A simple case?

[smettila]

Please supply your opinion, I would be totally grateful. It would help if you can tell me why your information is reliable.

I am Alexander, Canadian, and I live in London, UK, with my partner Chiara. We want to move to my home town (Vancouver, Canada) together, as soon as possible. We would like for her to be able to work there, with minimum possible wait. We have read and understood the conditions for family sponsorship, believing we fulfill them, and we think this method would be the safest and most effective way for us. From the pertinent webpage, it seems the processing time differs, depending on where the applicant lives when making the application. What does this "live" mean? Can we go to Vancouver, her as a tourist on holiday, and apply from there, while she is already getting used to the new place and adjusting? Would the processing time be shorter this way, than applying from here in the UK?
Also: could she apply for a temporary "working holiday" permit to use during the time in which the sponsorship application is being processed? While I am able and willing to fully support her (financially and otherwise), to be able to work would be more fulfilling for her, equating in a more balanced relationship for us.
We do think this is all feasible, as a Vancouver immigration lawyer has offered to do it for us, but charging a high sum we do not want to spend. We would like a reliable official answer from you, and then accomplish these steps ourselves.

Kindest regards,
Alexander

 

[scylla]

FYI - the working holiday visa program has reached its cap for UK participants for this year. It will re-open again next January.

 

[herewecome]

If living in Canada, you can apply inland or outland via the London office. Inland overall takes longer, you cannot appeal if rejected and she cannot leave the country. However after stage 1, she could work. This right now would in the majority of cases yield the quickest way to be able to work.

Applying outland via London is taking a while at the moment. It's still mainly processing 2012 applicants.

And I guess the other option is to stay in London and wait for the PR to be granted or move towards the end of it so she gets adjustment time but you get a job and you are both working prior to that.

You seem pretty switched on and have a perfect grasp of English with what appears an uncomplicated case so should be more than available of doing the application yourself without paying for a lawyer.


I would remove your names from your post.

 

[smettila]

FYI - the working holiday visa program has reached its cap for UK participants for this year. It will re-open again next January.

Thank you scylla. We would wait until new "working holiday" placements become available.

If living in Canada, you can apply inland or outland via the London office. Inland overall takes longer, you cannot appeal if rejected and she cannot leave the country. However after stage 1, she could work. This right now would in the majority of cases yield the quickest way to be able to work.

And I guess the other option is to stay in London and wait for the PR to be granted or move towards the end of it so she gets adjustment time but you get a job and you are both working prior to that.
I would remove your names from your post.

Thanks for the names tip!
After stage 1 she could work, now that is interesting. I would have to make sure about how that works. That means it's essentially a 6 month wait inland (cannot leave), opposed to a 10-12 month wait, possibly continuing our lives here in London as they are. That's not exactly what we want, though.

What about this path: we apply outland, London office, ASAP (July). We come, say, in September, her on a visiting visa. I already have a job there waiting for me. When possible, she applies for a "working holiday" permit, which I believe gets granted sometime early in the year (Jan-Feb?), which lasts 6 months thus patching her through nearly all the rest of the waiting time.

Does this sound like a safe line of action?

 

[Korea2Canada]

As long as you can read English you don't need a lawyer BUT you do need to read study the application guide. This site is useful as well. As far as I know, applying inland will get her to work faster than outland.

 

[herewecome]

I don't know how the working holiday visa works I'm afraid - too old hahaha

While getting in as a visitor is likely it is not 100% guaranteed. She may be expected to show intent to return to the UK including return flights. She will also be limited in what she can take of hers at the time as she's not moving.

 

[scylla]

The working holiday visa would allow her to work for a year. Based on the processing times I've seen this year - it might be more like March or April (possibly even May) before she's approved.

I think applying outland is your best bet regardless. Get the application package in as soon as you can to kick start the process.

 

[smettila]

I don't know how the working holiday visa works I'm afraid - too old hahaha

While getting in as a visitor is likely it is not 100% guaranteed. She may be expected to show intent to return to the UK including return flights. She will also be limited in what she can take of hers at the time as she's not moving.

The working holiday visa would allow her to work for a year. Based on the processing times I've seen this year - it might be more like March or April (possibly even May) before she's approved.

I think applying outland is your best bet regardless. Get the application package in as soon as you can to kick start the process.

Very interesting points!

Our intention is indeed to "trial" the experience, because she has never even been to Canada at all. But as we trial, getting the PR going is surely best.
Also, we rent in London and don't want to stash our stuff here, we'd rather get a shipment going instead. Worse come to worst (bad experience, or by some odd chance she is denied PR), we'd ship stuff back, because it's actually quite affordable (£2 x Kilo). So even if she were limited in what she can bring as a tourist, I would ship everything to my Vancouver address, and hence get around that problem. We own a dog, he'd have to fly with us.

Outland does seem better, because we can start immediately. The downside is, there could be an interview, held at the processing office. So if we do decide to go to Vancouver to wait for the process, we might have to travel back, if it comes to that. We own a dog, so that would be somewhat of an issue, but not impossible to solve. We could do it now, and it could be ready in a year, approx. July 2014. Inlands are currently lagging a good bit, 9 months for 1st stage only, and we could probably only start in September (2013), so again 1st stage completed around maybe May 2014. Not much gain at all.

Thanks a lot for your advice and wisdom!

 

[smettila]

I found out something excellent! The CIC website says that if:

- you have a temporary resident visa, lasting at least 6 months
- you have a Canadian spouse or common-law partner
- you are in Canada

you may apply for an open work permit! Even if you already have applied for permanent residency!

Do you guys know anything about this?

 

[blueboom]

I found out something excellent! The CIC website says that if:

- you have a temporary resident visa, lasting at least 6 months
- you have a Canadian spouse or common-law partner
- you are in Canada

you may apply for an open work permit! Even if you already have applied for permanent residency!

Do you guys know anything about this?

Is it this page to which you're referring? http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?q=177&t=17

A temporary resident permit is different from a temporary resident visa. A TRP is only issued for cases in which an applicant has a valid reason to be in Canada but would otherwise be considered inadmissible to the country.

 

[steerpike]

After stage 1 she could work, now that is interesting. I would have to make sure about how that works. That means it's essentially a 6 month wait inland (cannot leave),

The wait times are currently more like 8 months and rising. They havent updated their website yet, as it takes CIC months to complete even the most simple basic action.

 

[Sweden]

Just to add on the IEC/WOrk holidays visa. It doesn't depend on where she lives, it depends on where she's from. So you ( and her) should be monitoring the IEC page for Italians. http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/italy-italie/experience_canada_experience/index.aspx get familiar with the way it works, and monitor the page for when they open it again (sometimes around the end of the year it will get updated). Once they start giving them out, the important part is to be able to submit a file to apply - so be prepared. You will have time to file a more substantial file later on, but if you want one, you need to be ready before they go up for grabs - it doesn't last very long! (1 or 2 days... or less).

If she has been living in the UK for more than a year she can choose London for her visa office, if not, she would have to go with her country of nationality - so going through Rome. Rome is listed at 14 months and London at 10, but it's the time it takes to process 80% of the applications so it might be the same at the end.

Good luck,
Sweden