Inside sponsoring/ outside: immigration is giving me different answers

[Seempee]

Hi there everybody,

Thanks in advance for taking time to read this question. I moved here from Europe. My Canadian boyfriend and i got married last month in Canada. We've been together for 2 years. When we decided where to live together, we chose Canada as he has a business here he needs to attent to. I quit my job and stayed here with him on a visitors visa. We have all the paperwork ready for sponsoring. Calling immigration a few times they have been very vage about the inside or outside sponsoring. This question must have been asked lots of times before but since the system has changed last june i rather ask again. On the immigration website it stated that inside takes about 12-18 months and outside 6-12. Immigration told me it makes no difference and it will take the same time either way.

Questions:

Can i apply outside but stay in Canada travelling in & out every 6 months for renewal of my visitors visa and go back just before i get my RP?

If applying from inside do i have to renew my visitors visa every 6 months and will it be approved every time if they know my husband is applying for sponsoring?

Is there a preapproval stage in this 2 year RP application that would allow me to stay until my sponsoring goes through without having to renew my application?

Or should i just go back home and stick it out for 6 months by applying from outside?

All advise is welcome and thanks a million! :-*

Seemp

 

[RobsLuv]

Immigration lied - either that or you talked to one of the many who work for them who don't know their a$$es from a hole in the ground. Honestly, after dealing with them now for the past three years, and being around here and on other forums listening to the stuff they tell people, I'm convinced they either deliberately sabotage foreign nationals and their Canadian partners when we try to get info from them, or they really don't have a clue what they're doing. Either way, Canada should be ashamed of and thoroughly embarrassed by this bureaucracy!!

Now that I've ranted here's what they should have told you! Yes, you can stay in Canada to wait out processing of an outland application and you don't have to travel in and out of the country every six months to renew your visitor status. Based on the fact that you're legally married to a Canadian and he's sponsoring you for PR, you can apply to extend your status from within Canada (include proof of both the marriage, the PR ap in process and his income to support you, as well as all other info they request in the document checklist, with the extension application). But you HAVE to make sure they receive that extension application BEFORE your current status expires, and you have to include with the application proof of your entry date (so they know you are still in status). This would be a copy of the entry stamp on your passport, or a copy of any immigration document (like a visitor record, work or study permit, etc) they issued you (if they did) when you entered. As long as you get the extension application to them (track it and get delivery confirmation) BEFORE your status expires, you have "implied status" to remain in Canada until you hear from them (about 100 days). I have yet to see an eligible spousal PR applicant refused extension while the PR ap is in process.

If you apply inland (not recommended) you'd include that same extension application WITH the inland PR ap = and all of it has to be received by CIC prior to expiration of your current status. Again, gives you "implied status" to remain in Canada until first stage approval is assessed (6-7 months after they receive your ap). Most people opt for the open work permit option when they do this, so they will automatically be issued a temporary work permit after first stage approval, but if you apply outland, through London you'll likely see your PR ap finalized before an inland ap will even get to first stage approval assessment - thus no need for a temporary work permit.

I think what I've written so far already answers you final two questions. You don't have to go home to apply outland, and the "pre-approval stage" of the inland PR process would be the first stage of approval - during which you'd probably have first "implied status" while waiting for them to even assess you for first stage and then the OWP afterwards (provided you got all of your paperwork in to them before your current temporary status expires). Finalization after first stage approval can take up to another year. But, again, if you apply outland (while maintaining your temporary status in Canada separately), you can expect London to finalize your ap in 2-8 months (plus one more month at the start when CPC-Mississauga assesses and approves your sponsor before transferring the ap overseas), and you'll be done.

 

[Seempee]

Thanks so much Robsluv. Immigration is not even reachable by phone half of the time and they mostly have only one answer to everything: "That is at the discretion of the officer" and they can't really say anything.

However, we didn't apply yet because we were still at loss on the in or outland application. My visa expires april 5 so i need to get the extension done asap. On the website it said 30 days in advance but the waiting time has gone up to 60 now. I only found that out after downloading the forms. So i hope i'm still on time. But you are right, we're married darned! Who is going to deny me staying with my husband

Do you think i should use an immigration lawyer? We had an offer of Campbell Cohen but my husband thinks we can do this ourself easily. I'm on the fence, immigration is big business.

 

[Seempee]

Before i forget: What do i send 1st, the PR application or the extension visitors visa? Robsluv i hope you read this to give me advise.

