Anyone want to join a thread for people applying in the near future?

[teamduckie]

Late to the party,

Me and long distance girlfriend are getting married end of April and aiming to apply after we get marriage certificate and police checks done, so possibly a few more months after that.

Best of luck to us all!

 

[lleahdoll]

Late to the party,

Me and long distance girlfriend are getting married end of April and aiming to apply after we get marriage certificate and police checks done, so possibly a few more months after that.

Best of luck to us all!

You're not late at all! Welcome and congrats on the upcoming marriage
You should def try to get the police checks even before getting married since they take a bit to come in. Well... I guess it depends where your fiance lives.

Currently they list the wait time for the New York visa office at 30 months. Everything I've read on inland says half that, at worst. I might be missing something important however.

Hasn't the average time for US outland applicants been between 7-8 months? That's what I've been seeing...

 

[lleahdoll]

And I thought Outland sends their package to Ottawa?? Maybe I'm mistaken but I believe that's what it said on the guide?

 

[lleahdoll]

Here we go:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/offices/missions/new-york.asp
New York handles cases from Bermuda

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/offices/canada/ottawa.asp
Ottawa handles inland Canada and US

 

[Kysorb]

ARGHHHH We were in Canada and we forgot to get my husbands photos done. We are having an awful time finding someone in the U.S. that can do them the proper size.....any suggestions

Thanks

Make sure you go to a photo studio that can edit the photo with a computer using photo shop. Then they just need to get the size of your head right and then crop it to the specification....

Wal-mart need not apply.

 

[kcorbin]

Yay! Good luck!!!

They don't have to stamp your passport. The second time I came over I didn't have mine stamped either. Not a big deal.

How would they even know you hadn't completed the forms? lol Maybe I'll look into paying those soon depending how much I can get done in the next couple weeks!

Yeah I've read that as well. I don't think they'll deny my extension and that would be great cause I would just have to cross the border once I am landing.

Hahahah well I spend time with my husband, take care and play with our cats, and practice my photography. I don't do much but that's just the type of person I am. Although I am going a liiiittle stir crazy.

I've been gone a day and I've missed a lot of action on this thread! =))

I'm anxious of what to do during all my FREE time while waiting for the PR. Not that I'm complaining that much.

Gosh, my flight is in 2 nights!! <3

 

[kcorbin]

Hi Guys,

Regarding the fees, is this the correct fees to be paid?
Sponsorship application $75
Principal applicant $475
RPRF $490
Total: $1040

Is it really required to pay all this upon submission of the application?

Thanks

It is not required to pay the RPRF prior to submission of your application. But it is recommended to pay the RPRF along with everything else to avoid delaying your application. =)

 

[kcorbin]

I'm in for the thread, I just sent my application in and it was received according to the courier on April 2nd.

With any luck when I get SA it will go quickly through the Beijing office.

I am a Canadian citizen by birth and both my wife and I live in Beijing we have been living together for 3 years and married for 5 months.

I hope to be home for Christmas but to be honest I am worried about reading all these apps with 400 photos and 1000 emails. I didn't have that stuff. I sent 20 photos, 3 letters, the airplane stubs we saved over the years and my bank statements, as well as all the requested documents.

My wife has in the past received visas to accompany me to Canada, the USA, and Mexico in last years and all my family did come to china for our wedding (shown in photos). So hopefully that helps too.

I guess I will see. Since we live in Beijing, I'm not worried about an interview as we could go any day of the week. it would probably be easier to explain our life at and interview anyway.

Don't be too intimidated by the thickness of other applications. Some users have sent just a couple of photos but they got approved. However, it is highly dependent on the factors surrounding your relationship. I'm not sure if China is one of the countries that are prone to marriage fraud, so I cant say.. But at least you and your wife are living together. <3

 

[uskyoot]

Make sure you go to a photo studio that can edit the photo with a computer using photo shop. Then they just need to get the size of your head right and then crop it to the specification....

Wal-mart need not apply.

I called the same UPS store that did my husbands finger prints and they said they can customize the photos...we'll give it a try

 

[kcorbin]

I'd love to join this conversation, as I feel pretty much completely lost. We're getting married in August or September and applying as soon after that as we can. The big question I have is, if we apply inland and my work visa expires before we hear, am I allowed to stay in Canada? I'm from the US.

Hey hey! I'm not really sure about your situation.. I think a senior member should be the one to answer your question.

Why not get married earlier so you can start processing your application as early as possible? For me and my fiance, we originally planned to get married in October but moved it to May to start with the process right away.

I *think* you can stay in Canada after your work visa expires as you are a US citizen.. Maybe you could go to a border and request for a visitor record just to have proof that you have legal status to stay in Canada. Again, I'm not really sure about this.. =\

Have you considered doing outland instead? Since the process is relatively faster for outland applications for US applicants..

