) 947-9445

I have got Request Letter (evidence) after receiving Citizenship Test letter 2 weeks ago

johnbro

Star Member
Jul 17, 2014
121
27
Hi All, I got my citizenship test letter on 23rd June and today (12th Jul 2021) I received an email from CIC with a pdf attachment 'Request Letter' requesting all passport pages color scanned copies. It reads "In order for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to continue the process of your citizenship application, scanned copies or photos of all passport(s) and travel document(s) pages held during your eligibility period are required. If you do not have a passport or travel document, please provide an explanation"

My questions are :
1. Is it normal for CIC to request for evidence even after sending the citizenship test letter?
2. I have had 2 passports so far in my life. My first one ended before I got my PR, my question is a) should I scan my old passport also, or would just the new one I held when I got my PR and landed in Canada good enought?
3. How long will the process extend for people who have got request letter (for evidence) in general ?
4. I was out of Canada since Jan 2nd 2021 and only returned now July4th to Canada for the citizenship test, did this absence cause them to request for new evidence now ?

Thanks in advance
 

novascotia27

Hero Member
Jan 4, 2016
491
280
1) it’s normal these days.
2)Scan only the passport(s) of your eligibility period.
3) it’s unclear whether this request extends your processing time. That being said, your application is being actively worked on (good sign).
4) Perhaps it showed that you left Canada early on this year. And that prompted to request the passport scans. Though, this only my speculation.

Good luck!
 

johnbro

Star Member
Jul 17, 2014
121
27
1) it’s normal these days.
2)Scan only the passport(s) of your eligibility period.
3) it’s unclear whether this request extends your processing time. That being said, your application is being actively worked on (good sign).
4) Perhaps it showed that you left Canada early on this year. And that prompted to request the passport scans. Though, this only my speculation.

Good luck!
Thanks a bunch for your quick reply. I appreciate it.
 

rajkamalmohanram

VIP Member
Apr 29, 2015
15,803
5,787
Hi All, I got my citizenship test letter on 23rd June and today (12th Jul 2021) I received an email from CIC with a pdf attachment 'Request Letter' requesting all passport pages color scanned copies. It reads "In order for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to continue the process of your citizenship application, scanned copies or photos of all passport(s) and travel document(s) pages held during your eligibility period are required. If you do not have a passport or travel document, please provide an explanation"

My questions are :
1. Is it normal for CIC to request for evidence even after sending the citizenship test letter?
2. I have had 2 passports so far in my life. My first one ended before I got my PR, my question is a) should I scan my old passport also, or would just the new one I held when I got my PR and landed in Canada good enought?
3. How long will the process extend for people who have got request letter (for evidence) in general ?
4. I was out of Canada since Jan 2nd 2021 and only returned now July4th to Canada for the citizenship test, did this absence cause them to request for new evidence now ?

Thanks in advance
1) it’s normal these days.
2)Scan only the passport(s) of your eligibility period.
3) it’s unclear whether this request extends your processing time. That being said, your application is being actively worked on (good sign).
4) Perhaps it showed that you left Canada early on this year. And that prompted to request the passport scans. Though, this only my speculation.

Good luck!
To elaborate on Q3, this is actually is a good step forward. I have seen applicants receive "Decision Made" status on ECAS shortly after they were requested passport pages. This is better than waiting without an update from IRCC for "Decision Made".

I received the same request today and have responded to the email with my passport pages.
 

johnbro

Star Member
Jul 17, 2014
121
27
To elaborate on Q3, this is actually is a good step forward. I have seen applicants receive "Decision Made" status on ECAS shortly after they were requested passport pages. This is better than waiting without an update from IRCC for "Decision Made".

I received the same request today and have responded to the email with my passport pages.
Thanks for the info and sharing you also got the same request. Quick question, were you away from Canada for sometime ? I thought I got this request as I was out of country for 6.5 months ?
 

rajkamalmohanram

VIP Member
Apr 29, 2015
15,803
5,787
Thanks for the info and sharing you also got the same request. Quick question, were you away from Canada for sometime ? I thought I got this request as I was out of country for 6.5 months ?
I was away for a total of 44 days and I still got the request. This request is becoming pretty common so I don't think there's any need to worry too much about it. As long as you didn't lie on the application (physical presence calculator), you should be good.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Toronto1971

nv0411

Hero Member
Dec 15, 2016
266
130
Category........
Visa Office......
CPC-O
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
05 Dec 2016
Doc's Request.
None
Nomination.....
None
AOR Received.
05 Dec 2016
IELTS Request
Upfront
Med's Request
Upfront
Med's Done....
Upfront
Interview........
None
Passport Req..
10 Mar 2017
VISA ISSUED...
24 Mar 2017
Got 2 stamps translated.
HI Raj- which agency did you use for translation? I have two stamps in Arabic and I'm anticipating a request..

Also - Do we need to provide translations only of stamps of our visits within our 5 year eligibility period.. My passport is 8 years old and I have stamps that were placed in there even before I became a PR in Canada..
 
Last edited:

rajkamalmohanram

VIP Member
Apr 29, 2015
15,803
5,787
HI Raj- which agency did you use for translation? I have two stamps in Arabic and I'm anticipating a request..

Also - Do we need to provide translations only of stamps of our visits within our 5 year eligibility period.. My passport is 8 years old and I have stamps that were placed in there even before I became a PR in Canada..
I used Docsbase - Certified translation .

Translate ALL stamps/visas on the passport that are not in English or French.
 

johnbro

Star Member
Jul 17, 2014
121
27
I used Docsbase - Certified translation .

Translate ALL stamps/visas on the passport that are not in English or French.
I have 4 stamps on my passport that are in different languages, Just a question, do we need to go in person for translation (or require physical passport or its copies) OR can we send a scanned copy online to the company (Docsbase) and they are able to translate it ? and can this be submitted as is ? or if I am merging into same (say pdf or word doc) do I put the translations at the top or bottom of all passport pages or do we need to position the translation just after the original stamp page ?

Also, which program/format did you use to get small file size without losing too much quality ?

Thanks in advance
 

rajkamalmohanram

VIP Member
Apr 29, 2015
15,803
5,787
I have 4 stamps on my passport that are in different languages, Just a question, do we need to go in person for translation (or require physical passport or its copies) OR can we send a scanned copy online to the company (Docsbase) and they are able to translate it ? and can this be submitted as is ? or if I am merging into same (say pdf or word doc) do I put the translations at the top or bottom of all passport pages or do we need to position the translation just after the original stamp page ?

Also, which program/format did you use to get small file size without losing too much quality ?

Thanks in advance
No, I sent the scanned copies to them online.

For this request, I submitted the passport pages and the translation as 2 separate files. You can merge it into 1 if you want to. I think you can place the translation next to the stamp if you are merging it or put all the translations at the end. I'm not sure, I think you can suit yourself.

I think I used smallpdf or ilovepdf (can't remember which one) to compress the PDF size.
 

johnbro

Star Member
Jul 17, 2014
121
27
No, I sent the scanned copies to them online.

For this request, I submitted the passport pages and the translation as 2 separate files. You can merge it into 1 if you want to. I think you can place the translation next to the stamp if you are merging it or put all the translations at the end. I'm not sure, I think you can suit yourself.

I think I used smallpdf or ilovepdf (can't remember which one) to compress the PDF size.
Great, thanks for all the help and info. Good luck
 
  • Like
Reactions: rajkamalmohanram