Family Sponsorship & extending my work permit

[Kayaker]

The OWP is conditional on you getting stage 1 approval.

So, if your IEC expires after you get Stage 1 approval, OWP begins immediately after your IEC expires.

 

[kiwi123]

surely though if the OWP was sent with the PR app, once the IEC expires, the OWP should then begin, seeing as its a different type of work permit? that's what the call centre said numerous times

this whole thing is a mess lol

The OWP makes no difference. Even if you had sent it you would not get implied status due to IEC being extendable work permits. If you continue to work it will be completely at your risk and if you are found to be working then you have major issues, your choice. Once you get through stage 1, they will approve your OWP and you are good to go. I think that now you have sent an OWP separately from your PR it will be denied and you will have to send another after stage 1.

 

[clarence80]

so im just wondering about his this was posted in another thread and linked here:

If a spouse or common-law partner is sponsored from inside Canada, they can apply for an open work permit by completing an Application to Change Conditions or Extend Your Stay in Canada as a Worker (IMM 5553). This application must be sent before their status expires in the same envelope as the sponsorship application. This will allow them to keep a legal status in Canada up until the time their application for permanent residence is *approved in principle.

If their status expires before the application for permanent residence is approved in principle, they will still have a legal status in Canada. This is called implied status. Please note that the open work permit will only be issued once the application for permanent residence is approved in principle. Visit our Web site to see how long it may take to get approval in principle.

If the sponsored person did not send an open work permit application with their permanent residence application, they can send it, by mail, at any time while it is in process by writing Open Work Permit - Application for permanent residence in Canada - Spouse or common-law partner on the top of the form. They should also include proof that the permanent residence application was submitted. The open work permit application cannot be submitted online.

Please note that they must keep a legal status in Canada during the entire process of their application for permanent residence.

*Approved in principle means that the person being sponsored received a letter from the Case Processing Centre or local office stating that they meet the eligibility (minimum) requirements to apply for permanent resident status but that a final decision will not be made until all requirements for becoming a permanent resident have been met. These requirements include medical, security and background checks for the applicant and, if applicable, their family members.

does approved in principal mean first stage approval, or the AOR?

 

[kiwi123]

It means AIP. My last post about your OWP being denied may have been incorrect if you labelled it as they have stated.

 

[zardoz]

See http://britishexpats.com/forum/immigration-citizenship-canada-33/land-pr-process-help-815837/

 

[clarence80]

ive read a lot of threads today and what im getting is that the OWP app that is sent with the PR app can only give you implied status if you already have a visa/work permit it is applicable to, and the IEC is not one of those?

James thinks, and what 3 call centre reps have told me, is that if you send the OWP app with the PR app, you automatically get implied status as soon as your IEC permit expires, because it is a completely different work permit to the IEC and so is not an extension of it

im not sure I want to take that chance to be honest, I didn't even send the OWP with the PR, I sent it 2 months later. I was advised by the call centre to wait and see if it is accepted in January, but I think im best to withdraw the inland app and go outland.

if the London processing times are 6 months for straight forward cases, which mine is, then I might only be out of work for 2 months or so

Anyway, thanks everyone for all the input, its been insightful

 

[SchnookoLoly]

James has been told many times that what he's doing is illegal. Yes you get implied status, but you get it as a visitor, NOT as a worker.

IEC can't be extended, you seem to get that. However you then said that the OWP is a different work permit, so you aren't applying for extension. What you're not putting together is that Implied Status, when referring to work visas, *IS* an extension of your existing work permit meant to bridge you until you get your new work permit. So you are basically saying "I would like to keep working under the conditions of my previous work permit, that is, my IEC visa, until my new work permit, that is, my OWP, is approved." Implied Status *IS* the extension. However, IEC cannot be extended, as you know, and therefore implied status cannot possibly apply.

If you were on a TWP and then applied for an OWP, then yes, you could work under implied status because it's possible to extend a TWP. You aren't issued a new TWP, you simply keep working under the conditions of your existing TWP until your OWP is granted.

See the difference?

This wiki article is worth reading - http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Implied_Status_after_an_IEC_Work_Permit_ends

So is this post - http://britishexpats.com/forum/immigration-citizenship-canada-33/implied-status-iec-815262/#post10993342

As for timings, there is a spreadsheet linked in my signature which shows current processing time for outland applications. It's generally up to 7 months from applying to getting PR in hand, which is about 1/3 the time of inland applications, so yes, I would suggest withdrawing and reapplying outland.

