Few Questions, Visa Photos, First Stage...

[ukmike]

Hi,

I am 95% ready to send off my application (just waiting for my police check to come back) but just have a few questions.

I am in the UK and was wondering where people got their visa photos from as it states they must be on a white background and are not the site dimensions as standard passport photos? I went to places like Click but they do them on grey background - i don't want to do this simple step wrong and be asked to redo them which would slow the whole process down.

Once my sponsorship application is sent off at what point will i be able to visit Canada? The UK processing time is anything from 3-9 months but i would ideally like to visit in July (3-4 months away) for as long as possible. I just don't want to get to Canadian customs and be told i cannot enter.

Thank you!

 

[mitamata]

Yeah, I had trouble getting the photos too. Here, the standard is a blue background and it was hard to find a photographer with a white one. I ended up calling pretty much all photo studios in town (some 10 of them) before I found one that had one. So I guess pick up a phone book and start calling.
And don't let them tell you they can digitally alter the background without anyone knowing. I got that from a few of them and told them they were crazy if they thought I was going to take that risk. The photo can not be digitally altered in any way.

You're allowed to visit, but it's possible you will be stopped by immigration. You will have to convince them that you intend to go back to the UK. Have a return ticket for example, some people bring evidence they own a house back home or letter they're still employed. Though I think most have no issues at the border. Don't forget though, you will have to send your passport to London to get the visa.

 

[ukmike]

Yeah i thought about opening Photoshop up and altering the background but its not worth the risk. Thanks for the advice, i guess i better start calling photographers!

I would be able to get a letter from my employer and a return flight but the problem is i don't know how long they might let me stay? Also I'm guessing i would NEED to come back to the UK to send my passport to London if accepted? Could i book a flight for 3 months in advance, have a letter from my employer stating I have a job and I'm expected back at work in 3 months time and have copies of all my application information? Or is hoping for 3+ months crazy?

One other thing is that my employer is letting me keep my UK job but work from Canada so i don't want to lie or mislead anyone but also want to be able to get into the country to visit and let my application be processed and do the whole thing the right way, any advice?

Thanks!

 

[mitamata]

I would recommend not mentioning you'll be working for the same employer from within Canada. If they ask, don't lie, but there's no need to just come up to them and say it.

I'm not sure about the passport thing. Technically, you could send it and then they would send it back to you in Canada. But personally, I would not want to be stuck in another country without my passport. Sounds to me like a risky thing to do. So I would recommend going back for the visa yourself.

I'm assuming you're a UK citizen? If so, you should be able to get into the country for 6 months without much difficulty. But lets wait if someone with more experience will come by. I've never tried anything of the sort, my input is based on the many posts I've read about this subject on various forums.