 

[kcorbin]

Currently they list the wait time for the New York visa office at 30 months. Everything I've read on inland says half that, at worst. I might be missing something important however.

Straightforward cases from the US are handled by CPC - Ottawa. But if there is a need for an interview because they saw red flags in your case (like maybe they weren't convinced that your relationship is genuine or they suspect that you married out of convenience to get into Canada), that is when they forward the case to the NY and LA offices.

Currently, US outland is still faster given that your application is complete and there are no red flags. Lleahdoll is right, average times we've seen here would be 7-8 months. Others were lucky with 5-6months. =) With inland, you have to be stuck in Canada until you get your PR. Average times for inland would be 1-1.5 years but could stretch to 2 years. I'd still go for outland. =)

 

[kcorbin]

And I thought Outland sends their package to Ottawa?? Maybe I'm mistaken but I believe that's what it said on the guide?

We mail the application package to the Mississauga office then they forward our application to Ottawa. =) remember to right down CPC -Ottawa as the visa office and not NY or LA. I remember I was also confused about that when I first started on this thread.

 

[waitingforfi]

I glad the thread exists,

My Canadian wife and I (U.S. citizen) plan to send in the application next month, we're just waiting for confirmation on her new, higher-paying job so we can list that on the application (just in case).

Aside from living apart, the hardest part of the application so far was waiting for the FBI to send my official background check document. It took about 8 weeks for them to return a one-page letter (which cannot be photocopied, by the way) indicating that I have no record. That said, the folks at the FBI taking phone calls from worried people like me were very nice and helpful.

Does anything else think it's funny that Canada rents space on Australia's e-medical database for medical records? ;D

 

[teamduckie]

You're not late at all! Welcome and congrats on the upcoming marriage
You should def try to get the police checks even before getting married since they take a bit to come in. Well... I guess it depends where your fiance lives.

Hey that's actually a question we have now that we're looking at getting police checks. She lives in South Carolina and their website says processing time is 22 days. Once we receive the police check from FBI is there a certain time that we have to submit it with our application before it expires? I think I read that there was somewhere but just want to clarify.

 

[mirakhorli.f]

Hi,
Thank you verym much for your information. I want to apply in few months. your post was so clear and useful.
I just wanted to know some more detailes.1- in the first stage, the whole package is " sponsorship application forms and documents" in the immigration site which we send to Canada government Mississauga? then they give the AOR letter plus CSQ to us? how long it takes time?
2- the second step, we send the "undertaking application, plus AOR and CSQ to the Government of Québec" right? how long it takes time usually to get AIP with inland quebec?
3-should we send background check with the first pacage to canada governement? when is better to do that also medicals?
4- I have student visa. Can I apply for open work permit while I have still study permit?
Thank you again for your help

Hi, Ive just post this in another threath and i think it might be usefull for the ones preparing for this wild ride.
So, this is an scenario of "what to expect" for Quebec INLAND applicants.


So for Quebec this are the steps.
1. Send your hole package to Mississauga and wait for AOR (Acknowledge of Receipt)
2. Mississauga will send you the AOR together with/or soon after, a letter stating that since you are in Quebec, you will be needing to go to MICC (Ministere de l'Immigration et des Communautes Culturelles) This is the letter that you need to send to Quebec with your package as soon as possible. *If you dont get the csq petition letter, call cic!
3. Send package to Quebec containning all requering documents.
4. Quebec will or will not approuve your CSQ in an average of two months. They will send CSQ by snail mail. They send two copies: One for you (Keep it in a safe place as this will be need to do Quebec gouvernement related stuff ie. health inssurance). The other one says Immigration on the bottom, you can send it back to CIC Mississauga next to a letter containing your UCI and File number. Some people say that Quebec communicates with CIC internally so no need to send this...but i sent it anyway, just to follow the rules.
5. If everything is OK with your file. CIC will send you an AIP letter (approuval in principle) with this letter plus your csq, you can go RAMQ (Quebec health inssurance) and request coverage. After receiving AIP you are also allow to present an application for Open Work Permit. Which will allow you to work while you wait for total PR.
6. In the AIP letter you might be also require to do medicals, fingerprints, background check, in case you havent yet.
*Some people are called for an interview before receiving AIP, in this case your file will move to a local office. This kind of interview normally means that they doubt of your relationship, so be prepare for all kinds of questions and have proofs to fight back.
7. Wait and you might get DM (decision made) process is finish and you just have to wait to "land". For that, your file will be transfer to a local office. Transfer after DM is totally normal.
8. Landing interview is a regular interview that is being held for you to receive your COPR. Is a non-stressful interview that last an average of 15min...and is the last step of PR. (besides waiting for your card on the mail)


There you go, hope this have help you understand the steps for quebec processing. Let me know if you need more help.

Good luck and God bless