inland or outland?

[darxider]

hi all,

i know the answer seems obvious, but please read on. i am deciding on whether to apply inland or outland. i am currently living and working in Canada (well, in Quebec) as a post-doc, so i am on a work permit which only allows me to work at this particular job at this particular university. my partner and i are married, and we've been together for 5 years now (1.5 year in Canada, the rest in the US). and i am a citizen of iran; i left iran in 2003 to go to graduate school in the US, and then moved to Canada for my current job.

so
1) if i apply outland, my case will most probably be sent to Ankara. i think there is zero change that they'll process it in CPC-Ottawa, am i right?
2) if i apply inland, it'll take longer, two years probably. but i'll have a chance to get an OWP to stay and work in Canada, right?
3) inland might be a couple of months faster, but in that case, i won't have the OWP option, and i'll have to leave Canada once my post-doc period is over, and that's a risk i am not comfortable taking.

what do you guys think? should i go with inland or outland? is it possible to apply outland but somehow convince CIC to process my case at CPC-Ottawa, even though my citizenship is from iran?

thank you

 

[darxider]

anybody?

 

[darxider]

wow! nobody?!

 

[Mapleson]

I was waiting for someone more experienced to respond first.

1) If you apply outland, my case will most probably be sent to Ankara. There is a non-zero chance that the case will be retained in Ottawa. Generally, this occurs in your favour as far as processing times go. With a 10 month processing time in Ankara, it's unlikely, but still possible.

2) If you apply inland, yes there is a chance to get an OWP within 4 months of filing.

3) If you aren't comfortable taking the risk of an outland application, it seems you've answered your own questions. Even without an OWP, you may retain the right to remain in Canada.

 

[Ponga]

1). It's impossible to say for sure, but since you have been in Canada for the last ~ 18 months, I would lean towards the Ankara visa office.

2). Yes and yes: it will take longer but you would be eligible for the Pilot Program OWP approximately 4 months after CIC receives an Inland application.

3) I think you meant to say `Outland'. Keep in mind that you can still remain in Canada with an Outland application, as long as you apply to extend your stay before your current status expires. You would not be eligible for an OWP though.


It's usually not recommended that a person in Canada (from a visa-exempt country) actually submit an Inland application (I know...such a contradiction), because of the travel restrictions and the ever increasing processing times, however, the Pilot OWP certainly makes this option more attractive!

Good luck!

 

[darxider]

I was waiting for someone more experienced to respond first.

thanks for answering though. i appreciate your input.

1) If you apply outland, my case will most probably be sent to Ankara. There is a non-zero chance that the case will be retained in Ottawa. Generally, this occurs in your favour as far as processing times go. With a 10 month processing time in Ankara, it's unlikely, but still possible.

i guess i'm a bit confused now! why do you say it's a favor to me? i've heard that CPC-Ottawa processes cases very fast.

3) If you aren't comfortable taking the risk of an outland application, it seems you've answered your own questions. Even without an OWP, you may retain the right to remain in Canada.

how does this work? say, my current work permit expires in October 2016 and my employer doesn't want to extend my job offer. how can i stay in Canada past my current work permit's validity when i am not able to extend it?

 

[darxider]

1). It's impossible to say for sure, but since you have been in Canada for the last ~ 18 months, I would lean towards the Ankara visa office.

thanks for the reply. could you explain a bit what would be the role of my ~ 18 months of stay in Canada? how does that determine whether my case will be sent to Ankara or will be processed in Ottawa if i apply outland?

3) I think you meant to say `Outland'. Keep in mind that you can still remain in Canada with an Outland application, as long as you apply to extend your stay before your current status expires. You would not be eligible for an OWP though.

oops, sorry; yes i meant 'outland'. and i'll ask the same question: say, my current work permit expires in October 2016 and my employer doesn't want to extend my job offer. how can i stay in Canada past my current work permit's validity when i am not able to extend it?

It's usually not recommended that a person in Canada (from a visa-exempt country) actually submit an Inland application (I know...such a contradiction), because of the travel restrictions and the ever increasing processing times, however, the Pilot OWP certainly makes this option more attractive!

i am not from a visa-exempt country (unless i've completely misunderstood the meaning of that word!). i'm actually from iran.

another question: is it for 'inland' or 'outland' that we forgo the possibility of an appeal process in case the application is rejected? i talked to two immigration lawyers today, and they answered the opposite! maybe i misunderstood their answers, or maybe they used the wrong label (inland vs outland) when talking about the appeal process, but i'm super confused now.

