Australian or NZ applicants - share timeline here !!

[yannie]

I sent the paperwork to Singapore a while back asking my friend to help applying for the police clearance, but they didn't process because they needed a letter from CIC stating that they need the police check - so they emailed me my case no. and told me to write them again once I have that. What I did was I emailed them the AOR from Sydney visa once I got that, and they emailed me back saying they would send it straight to Sydney visa office (takes 2-3 weeks time) and that I need to check with them after 3 weeks. I guess I need to email them soon.


Thanks Minniejungle.How about the COC Appeal Application Form that was stated on CIC website which should accompany the COC request letter, did they asked you about this?Do you have any clue what is this and what is it for?

 

[plee]

Hi Plee,

I think you're right that because you are visa exempt, sydney will request copies rather than your passport. That was my understanding.

Ah, so we still need to submit copies... darn. I wish I'd submitted those in my app.

 

[Peaches14]

The very best of luck to you. I brought my Australian boyfriend over from Paramatta for an extended visit in January of this year. We married in February and sent in an inland application March 5 and they received March 12. They began processing June 29. The inland sponsorship applications have sped up dramatically over the last few weeks and I believe they will be working on March 5 applications this week. You are right when you say the timelines are so different. Although I have seen many outland applications go smoothly and quickly I have also seen the opposite to that.

I bet you miss Australia. I went down there at Christmas and didn't want to come back. My husband misses it very much.

 

[zafarsaeed]

I applied in Australia in February 2011, interviewed in December was asked for a medical in september, submitted in October, was told to leave in jan or maximally before 15th march. Security clearance took longer from back home and I got it stamped in June 2012. Now I m in canada.

 

[miniejungle]

Thanks Minniejungle.How about the COC Appeal Application Form that was stated on CIC website which should accompany the COC request letter, did they asked you about this?Do you have any clue what is this and what is it for?

not sure what the COC appeal application form is for... but i just got a reply from Singapore Police Authority today that my clearance is done and will be sent out soon. they ask me to email back next week to check. I guess having the AOR email from CIC is enough proof for them to process...

 

[bagelbagel81]

Hey guys,

Just an update that I received Sponsor approval on the 25th of September by email. I never received the email though - I only knew after calling CIC directly and quoting my (Applicant's) details! I am 100% sure I put the correct email addresses on there, so maybe it was just a CIC typo. The CIC agent online said my file hadn't been transferred yet- so maybe they wait for a big pile of applications to send all at once or something? Either way I have emailed Sydney VO to update my details, and need to send some other documents (I filled out the Additional Family form incorrectly, and wanted to add more evidence of proof of intent to permanently reside in Canada).

I tried logging onto Ecas, and was able to get through using the UCI the CIC agent on the phone gave me and my (Applicant's) details.
My status just lists my name and address, and then says "Application received 11th July, and Medicals have been received" - so I am happy that I am in the system at least!

Aside from that I am really happy to be dealing with the Sydney VO as so far they have been pretty prompt on their replies, which beats being on hold to CIC Mississauga at all hours of the night and paying international phone call rates!

Good- luck everyone, and will let you know how I progress!

 

[rachiy]

Hey Bagel,

I also had to send an email to Sydney as I had one question which I wanted to clarify. They replied a few hours ago (I sent email last week) and said that my file was still in transit and my details would be added to my file when it arrived. So I think they probably do wait for a pile before they send them off (hopefully not too long though!)

 

[bagelbagel81]

Hey Bagel,

I also had to send an email to Sydney as I had one question which I wanted to clarify. They replied a few hours ago (I sent email last week) and said that my file was still in transit and my details would be added to my file when it arrived. So I think they probably do wait for a pile before they send them off (hopefully not too long though!)

Oh that's good to know! Just from hearing from other OUTLAND applicants that their file was transferred on the same day of approval. Obviously the Sydney VO is a different story. Puts my mind at ease knowing others are in the same boat!

I may wait for the VO to respond, but if they don't before the end of the week, I might just end up sending all the hard copies anyway along with a cover sheet of our deets, etc and just hope they match it up once it finally arrives.

How much of a weight is off your back knowing you don't have to wait any longer for Stage 1 though! It's crazy how much I realise now that I was actually stressing, and after all the intense waiting I almost don't know what to do with myself now!

Here's hoping stage 2 is processed quickly for everyone once the apps are finally transferred!

 

[Canstralian/Oznadian]

Hey Bagel,

I also had to send an email to Sydney as I had one question which I wanted to clarify. They replied a few hours ago (I sent email last week) and said that my file was still in transit and my details would be added to my file when it arrived. So I think they probably do wait for a pile before they send them off (hopefully not too long though!)



[/quote

We were under the impression that they wouldn't respond to phone calls or emails if your application was within their timeline. Good to know, as we have a question to ask as well.
It's our second anniversary today, I was hoping we could go on a little trip and have my husband land when we returned. Oh well, it will happen soon I hope.

 

[rachiy]

Oh that's good to know! Just from hearing from other OUTLAND applicants that their file was transferred on the same day of approval. Obviously the Sydney VO is a different story. Puts my mind at ease knowing others are in the same boat!

