How I organized our applcation and a summary of all helpful tips I have learned

[missmini]

I read this post and got really scared. Over 400 pages, really?
So I decided to call CIC and mentiond this post and they said to keep it to minimum. That if everyone sent 400 pages they wouldn't get their job done. So I am happy with my 40 something pages. You should not go crazy with it. All they want are the filled forms with required documents and some pictures and maybe a couple e-mail conversations.

First thing to get information from should be CIC!

i'm sorry but CIC guide is not that helpful at all....their manuals are vague!!!! they will never put something clear black or white because they will always need an escape gate in case u should be approved but u r not or u had no chance but u were approved....u need to read everything many times and also have feedback from other people (forums, professionals, etc) to understand exactly where u r situated; also, all the questions in all the forms r trying to be as general as possible, but u cannot fit everyone in the same group!!!! hence u need to explain each different situation and how can u explain it better than with writing extra pages and providing actual proofs!!! if CIC does not want lots of proofs they will clearly say but from what i know they all the time say: provide any extra evidence which u think it proves the relationship genuine, so here it's our own judgement; also, i read many times that u call once and one officer says one thing and u call again and another says another thing; at the end, u'll just consider the thing which will make u feel good and encourage u, it's ok but the CIC person on the phone is not the officer studying ur file; and each officer is different and each visa office has different way

i know from my own experience for other visas that just providing minimum documentation with everything required at minimum too, will not mean approval at all; I'm not saying that providing hundreds of similar photos or chat logs will automatically give you a visa either; so to everyone preparing the application, if u feel like showing more would help go for it!!! at the end, if an officer is satisfied only with ur answers and looking at one photo they will just not look at the rest; but if they r not satisfied at least the "extra" proofs will be there to help and avoid suspicions, interview etc!!!!! sending more does not mean that they r forced to read it

i also agree with pelipeli, canadianwoman, tink when u sponsor someone from a poor country, with problems, war, etc u need to double-proof ur relationship - there is always the doubt that the applicant will do anything possible to leave that country!! at the end the fact that she sent 400 pages and she is helping so many members on how to organize them it's really something to admire, u don't need to discourage her; and if u'll read other posts u'll see that her application is average size (there were others with 800 pages!!!!!!!!) so really it's all about ur case and how much makes u comfortable

the main point, no matter how much or how little u sent, u don;t just throw it in there; u explain the proofs, u go through the proofs, u explain why u included them, what;s the reason of showing that, etc....and peli did such a nice job with that; i'm sure that any officer will enjoy going through her file, and be impressed of her organizational skills

 

[missmini]

thank you so much for sharing!!!

I am in the process of typing out "how our relationship progressed"....we have all the forms and all the documentation but they are all over the place, I really appreciate you putting this up so now I can follow what you did. It gets so overwhelming sometimes and I don't know where to begin!

good luck with everything!!

that's true, been there!!!! some days i was just so lost, lots of stuff in my mind in the same time!!! it's not easy; just try to do it little by little....what i did: first we made a toc of all the proofs, and then just looking at it i knew how to start typing and what to follow....when i typed, first i made it like a list (very informal, the main points i want to follow, how i wanted it organized overall) then i started to develop each paragraph (section or event more formal and with correct English ) also ask ur sponsor to make a draft too and compare them (by the way it's better if ur sponsor has his/her own essay also); i found this thread after we finished, so u are lucky!! good luck!

 

[pelipeli]

the main point, no matter how much or how little u sent, u don;t just throw it in there; u explain the proofs, u go through the proofs, u explain why u included them, what;s the reason of showing that, etc....and peli did such a nice job with that; i'm sure that any officer will enjoy going through her file, and be impressed of her organizational skills

awwwww missmini, thanks so much for ur kind words, that put a smile to my lips, i needed that especially now that i'm leaving for Canada on Friday and will be leaving my homeland and hubby behind, i'm an emotional mess, its so sad saying goodbye, really...

I sure hope you are right that our VO will enjoy going through our file, if his/her being impressed could help with our application, just for even 0.0000001%, then it would be great! hahaha. ;D

 

[pelipeli]

Have a question. On the guide it says: (imm 008)

4.Place the barcode pages on the top of your application (forms and supporting documents) when you will submit it.

Does this mean on top of the entire package or just on top of the sponsored persons applications.

Also I submitted my entire package in and did not put the barcode pages on top but left them in order in the IMM 008 (pages 1-5) Will they still accept my application. I hope they do not send it back because its out of order.

hmmm, its says on top of "your" application, and this is the guide for the applicant / sponsored person so i guess it means on top of the applicant's application package

i've read several posts where they forgot to put barcode pages on top too and i think their application wasn't sent back..but try to search for more topics regarding this by typing "barcode" in the search box to see more experiences regarding this. =)

 

[pelipeli]

thank you so much for sharing!!!

