Changing from inland to outland?

[CherPare]

Hi everyone,

So, my husband is from Hong Kong and we are currently painfully waiting for his application to be looked at (Although, processing times haven't budged at all and they're working on apps from over a year ago ugh). And now I'm starting to think that they won't even get everything done in time.

He applied for a post-grad work permit (3 years) so we didn't worry about his status while the application was being processed, but now it's looking less and less likely that it'll be all done in time.

Anyways, my question is; has anyone ever withdrawn their application before and instead did it outland? Ours was received in December 2013 so they haven't even begun to look at it yet, I'm guessing. And status still just says 'received'.

Would it look suspicious? Is it a bad idea?

Anybody do this or have heard anything about doing this? Don't wanna screw anything up!!

Thanks in advance.

 

[CherPare]

Anyone?

 

[CutiePie92]

i don't think it's a bad idea. i remember you from another thread and i told you you should apply outland instead, Beijing is a very fast VO however, if an interview is required, your husband will need to travel back to China. also i'm not sure if a work permit is valid with an outland application? seniors may have a better idea about this

but other than that, you'd be better off applying outland for sure.

let's wait for others to chime in, hopefully you'll get a better picture.

 

[CherPare]

Thanks for replying, Cutiepie!!!

Yes! I remember this. I really really wish we had in the first place. I feel like we've wasted so much time already. (At least he can work!)

That was my biggest concern, wondering if his OWP would be no longer valid.

And of course, I wouldn't want it to look suspicious or bad that we pulled our app then sent it away again a couple weeks later. I read that they may keep this information on file and be more scrutinizing?

There is a VO in Hong Kong as well, but I've heard they have a high refusal rate? (They also process from some Southern Chinese provinces, so I'm not sure if there is a bit of discrimination...? :S)

Ah, I just don't know what's best!

Thanks again, CutiePie.

 

[CutiePie92]

you're welcome

i'm actually fairly certain OWP + outland application don't work together ..

as for the VO.. i'm not sure. according to the website, HK processes apps from Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR and Taiwan, whereas Beijing processes for China (People’s Republic of), Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of), Mongolia. i guess you know better than me where you belong eitherway, HK with 7 months and Beijing with 9 months, it's still less than an inland app. but as i told you, i think your husband's OWP won't be valid anymore. i'm not sure, let's see what others have to say about it.

also, i don't think they'll scrutinize you more becuase of the inland app it'll be fine really

 

[CherPare]

you're welcome

i'm actually fairly certain OWP + outland application don't work together ..

as for the VO.. i'm not sure. according to the website, HK processes apps from Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR and Taiwan, whereas Beijing processes for China (People's Republic of), Korea (Democratic People's Republic of), Mongolia. i guess you know better than me where you belong eitherway, HK with 7 months and Beijing with 9 months, it's still less than an inland app. but as i told you, i think your husband's OWP won't be valid anymore. i'm not sure, let's see what others have to say about it.

also, i don't think they'll scrutinize you more becuase of the inland app it'll be fine really

Ah, crap. That's a huge deal breaker for us. I hope he can keep it!

Ahhh, I see. Luckily, he is a Hong Kong citizen, I'll take the 7 months! Haha!

Oh that's good news! I was worried about that, I'll have to talk to him and see if he's willing to lie around for 7 months. :S Although, I'm thinking that'll be a big no! XD

Thanks a lot, let's see how it goes!

 

[rhcohen2014]

for most outland applicants, the OWP is a moot point because most outland applicants LAND as a pr before the inland OWP is even started processing. Really, the only reason to consider inland at this point is when the outland visa office takes 2+ years to process. The cic website is not accurate at all when it comes to TODAY'S processing. Ottawa is listed at 15 months, yet today's US applicants are landing in 3-6 months. There are large discrepancies for most of the stats listed online. To get an understanding of what the current "trend" is, use this forum and find the visa specifiic thread to see what's happening with applications.

I am not sure what is recommended in regards to withdawing an inland app and starting over as outland. I would think it makes sense though some advise against it. if the package was sent back, then i would think that's taken as a sign to definitely apply outland instead.

deciding inland because of an OWP application does not make ANY sense for most applicants.

 

[ortom]

If your husband has a pgwp, he can keep that and still send the application outland. The pgwp and the sponsorship are not tied together. However outland if he wanted to apply for a work permit with the sponsorship, he can't, which he doesn't need anyways at this time because he has a pgwp.

 

[CherPare]

Ah, I see. That makes sense, I think.

That's the thing, rhcohen, he already has a post-graduate work permit, I just wasn't sure if they'd scrap it. :/

I agree! We definitely would've done it outland at the start, but at this point in time his work permit is important as I am pregnant and a student. I make just enough money to support only myself. So if his VO in HK happened to take longer than my pregnancy, we'd be super screwed. If he can't keep working, that is. ;___;

Oh, otrom! That is exactly what I was hoping for. I'll maybe look into it more but it doesn't seem like anyone else has ever done this before that I can find!

 

[rhcohen2014]

what makes it even trickier is there is no way to predict how fast or slow a visa office will be at any particular time of the year. Ottawa is a great example of this. Somehow the process has sped up to 3-5 months for current applicants, yet some 2013 applicants are still waiting. So even though the visa office is quick today, it doesn't mean it will be that way tomorrow. it's tough! wishing you luck!

 

[canuck_in_uk]

As said above, his PGWP has absolutely NOTHING to do with the PR app, either inland or outland. The PGWP won't be affected in any way if you withdraw the inland app and submit an outland app.