 

[BlueDragon17846]

Seempee, you'll want to fill out the visitor extension first and mail it in, as long as you are doing an outland application. Given that your status expires apr 5, that is the pressing matter right now, so you'll want to get that in. Remember what RobsLuv said about the option of sending the visitor extension in with an inland application, also--if you are choosing to do inland. However, I agree with RobsLuv here in saying that outland is the better option for you. So, you'll want to apply to extend your visitor visa, then when your ready, mail in the PR app outland.

Also remember that as long as they receive your app for visitor extension before the date that your current visa expires, you are ok. You don't have to consider the wait time in that at all. They do recommend having received the app 30 days in advance, however, that is, as far as I know a loose recommendation. As long as they receive the extension before the date your visitor visa expires, you are good.

Good luck!

 

[Seempee]

Re: Inside sponsoring/outside: immigration is giving me different answers

Thanks for your quick response BlueDragon! I'm sending the ext visit. visa this week. Going over it i didn't know what to say as a reason. Can i say we're applying for a RP or will raise this more questions?

Also we didn't get the marriage license yet, for some reason that takes 10 to 12 wks here. We only have a written something from city hall but it has to do for now i guess. I'm adding a statement from my savings account and a copy of my passport and the stamps. I think that should be enough right? We're sending the PR outland next week to Berlin. I'm adding an adress back home and a mailing adress in Canada. I have my police papers and did my med. exam in Canada so thats the most important right. Do i have it covered?

 

[BlueDragon17846]

Your husband (sponsor) will need to call CRA and get an option C printout from last year's taxes. 1-800-959-8281. It will take about 1-2 weeks to get to you. Also read the checklist very carefully, as well as the instructions for each of the three parts found here, http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/fc.asp

With your marriage certificate, they will need that to process your app. We waited the full 10-12 weeks to get ours. I suppose the record of solemnization would do, with an explanation, but that is not the actual official document they need, and they will most likely hold up your app anyway, until you actually send in the marriage certificate. All in all, I would just wait to send it in.

With your visitor visa, just be honest with your explanation. What you can do, is pay for the PR fees right now, then include the receipt number with your application, so they know you paid the fees, then they know you are applying for PR. Then just say, you want to visit your husband here until the PR application goes through.

 

[BlueDragon17846]

Do you think i should use an immigration lawyer? We had an offer of Campbell Cohen but my husband thinks we can do this ourself easily. I'm on the fence, immigration is big business.

One other thing I wanted to mention when you asked about an immigration lawyer. In my opinion, your husband is right. Immigration lawyers are generally very expensive, and from the experiences I've heard on this forum and elsewhere, they charge a lot of money to simply type your information into the application. It's definitely something you can do on your own.

We actually had an immigration officer casually ask us at the border if we were using a lawyer to apply for PR. We said no, we weren't. He said that was a good thing in that in his experience, they have had to turn people away who insisted they were right because thier lawyer told them so. He said they would have to tell them, "well I'm sorry but what your lawyer told you was wrong." In my opinion, save the money and do it yourself. But definitely read all the instructions, and then ask here if you have any questions. That's the main thing.

Good luck!

 

[Seempee]

Thanks so much! I had the inland sponsoring forms ready to go and i thought the outland would be the same but it's 3x as much. 8 photos! Wow! any way. I'll see which one we're going to send. Inland takes longer but i have everything together. For the outland application we'll be waiting for more paperwork. I'll pay the fees tomorrow and sent in my vis. visa ext. form. I know what you mean about the lawyer. They're one trick ponies, if anything is different from the textbook cases they loose it. We'll do it ourselfs.

 

[BlueDragon17846]

Thanks so much! I had the inland sponsoring forms ready to go and i thought the outland would be the same but it's 3x as much. 8 photos! Wow! any way. I'll see which one we're going to send. Inland takes longer but i have everything together. For the outland application we'll be waiting for more paperwork. I'll pay the fees tomorrow and sent in my vis. visa ext. form. I know what you mean about the lawyer. They're one trick ponies, if anything is different from the textbook cases they loose it. We'll do it ourselfs.

Just to clarify, you'll need the paperwork (marriage certificate, option C, etc.) for the inland app, too. You may as well wait and apply outland.

 

[Seempee]

Good point! I'll try not to get intimidated by paper work and get started tomorrow. Thanks again! You 2 are life savers!

 

[Seempee]

We're filling out the outland forms now but i have no idea what to put where they ask if we live together. We do cause i'm on a visitors visa here for 5 months already. Also i did my medical exam in Canada and they send it somewhere saying that when we send in the sponsor appl. it will be added. But now i'm sending an outside app. Is this going to be a problem? So in short:

Living in Canada and applying with an outside application:

What do i put as cohabitation info: yes or not living together?
Can i use this medical exam or do i have to apply for inside now as i did the medical exam here?
How secret do i have to be about me being here waiting for the sponsoring to come through?

