I'm a U.S. citizen and my husband is Canadian.
We fell in love upon meeting during my summer vacation in Montreal last year and got married in Vegas 30 days later. We've been together almost a year now and love each other tremendously, which drove us to this crazy and spontaneous decision in the first place. Upon arrival at Toronto-Pearson in late June '14 back from Vegas, an immigrations officer told us that we have until Christmas to apply for permanent residency, and said that after we send in the application, I don't have to apply for any extensions or do anything as my application will be in processing.
We submitted the PR Inland application and paid for it in December '14. I called CIC in late January because something I read online contradicted what the immigrations officer told us, and they told us that we had to file for an extension "as soon as possible." They sent me an email, which I wound up only scanning through and did not see that there was a 90 day window within which I had to apply for the extension, and that even if I apply, my extension may not be granted.
During the months of January-April of this year, I was also going through some very, very heavy times. I was without a medication that I was on in the U.S. for my severe ADHD because I don't have health coverage in Canada and did not have a psychiatrist. My mental health only deteriorated with time. My husband has been on par with a saint through this whole experience, as his love and patience for me and my situation had been instrumental in me seeking help and subsequently being diagnosed with a serious mental illness which impairs my judgment and moods, among other things.
Fast forward to now - my husband and I start looking at the paperwork for the OWP and status extension, and see that the 90 day window had passed. We are doing our best to not freak out, as other people with similar problems on this forum are being told to leave the country. My husband and I are both independently self-employed, which makes leaving together a little easier to do, but we are both very scared and unsure of how to proceed. Since it's Sunday afternoon, the CIC and lawyers' officers aren't open and I guess I'm just looking for a little peace of mind. My husband desperately wants to stay in Canada and does not want to move anywhere else. This is his home and he is very attached to it.
We have no kids and no criminal records.
I'm just really scared and hoping that someone here can share some advice or knowledge that extends beyond "call a lawyer" and "call the CIC" (which we're doing tomorrow morning). Thank you so very much in advance. