Inland, outland: rules

[Elwise]

Hi everyone.
I should have thought about reading here before getting a lawyer to work on our case... anyway. Here is my question.

We are still hesitating between applying inland or outland. I am canadian (quebec) and my husband is an american. He is here on a Temp. res. until march 30th.

I read here that it is recommended to apply outland in that case. But our lawyer told us he would have to leave canada to do so, and that I would not be allowed to go to the US too, only to "visit". I asked him how long is a "visit", but he could not tell me something very precise. My husband and I just had a baby, so if he has to leave, it is not a good option.

So... Is that true? Can my husband apply outland, stay here on his temp. res. until march 30th and renew it until he is granted PR?

And if he applies inland... is it true that he can't leave Canada?

And... have you noticed that on this page about CIC delays, the delay in french is not the same as in english (for inland, bottom of the page): In french, the process is 8 months, whereas on the english page, it is 11 months...

How accurate is the delay listed on the CIC page? Have you heard of people waiting for less time?

Thanks!

 

[Rob_TO]

I read here that it is recommended to apply outland in that case. But our lawyer told us he would have to leave canada to do so,

Sorry to say but your lawyer is an idiot. I would fire him immediately as he obviously doesn't know what he's talking about, and will most likely cause more delays then help with your application.

Your husband can by all means stay in Canada while applying "outland". We did this, and tons of others do it as well. CIC even encourages people right in the inland application guide, to consider outland processing instead if they want a quicker processing time.

Just have your husband continually renew his visitor status every 6 months, and he should be able to stay in Canada the entire time.

Times these days through CPP-Ottawa office (where most outland US apps are processed) is in the 8-10 month range. Check the CPP-Ottawa thread on this forum.

In case an interview is required (usually interviews are not needed), I believe CPP-Ottawa would forward your app to one of the USA visa offices, where the interview would also be held.

And if he applies inland... is it true that he can't leave Canada?

You are not recommended to leave Canada with an inland app in progress. In case there is ever a problem and your husband was denied re-entry to Canada for whatever reason, the entire application is cancelled and you need to start fresh.

In 99% of cases, it's better for US applicants to apply outland.

 

[scylla]

Sorry to say but your lawyer is an idiot. I would fire him immediately as he obviously doesn't know what he's talking about, and will most likely cause more delays then help with your application.

Seconded. Ditch the lawyer. He is obviously clueless and will get other things wrong if he doesn't know these types of basics.

I agree that outland probably works best for you.

 

[Elwise]

we took the lawyer because my husband and i disagreed on the way to fill the forms and we wanted to speed up the process.

but it turns out that it is taking a long time.

I was wondering: what happens when a document expires through the process? The medical exam is only valid a year... Should we schedule another one, since last one is going to expire in january?

 

[Rob_TO]

we took the lawyer because my husband and i disagreed on the way to fill the forms and we wanted to speed up the process.

but it turns out that it is taking a long time.

I was wondering: what happens when a document expires through the process? The medical exam is only valid a year... Should we schedule another one, since last one is going to expire in january?

The medical exam you are supposed to do at the very last step, right before you submit the application. You can submit the application as long as the medical is valid on the day you submit, but as soon as it expires CIC may (and probably will) ask you to take a new medical sometime during the processing of your application. Sounds like you are still a while away from even submitting anything, so it might be a good idea to just do another medical before you submit so there are no delays in your processing.

Your lawyer should have also advised you of when to take medical.

You seem to have a bad lawyer, in which case they actually slow down the process. Also if all correspondence from CIC goes through the lawyer first, that will slow things down even more.

 

[Elwise]

well, we did a bunch of stuff ourselves before we decided to go for the lawyer... and we did a buch of errors.

so we have all the documents gathered (police, medical, proof of genuine relationship, marriage certificate, pictures), and the forms filled up for outland application. we are almost ready, i think.

 

[Elwise]

Another question.
In the questionnaire, they ask me (the sponsor) if I am currently living with someone.
Should I say i live with my husband if we are applying outland? Or is he supposed to be just visiting?

 

[Canuckluvus]

Another question.
In the questionnaire, they ask me (the sponsor) if I am currently living with someone.
Should I say i live with my husband if we are applying outland? Or is he supposed to be just visiting?

he is supposed to be just visiting

 

[Rob_TO]

so we have all the documents gathered (police, medical, proof of genuine relationship, marriage certificate, pictures), and the forms filled up for outland application. we are almost ready, i think.

Keep in mind the police checks must be no more than 3 months old, when you send the application to CIC. If you also got the police check a long time ago, then you may need to re-do them.

In the questionnaire, they ask me (the sponsor) if I am currently living with someone.
Should I say i live with my husband if we are applying outland? Or is he supposed to be just visiting?

That's fine, just state you're currently living with your husband in Canada, and he is here on visitor status. You can also put his address as your Canadian address.

It is perfectly fine to submit outland application while your husband is residing in Canada as a visitor.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

I agree with the other posters here, get rid of the lawyer immediately. He doesn't even know the basics and will simply cause you more problems down the line.

I'll just add that when your husband applies to extend his visitor status (best to apply around 30 days before expiry of his current status), he should include a note about his PR app in process and ask for a year instead of the standard 6 months. That way, if the PR app processing runs a bit longer, he won't need to submit another extension. Include proof of the PR app and proof that he (or you) can support the extended stay.

 

[canadianwoman]

Another question.
In the questionnaire, they ask me (the sponsor) if I am currently living with someone.
Should I say i live with my husband if we are applying outland? Or is he supposed to be just visiting?

Say you are living with your husband, and that he is in Canada as a visitor. You can live with a visitor, and in particular if the visitor is here for 6 months or more. In addition, actually living with your partner is good evidence the relationship is real, and you do not want the visa officer to be confused on this point.

 

[Elwise]

Last question!

They ask for dates of visit.

Can I put that is intended date of departures is the end of his temp. residency in april 2014? Or they will find that suspiciouis since he is supposed to be outland?

And: if we wrote the he intend to leave in january, then, does he absolutely have to leave then?

Thanks again.