I am in the process of typing out "how our relationship progressed"....we have all the forms and all the documentation but they are all over the place, I really appreciate you putting this up so now I can follow what you did. It gets so overwhelming sometimes and I don't know where to begin!

good luck with everything!!

you are welcome, i'm glad to be of help. Don't worry, we were like that too at first, luckily i had this forum to guide me through. It does get overwhelming, especially when starting out, u feel like u have so much to do! but in the end you will feel proud and relieved =)

Thanks and Good luck with your app too! ;D

 

[Rusty53]

Hey guys, another useful tip to share:

Ive been reading lots of appeal cases in CanLII website lately ( http://canlii.org/en/index.php ) and its really educational to have an insight as to how VO's study and analyze sponsorship applications and how they decide whether to dismiss or allow an appeal, especially for suspected MOC's.

But warning, it may cause paranoia (lol) as you will see how critical and detail oriented VO's are, it makes me want to check again and again and again our application , to make sure there are no errors or inconsistent details that they might see that I didnt, that might cause us to have an interview request ??? One thing i have read much of, they really read relationship essays thoroughly so make sure you and your spouse's essays do not have inconsistent details!

Try reading some cases if u have spare time guys. Make sure to refine your search with "immigration, genuine, marriage"

I have to commend you. Great work! I am not at the stage of applying for a PR yet but am in the gathering information stage. Can you please elaborate on what you mean by "Relationship Essays"

 

[pelipeli]

I have to commend you. Great work! I am not at the stage of applying for a PR yet but am in the gathering information stage. Can you please elaborate on what you mean by "Relationship Essays"

hi there, thank u relationship essays are those which we write as answer to "provide any additional details to prove your relationship is genuine and continuing". that certain "question" can be found in both sponsor and spouse questionnaire at the last pages. its not mandatory to do it but lots of people here (me included) do it anyways

 

[Baloo]

hi there, thank u relationship essays are those which we write as answer to "provide any additional details to prove your relationship is genuine and continuing". that certain "question" can be found in both sponsor and spouse questionnaire at the last pages. its not mandatory to do it but lots of people here (me included) do it anyways

I would advise all applicants and spouses to write relationship essays.
They are a very good way to show the genuine nature of your relationship.

 

[pelipeli]

I would advise all applicants and spouses to write relationship essays.
They are a very good way to show the genuine nature of your relationship.

agree

 

[figgy]

I am the sponsor for my Australian boyfriend... we have always lived in the same city (London uk, where we met) and then lived together there, then moved to Canada in june 2011. he entered on a 2 year work permit. we live together now.

I realize that the relationship essay should be from his point of view since he is the applicant, however, I am the one doing all the writing and organizing, basically because it's more my forte and also he is working full time and I am unemployed at the moment.....

so, if I also write a relationship letter from my point of view, it will be very similar to his letter, especially the way it is written... is this going to matter?

also.... for the question on the spouse/partner questionnaire it asks if we live together, the answer is yes, i put the date we started living together, but we STILL live together....so the is no end date. what should i write?

 

[pelipeli]

I am the sponsor for my Australian boyfriend... we have always lived in the same city (London uk, where we met) and then lived together there, then moved to Canada in june 2011. he entered on a 2 year work permit. we live together now.

I realize that the relationship essay should be from his point of view since he is the applicant, however, I am the one doing all the writing and organizing, basically because it's more my forte and also he is working full time and I am unemployed at the moment.....

so, if I also write a relationship letter from my point of view, it will be very similar to his letter, especially the way it is written... is this going to matter?

also.... for the question on the spouse/partner questionnaire it asks if we live together, the answer is yes, i put the date we started living together, but we STILL live together....so the is no end date. what should i write?

hi, hmmm many people wld advise that the applicant write his own essay and sponsor writes her own but i undrstand that you were the one who wrote ur bf's essay bec he is busy, i am the sponsor and i ended up doing 98% of our app (lol) but hubby did his 5 page essay...cant u rli sit him down for even an hour to write down his essay? u can write bullet points as guide for him to follow if that would help. but if u rli have to do it, just be natural , dont make it sound different in an effort to conceal that u wrote it, but also try to have a different style when u write urs, like his could be in essay form while yours can be in bullet type form, something like that.

as to ur 2nd q, you can print the form then write "present"

good luck to u and ur app!

