Citizenship test: Collective action required, or expect endless delays, years. Example of the effective lobbyng of people awaiting spousal sponsorship

[usefuluser]

I emailed my local MP about the situation of my application.

Its the usual answer from immigration that tests are not happening and be patient.

But one positive side I see is MP's assistant was telling me that he will discuss about this with the MP , so she could present it in the parliament.

I don't know whats the minimum requirement for a problem to be discussed in parliament.

But I would request all to send an email to their MPs, it only takes few mins.

Thanks

 

[AshesNdust]

No new laws!
citizenship test and live oath are departmental regulation , Easy to change, no parliament needed. Just immigration canada internal process change.

Suspend the requirement for test until the department could actually administer the test and cancel live oath, simply mail in a solemn declaration!

1 month and the more than half million citizenship backlog could be gone!

Where there's a will there's a way !!!!!

write to your MP

They might regulate them, but they don’t create them. The Citizen Act of 1977 clearly states that a person must answer questions to demonstrate their knowledge of Canada. As of right now, they have decided a written or oral test is required. Unless that act is change we have to do a test. The fast way to get around this is to skip right to the oral test.

 

[bourney0]

Below is template that was posted before:

First, make sure you find your local MP on the following site, depending on your electoral region:

https://www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en

Dear [insert MP name here],

Hoping this letter finds you well. I am a Permenant Resident of Canada, residing in the borough of [xx]. I have submitted an application for Canadian Citizenship this past [insert month here] and am currently waiting on any news.

I am only one person of countless other individuals who have applied for citizenship and have not had any news since January 2020. Of course, we all understand the detrimental effect COVID-19 has caused in all aspects of life. In no way would we want our government workers to be in harm’s way because of the virus. We do, however, believe that we have at least the right to know what to expect for our application and to obtain more information. IRCC’s website has so far failed to provide any useful information for applicants other than “We are accepting new applications” and “all citizenship in-person events are cancelled”.

I am sure that IRCC agents have been overwhelmed with calls from anxious applicants. To that end, might it not be possible for IRCC to release a statement with the following information:

- Describing (preferably in numbers and figures) the size and amount of backlog currently facing citizenship applications.

- Estimating a timeline for AORs.

- Detailing the procedure they are following to process applications in the current circumstances.

- Giving any foreseeable plan of resuming citizenship tests and interviews, similar to what was done for oath ceremonies.

I think that receiving some concrete information will bring peace of mind for applicants, enhancing trust and transparency between them and the government.

Thank you very much for your time,

Some minor problems with the above template: the word "Permanent" is misspelled in the above template. My spellchecker also flags "cancelled" and recommends only one "l." The first iteration of the word "have" that occurs twice in the first sentence of the second paragraph should be replaced with "has" to be grammatically correct.

These are relatively minor problems but I feel that we should do our absolute best to make a good impression. For those interested in a great grammar and spelling plugin for Chrome check out Grammerly.

Here is a corrected template:


Dear [insert MP name here],

Hoping this letter finds you well. I am a Permanent Resident of Canada, residing in the borough of [xx]. I have submitted an application for Canadian Citizenship this past [insert month here] and am currently waiting on any news.

I am only one person of countless other individuals who has applied for citizenship and have not had any news since January 2020. Of course, we all understand the detrimental effect COVID-19 has caused in all aspects of life. In no way would we want our government workers to be in harm’s way because of the virus. We do, however, believe that we have at least the right to know what to expect for our application and to obtain more information. IRCC’s website has so far failed to provide any useful information for applicants other than “We are accepting new applications” and “all citizenship in-person events are canceled”.

I am sure that IRCC agents have been overwhelmed with calls from anxious applicants. To that end, might it not be possible for IRCC to release a statement with the following information:

- Describing (preferably in numbers and figures) the size and amount of backlog currently facing citizenship applications.

- Estimating a timeline for AORs.

- Detailing the procedure they are following to process applications in the current circumstances.

- Giving any foreseeable plan of resuming citizenship tests and interviews, similar to what was done for oath ceremonies.

I think that receiving some concrete information will bring peace of mind for applicants, enhancing trust and transparency between them and the government.

Thank you very much for your time,

 

[Parnian1988]

Emailed two MPs with the aforementioned template and zero response... how depressing.

 

[aaa1892ca]

Emailed two MPs with the aforementioned template and zero response... how depressing.

Your situation is far better... You know what my MP wrote ???
He copy past the same message displayed on cic website "due to covid we ........ Until further notice"
Imagine this rudeness !!!!
If I am writing to you, means I already have been to cic ....
No reply is even better, agree ???

 

[piotrqc]

I believe at this stage the strategy needs to shift from awareness of delays to calling out mismanagement in this whole process. We should all reach out to the media (CBC, Toronto Star) immigration reporters to research and write articles with the following themes as these are very relevant questions which are all inter-related:

1). How does lack of capability from IRCC connect with bringing record number of PRs in a pandemic?
2). Why has IRCC and the minister after several months unable to communicate a basic plan?
3). How many citizens grants are projected for the full year 2020 and how it compares to the previous year?
4). Why are resources from new PR grants not focused towards citizenship to reduce back log in the short-term?
5). What happened with the contract that was given to Accenture and Deloitte to support IRCC with dealing with COVID impact and streamlining processes. Likely millions of taxpayer funds have been spent on these contracts. What is the result of this spend after several months? Where is the accountability?
6). Why are basic actions such as issuing AORs do not follow a proper regular pattern?
7). The pandemic is not going anywhere, why has IRCC not implemented changes in policies and a plan at this stage?
8). Why are new PRs being prioritized vs those waiting for citizenship and already contributing and in Canada?
9). Is this level of service acceptable when many individuals are financial struggling and even in this environment are paying around $1600 average for a family application?
10). If leave code 699 and lack of resourcing hampering service offerings why isn't this disclosed to the public?
The key theme in all of this is that IRCC has failed in its basic mandate and responsibility in its citizenship business line. I do hope that some reporter actually writes a well thought out article and addresses they key themes rather than just touching one a single aspect superficially.

