angelbrat said:
If any of you remember that lady that posted recently, about her marriage that turned out to be a sham, this new law would have been perfect for her.
Actually, what struck me the most in that lady's story was that the relationship lasted insanely long - some 3+ years if I remember correctly? - and all the while her partner was a picture of love and loyalty.
There's the problem with this system right away - people can still keep lying for a required amount of time, but those-who-would-be-fraudulent can also very easily find a way to stall with the application until after the 2-year mark and avoid scanning just like that.
However, the biggest issue I'm having with this are the consequences it will have on the evaluation process. VOs will suddenly be given this magic eraser that could fix every and any mistake in the initial assessment, which is in theory supposed to make the process less rigorous, faster and more efficient... and that's fine, but from the phrasing of the proposition it seems not everyone will be flagged as a possible MOC. Three ways I think this can go: 1) VOs flag 'fishy' couples and scan the rest just as rigorously as now, effectively rewarding people for looking like fraudsters with speedy residence. Oops? 2) VOs decide to play it safe and just flag everyone, thus putting unreasonable demand on the follow-up process and investigation, jamming the system on that side. Oops? 3) VOs decide to loosen up on everyone but flag only those who seem suspicious, which in turn encourages a flood of MOCs counting on the fact they won't be caught and flagged, because not everyone will be and with the whole process shortened it's well worth the gamble. Major oops?
I'm also not enjoying how vague this "automatic lifting of the condition" is. So what, if for 2 years no one comes ringing on your door telling you to go home, you're good? Or would your partner need to report you? Or would you have to check in with your probation immigration officer every month to show everything is OK?
What happens to those who are issued a removal order, but presumably won't be stripped of their right to appeal - hanging in limbo as semi-residents for years, or keeping their PR rights until the appeal is done (a problem, obviously), something else?
I don't think genuine couples will be hurt by this in any way - unless the "automatic lifting of condition" ends up being not so automatic - but I also don't believe it will do much for the MOC issue.