 

[MilesAway]

thanks for the reply. could you explain a bit what would be the role of my ~ 18 months of stay in Canada? how does that determine whether my case will be sent to Ankara or will be processed in Ottawa if i apply outland?

oops, sorry; yes i meant 'outland'. and i'll ask the same question: say, my current work permit expires in October 2016 and my employer doesn't want to extend my job offer. how can i stay in Canada past my current work permit's validity when i am not able to extend it?

i am not from a visa-exempt country (unless i've completely misunderstood the meaning of that word!). i'm actually from iran.

another question: is it for 'inland' or 'outland' that we forgo the possibility of an appeal process in case the application is rejected? i talked to two immigration lawyers today, and they answered the opposite! maybe i misunderstood their answers, or maybe they used the wrong label (inland vs outland) when talking about the appeal process, but i'm super confused now.

If you've been legally admitted to a country for at least a year, CIC can choose to process your application at the VO responsible for that country. There is no guarantee though, and you have no say in the matter.

You could apply to change your status to visitor status, which would allow you to remain in Canada, although you would not be allowed to work.

Remember that outland can be and usually is processed much faster than the posted times. It depends on how strong a case you have, whereas inland is processed at the posted rate, and often slower. Inland does not have to right of appeal.

 

[darxider]

thank you all for replying to my questions. i really appreciate all the help. you guys have been most helpful, even more so than the immigration lawyers i've talked to.

 

[Mapleson]

i guess i'm a bit confused now! why do you say it's a favor to me? i've heard that CPC-Ottawa processes cases very fast.

In your favour, meaning you benefit. CPC-O will process some cases that normally would be sent overseas to speed up the process. So it will be 10 months or faster.

 

[rhcohen2014]

another question: is it for 'inland' or 'outland' that we forgo the possibility of an appeal process in case the application is rejected? i talked to two immigration lawyers today, and they answered the opposite! maybe i misunderstood their answers, or maybe they used the wrong label (inland vs outland) when talking about the appeal process, but i'm super confused now.

it's the inland application that has no right to appeal. outland does, though it's usually quicker and less expensive to just reapply.

 

[darxider]

guys, i need your help again to clarify something. i just spoke with a law firm about the spousal application process (actually, spoke to an assistant to a lawyer in a law firm). when he told me about inland vs outland, he said:

If you would like to do an inland application, you must stay in Canada throughout the time that the application is processing. If you would like to do an outland application, you must leave prior to submitting the application and remain outside of the Country for the duration of time that it takes to process the application.

this is in contrast to what i found myself and what i've been told on this forum/post. of course, i didn't believe him, so i searched a bit more about this topic and found that i was right. so i emailed him and asked him about the difference and to confirm his previous statement, and he basically repeated what he said before (and what i have quoted above).

i still believe he's wrong, but could you guys confirm this again for me? has any law changed *very* recently to forbid outland applications for those living in Canada?

thank you...

 

[SchnookoLoly]

Nah he's talking rubbish. He's correct for the inland portion, but dead wrong for the outland portion.

 

[darxider]

yes, that's what i thought given my prior information gathering process and your help. i won't work with that law firm if they're information is plain wrong. thanks again for the help

 

[PixieDuster]

Just wanted to add about the Inland that I've learned (my husband and I originally applied inland, then withdrew and reapplied outland) - if you are looking at applying inland through the Spousal Sponsorship, it isn't until the SA that one can apply for OWP. HOWEVER... if you submit an OWP application with your inland application, you will have what is called 'implied status' meaning that your work permit will remain valid until a decision is made.

I'm not sure what the 'pilot OWP' is... but I know that right now, just the inland Sponsorship Approval process is taking almost 2 years. So there's that.

For us, it worked best Outland, but that's because Spain is a visa-exempt country. I would recommend poking your head into the Ankara thread (if there is one) or checking out the spreadsheets to see what wait times are like for that office. The numbers found on this forum tend to be much more helpful than the CIC website!