My approval letter also said that my file was transferred already, but I really doubt they send them one at a time as they are approved for stage one. In reality they probably wait until there are 10/50/100 applications going to the same VO or send them at the end of the month. Plus for VO's that are on the other side of the world it is going to take a little while to get there.

Anyway, yes such a relief to get past stage one. We (my sponsor) had a couple of issues (tax debt, minor criminal record etc) so were sweating it out. Now that we know he was approved we figure stage two should be much easier for our situation. My letter also coincided with getting a huge assignment finished and it was such a strange feeling to have evenings free and being able to relax without stressing about school or stage one. I didn't realise how much it was weighing me down!

 

[rachiy]

We were under the impression that they wouldn't respond to phone calls or emails if your application was within their timeline. Good to know, as we have a question to ask as well.
It's our second anniversary today, I was hoping we could go on a little trip and have my husband land when we returned. Oh well, it will happen soon I hope.

Congratulations on your anniversary!
I think it depends on your question and the VO, but I have heard that Sydney is really good for responding regardless of what you ask so maybe just give it a go anyway.
I know Sydney says 8 months, but I haven't heard of anyone taking anywhere near that long and if what you need to tell them is material to your case then they might deny you before you even get the chance to let them know something important. If you are asking when your file will be processed then they might ignore you.

 

[dawndarkharp]

Oh that's good to know! Just from hearing from other OUTLAND applicants that their file was transferred on the same day of approval. Obviously the Sydney VO is a different story. Puts my mind at ease knowing others are in the same boat!

I may wait for the VO to respond, but if they don't before the end of the week, I might just end up sending all the hard copies anyway along with a cover sheet of our deets, etc and just hope they match it up once it finally arrives.

How much of a weight is off your back knowing you don't have to wait any longer for Stage 1 though! It's crazy how much I realise now that I was actually stressing, and after all the intense waiting I almost don't know what to do with myself now!

Here's hoping stage 2 is processed quickly for everyone once the apps are finally transferred!

Yayyy!!! I knew yours had to have been approved around the same time as mine That's great news!!!
Did the Sydney VO reply to you? I send them a case specific email to change our address - because we are both living in Canada but they haven't replied.. Do you think I should send them more evidence of our intent to live in Canada ie. our boarding passes and itinerary showing we are both in Canada?

 

[bagelbagel81]

Hey dawndarkharp!
They haven't responded to me yet, so I just sent my extra stuff today. I guess it couldn't hurt to send extra stuff. If you are in Canada already you probably have a stronger case- I thought mine was pretty weak because I only had a letter from my partner's mom saying we would be staying with her, and a quote for our cat to be flown over. You could also probably put the lease details of where you are currently staying and any records of bank accounts etc.
As for me- I ended up putting in some more evidence such as a few emails between me and my sister discussing permanent living arrangements in Canada, print outs of possible jobs for my partner in Ontario, email correspondence with a recruitment agency guy in Ontario, and a couple of other things such as a screen shot of my partner's Canadian bank account, and one way ticket flight itinerary ( which we still haven't purchased).
So it's nothing full-on, just a few extra bits n pieces - as you probably know it's kind of hard to start organising everything before you even get the VISA (and a record of ours saving still leaves quite a lot to the imagination!)
Let me know if you hear anything from them and I will do the same!

 

[bagelbagel81]

Ok, so as predicted just after I sent my additional information, I got an email from Sydney VO! Haha typical! The email said that my file was now in transit from Mississauga, and that they had my correct email details, so I would have to contact Mississauga if I wanted them to resend the AOR email. (I don't really need it, so wont be doing that).

They also said I could send my additional information right away, and then gave me a file number to quote (I have already sent the documents quoting my details and UCI, without the file number). I figure if they had enough info to pull up my info the first time round, not quoting the file number shouldn't be too much of an issue second time round (oops).

Just so you know they took two days to get back if anyone else is concerned or need to contact them for any reason. They are pretty prompt!!!

Edited to add: the email address i sent my enquiry to was: sydney.immigration@international.gc.ca.

 

[dawndarkharp]

Ok, so as predicted just after I sent my additional information, I got an email from Sydney VO! Haha typical! The email said that my file was now in transit from Mississauga, and that they had my correct email details, so I would have to contact Mississauga if I wanted them to resend the AOR email. (I don't really need it, so wont be doing that).

They also said I could send my additional information right away, and then gave me a file number to quote (I have already sent the documents quoting my details and UCI, without the file number). I figure if they had enough info to pull up my info the first time round, not quoting the file number shouldn't be too much of an issue second time round (oops).

Just so you know they took two days to get back if anyone else is concerned or need to contact them for any reason. They are pretty prompt!!!

Edited to add: the email address i sent my enquiry to was: sydney.immigration @ international.gc.ca.

That's fantastic!!! Wow!!! They are so quick! I will be doing the same shortly then. My spouse is moving the money from his NZ account into his Canadian account, so I will be showing the documents of that. I will also include our itineraries, boarding passes, and some emails if I have any records of us telling our family and friends about our plans. I am not sure what else to include, but maybe one little bit could sway the decision. Thank you for letting me know! Seems as thought they are very on to it. I am looking forward to sending more information seeing as you had got such a prompt and helpful reply!