 

[pelipeli]

Hi everyone! I(sponsor) arrived in Calgary last Friday (this time for good) . I have paid the fees today at Bank of Montreal using IMM 5401,

the top part (my copy)

and the part I will send to CIC

So tomorrow I'm off to UPS to send the application =)

 

[missmini]

I am the sponsor for my Australian boyfriend... we have always lived in the same city (London uk, where we met) and then lived together there, then moved to Canada in june 2011. he entered on a 2 year work permit. we live together now.

I realize that the relationship essay should be from his point of view since he is the applicant, however, I am the one doing all the writing and organizing, basically because it's more my forte and also he is working full time and I am unemployed at the moment.....

so, if I also write a relationship letter from my point of view, it will be very similar to his letter, especially the way it is written... is this going to matter?

also.... for the question on the spouse/partner questionnaire it asks if we live together, the answer is yes, i put the date we started living together, but we STILL live together....so the is no end date. what should i write?

hey there i had the same issue; ur essay should b from ur point of view, his essay from his; yes i definately know it might take long time but definately let him write it with his own words -even if they r not perfect written or perfect english then u can correct it, format it, put it together etc; at the end it has to be his words, ideas because it is him the applicant, he is the one who could be called for the interview, etc (hope not!) what i suggest take ur time, and leave a little time between writing urs and correctiong his; also, read each others' work after u wrote ur own so u don't get influence - of course u should discuss before abt the ideas in it; all u want is for one to reinforce the other, u don't need anything contradictory there

as peli said, u will have the control, u will explain him what he needs to follow and why he would need to write it; after reading all the manuals and this forum u'll be the one with experience; for us, he wrote maybe 1-2 paragraphs every weekend it was a loooong painful journey but i was patient by the way me (the sponsor) i made one big essay while he made a few smaller essays as answers to the specific questions; whatever extra details which did not fit in those answers were added at the end; we did not want to repeat ourselves; good luck!!

yaaay peli when do u think the package will arrive? we didn't send yet either, it will probably b at the beginning of next week and should take maybe 2-3 days, so yeah counting on end jan, beginning feb ;D good luck!!

 

[pelipeli]

yaaay peli when do u think the package will arrive? we didn't send yet either, it will probably b at the beginning of next week and should take maybe 2-3 days, so yeah counting on end jan, beginning feb ;D good luck!!

Hi missmini! Thanks! I just came back from sending it, it arrives tomorrow! yey! ill be posting pictures =) Good luck to you too!

 

[pelipeli]

Hi everyone! I(sponsor) arrived in Calgary last Friday (this time for good) . I have paid the fees today at Bank of Montreal using IMM 5401,

the top part (my copy)

and the part I will send to CIC

So tomorrow I'm off to UPS to send the application =)

Ok, so I just came back from mailing our application, and of course I took photos, and I will be telling the story! lol

First, I wanted a next day delivery courier service (Canada Post Xpress takes 2 days because I am from Calgary), and I was choosing between UPS and Purolator. I went with Purolator because they have services like Express 9 am(to be received 9am the next day), Express 10:30 am (to be received 10:30 am the next day), Express (to be received 6pm the next day) and many more. So I mapped the nearest drop off / shipping location to me which is at Staples Business Center and off I went. When I arrived, and I showed the "envelope"

I asked her if there is a box where the envelope would fit. she told me they only had "packs" at that drop off centre and if I wanted a box I would have to go to Purolator branch instead (which I do not want to do because I wanted to send it NOW! ) I asked her if it would fit in the biggest "pack" they have and she said, well, we could try, if not, she can send it as is (orange envelope and all) but I said, no, these are important documents, what if the envelope gets cut and my papers might fall off or get dirty or something, hehe. So here's the biggest pack they have:

So she tried to fit it in the pack. And it FITS!! But she used two packs to secure the package properly, like so:

And there it is, ready to be shipped. Total weight according to the lady is 5 lbs. I got the Purolator EXPRESS PACK 10:30AM and it costed me CAD$ 43.56. That better arrive in CPC-M at 10:30 am tomorrow then. ;D

awwwww.... bye bye application package.. after months of hard work... :,)

The lady asked me what company am I sending it to and I said CIC, she said, what is that, and I said Immigration Canada. And guess what, she put that on the address! grrr... and she typed "Center" as "cen." and Parkway as "PKY". Oh I hope that wont confuse the courier... =(

oh, and under "declared value" it says $0, i should have told her, no, that package is PRICELESS! hehe kidding.. lol ;D

So there it is, Hope they really receive it tomorrow and then the waiting game begins... ;D