I hope someone can give me an answer on time so i can pay for the right application and add the receipt to my extension for visitor.

 

[RobsLuv]

Before i forget: What do i send 1st, the PR application or the extension visitors visa? Robsluv i hope you read this to give me advise.

You just have to make sure that your extension application is received by them BEFORE your status expires. Track the mailing and get delivery confirmation - that is your proof that you have "implied status" to remain in Canada after your initial status expires. If you can't get the actual PR application to them before your status expires, then simply pay the PR application fees (sponsor fee of $75 and applicant fee of $475) and submit a copy of the receipt with the extension ap to prove that you are submitting a PR application. They will give you time to get the PR ap in process if you're applying this soon after your wedding; just be sure that, if you have to apply to extend again, you have the PR ap in process by then. Also, be sure to include at least the Record of Solemnization of your wedding; they understand that it takes time to get the certified copy of your marriage licence, so the RoS will suffice for now. It is absolutely necessary that you prove you married.

We're filling out the outland forms now but i have no idea what to put where they ask if we live together. We do cause i'm on a visitors visa here for 5 months already. Also i did my medical exam in Canada and they send it somewhere saying that when we send in the sponsor appl. it will be added. But now i'm sending an outside app. Is this going to be a problem?

If you let the DMP know that your application will be processed through London, they should be sending the medical results to the Regional Medical Centre in London. Canadian DMPs are used to sending medical results to the RMC in Ottawa, so you'll have to make sure they send/sent the results to London. As far as "living together", you're not required, as spouses, to be living together - so don't worry about that piece. IF you were admitted to Canada initially with status valid for at least one year (not likely as a visitor) you can use your Canadian address as your residential address - and then your ap would go to Buffalo for processing. But, if not, use a family member's address in the UK as your residential address, and use your Canadian address as your mailing/contact address. In the address history you will list your permanent address in the UK - you're only visiting in Canada, so you don't have to list that as where you're living anymore than you would if you were staying with a friend in the States or in Africa or wherever.

So in short:

Living in Canada and applying with an outside application:

What do i put as cohabitation info: yes or not living together?

"Living together" is about common-law qualification - again, technically you're not living together, and you're not required to be. You are presently visiting him in Canada.

Can i use this medical exam or do i have to apply for inside now as i did the medical exam here?

Medical exam is the same whether it's done in Canada or not - what you need to know is that London will request the results from their Regional Medical Centre, and the DMP in Canada is likely to send the results to Ottawa, not to London, unless you tell them otherwise. Verify with them that the results have gone to London - or ask them to send them there, not to Ottawa. Be aware that some will argue with you - if so, let it go. London will let you know, after they receive the application, that they can't find the results and then you can tell them the DMP sent them to Ottawa in error, and they'll request them from there. Or, conversely, you can ask Ottawa to send your results on to London. There is contact info for the RMCs at this link.

How secret do i have to be about me being here waiting for the sponsoring to come through?

ABSOLUTELY NO REASON to be secretive -you are in Canada with valid temporary status and that's what allows you to stay. The overseas office doesn't really care where you are - they just need current contact info so that they can send you requests and information in a timely manner. You DO NOT HAVE TO BE IN YOUR COUNTRY in order to be eligible to have your application processed through that visa office - that is your right as a citizen of that country.

 

[Seempee]

Thanks again Robsluv. I got better answers here than anywhere from immigration or a lawyer Due to the misinformation from immigration i thought i needed to do an inside application. When i went for medical i had them send it to Ottawa However i'll try to put it somewhere on the application it got send there or contact them when they can't find it. For me it has to be send to Berlin but that makes no difference i hope.

I remember they had a huge back logg in Berlin and prosessing times where almost double when i applied for RP before. I got denied then cause they changed the immigration law shortly after and since i was not a nurse (or any of the other 5 professions on the list) they immediately denied me regardless if i made the points but it took them a year to refund my fees.

 

[Seempee]

Called with immigration with a question about the fees and we were told Berlin has such a huge back logg that applying inside Canada might take about the same time or is quicker. They are well 10 months back on schedule. I guess cause it's a big region for them to cover.

Any way: This lady also told me if i send in my RP & Sponsor appl before my visitors visa expires i can stay until its processed without extending my visitors visa. She even send me this in an email. How odd because on this subject i had different answers in the past.