Hope that helped.

 

[clarence80]

James has been told many times that what he's doing is illegal. Yes you get implied status, but you get it as a visitor, NOT as a worker.

IEC can't be extended, you seem to get that. However you then said that the OWP is a different work permit, so you aren't applying for extension. What you're not putting together is that Implied Status, when referring to work visas, *IS* an extension of your existing work permit meant to bridge you until you get your new work permit. So you are basically saying "I would like to keep working under the conditions of my previous work permit, that is, my IEC visa, until my new work permit, that is, my OWP, is approved." Implied Status *IS* the extension. However, IEC cannot be extended, as you know, and therefore implied status cannot possibly apply.

If you were on a TWP and then applied for an OWP, then yes, you could work under implied status because it's possible to extend a TWP. You aren't issued a new TWP, you simply keep working under the conditions of your existing TWP until your OWP is granted.

See the difference?

This wiki article is worth reading - http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Implied_Status_after_an_IEC_Work_Permit_ends

So is this post - http://britishexpats.com/forum/immigration-citizenship-canada-33/implied-status-iec-815262/#post10993342

As for timings, there is a spreadsheet linked in my signature which shows current processing time for outland applications. It's generally up to 7 months from applying to getting PR in hand, which is about 1/3 the time of inland applications, so yes, I would suggest withdrawing and reapplying outland.

Hope that helped.

hey thanks for the reply, thats really helpful.

so basicslly, i cant actually qualify for an OWP until first stage approval? i wouldnt mind staying with the inland application if i knew i would get first stage approval before i applied for the outland and got the PR alot sooner. Its all about money unfortunately, i cant really afford to be out of work for long

 

[Kayaker]

If it's about the money and being able to work is important to you - in your shoes I'd withdraw and do an outland application.

Processing times for stage 1 of Inland applications have almost doubled in the past few months (or year). I'd be afraid of what would happen in the next few months - it is perfectly conceivable that it might go up even more. So far no one is seeing anything that indicates that waiting times are going to get shorter, whereas with Outland applications, London is one of the quickest offices. Unless I hear that CIC is doubling or tripling the number of staff handling Inland applications, or that CIC has made a commitment to cut down on the wait time for stage 1 approval to be under 6 months, I would not wait and hope for a miracle. Of course, if money is not an issue, and I don't mind not being able to work for a while, I'd probably stick with the Inland application and just take it easy! I know getting those police certificates are a big hassle!!!

Just my two cents.

 

[SchnookoLoly]

I agree with Kayaker, withdraw and apply outland.

Right now, for Inland, Stage 1 is taking 13 months, and it's only going up. Once you get SA then you can apply for an OWP, and the OWP takes a few weeks to come through as well. So you're looking at not being able to work for a total of 15-16 months.

Even with London's slowdowns recently, they are still processing applications in an average of 7 months... even if it slows a bit and takes 9 months, that's about 30% faster than if you left your application as inland. Not to mention that applications filed more recently have been kept in Mississauga or Ottawa, and those applications are being processed in an average of about 4 months. Which is exceptionally fast.

So my advice is to withdraw your application and re-file as outland, and you should be working again as a full PR by the spring.

Good luck.

 

[kiwi123]

I agree with Kayaker, withdraw and apply outland.

Right now, for Inland, Stage 1 is taking 13 months, and it's only going up. Once you get SA then you can apply for an OWP, and the OWP takes a few weeks to come through as well. So you're looking at not being able to work for a total of 15-16 months.

Even with London's slowdowns recently, they are still processing applications in an average of 7 months... even if it slows a bit and takes 9 months, that's about 30% faster than if you left your application as inland. Not to mention that applications filed more recently have been kept in Mississauga or Ottawa, and those applications are being processed in an average of about 4 months. Which is exceptionally fast.

So my advice is to withdraw your application and re-file as outland, and you should be working again as a full PR by the spring.

Good luck.

I agree that withdrawing your application makes the most sense, but just so you know all the facts. You may not get your physical application back for quite a few months, so take that into account when you make your decision. You will have to collect all evidence again unless you took a copy.

 

[clarence80]

just a quick update on this. i didnt withdraw my inland app. I got the OWP in January through the pilot, so it looks like they accepted my OWP application even though I sent it months after

thanks for everyones help though!