There is a CBC reporter who has proven to us in the past that she can write very effective articles ... She has written on the subject of high citizenship application fees, spousal sponsors (She wrote on this subject several times, and I remain convinced that she was one of the main catalysts for the victory of their cause, and the resumption of the processing of their request, as well as the recent relaxation of entry conditions for sponsored foreign spouses) ... And finally, she had written an interesting article on the subject that interests us.

Here are his coordinates, do not hesitate ... Having said that, I would particularly encourage people who perfectly handle the language of Shakespeare ... I use google translate to interact here. I prefer to leave the field open to true English speakers so as not to make mistakes.

Here are the journalist's contact details:
Kathleen Harris from CBC news
kathleen.harris@cbc.ca

Thank you.

** Edit / Note ** I just saw our friend @hotshot45890 deleted his post while I was writing my reply ... I don't understand that, but glad I was able to 'quote' it before. Very relevant text, really.

 

[hotshot45890]

There is a CBC reporter who has proven to us in the past that she can write very effective articles ... She has written on the subject of high citizenship application fees, spousal sponsors (She wrote on this subject several times, and I remain convinced that she was one of the main catalysts for the victory of their cause, and the resumption of the processing of their request, as well as the recent relaxation of entry conditions for sponsored foreign spouses) ... And finally, she had written an interesting article on the subject that interests us.

Here are his coordinates, do not hesitate ... Having said that, I would particularly encourage people who perfectly handle the language of Shakespeare ... I use google translate to interact here. I prefer to leave the field open to true English speakers so as not to make mistakes.

Here are the journalist's contact details:
Kathleen Harris from CBC news
kathleen.harris@cbc.ca

Thank you.

** Edit / Note ** I just saw our friend @hotshot45890 deleted his post while I was writing my reply ... I don't understand that, but glad I was able to 'quote' it before. Very relevant text, really.

Was editing and it got locked for some reason with a note that moderator needs to review it. Deleted to repost but great you were able to get the text so no need for me to post again.

 

[Flandernss]

An argument I see nobody making but I trully believe in: this COVID19 crisis inflicts the most pain on 1. people with vulnerable health, 2. but also people with vulnerable economics. Being an immigrant is hard(er) in itself, and we are a vulnerable sector by definition.

I can't tell you how much this interruption in my citizenship claim is harming me in particular, a situation not acknowledged in the usual Urgent Processing requirements. And as I continue being unable to make decisions about my life, everything I worked for decades is crumbling around me.

 

[legenda]

Anyone heard any updates on the situation/ potential resumption?

 

[piotrqc]

Anyone heard any updates on the situation/ potential resumption?

No ... But one thing is certain: We will not hear anything if we remain in the passivity ... The wait will be several years, maybe 10 or more (with the backlog).

And can be disaster scenario, if a majority conservative government wins, and decides to cancel all our candidacies + implementation of more difficult conditions retroactively. (So envellopes sent back, and we will be a candidate again when we meet the new conditions) ... No science fiction at all, similar cases have happened in the past for some pr categories...

 

[skydiving]

Can we do a peaceful protest? Everyone wearing masks while protesting?lol

 

[EUK]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/atlantic-canada-immigration-slowdown-pandemic-covid-1.5768107?fbclid=IwAR3kiRCr32O2lONBTMfRQb9X9IiCAFZYDcMOgVm8O1TDboe9Gh_sXfRmwpY

 

[zumbagirl]

They might regulate them, but they don’t create them. The Citizen Act of 1977 clearly states that a person must answer questions to demonstrate their knowledge of Canada. As of right now, they have decided a written or oral test is required. Unless that act is change we have to do a test. The fast way to get around this is to skip right to the oral test.

not true,
the test could simply be answering a skill testing question completing your oat affidative at home and mail it in.
this is an entirely solvable problem there is just simply no will to do it!

 

[ott-613]

Talking to some people, they really don’t believe citizenship is a priority now, i do understand we are in global pandemic and 7 months of crisis with no clarity . from my point of view, no one want to be in limbo either. A plan from IRCC regarding our tests is needed ,, it really can be enough.

 

[AshesNdust]

not true,
the test could simply be answering a skill testing question completing your oat affidative at home and mail it in.
this is an entirely solvable problem there is just simply no will to do it!

No it can’t be mailed in, there’s zero way to ensure that cheating did not occur and it would require more work to have a person grade the test.

As I stated before, the fast way is to have the test taken orally and if a person passes the oath can be administered right then and there. It is already allowed by law, setup to be given, and it will not slow the process down.

I appreciate that you are trying to find solutions for this mess, but they have to be ones that operate within the current laws and pre-existing workflow structure. If they aren’t, then it’s just going to take even more time to get the tests up and running.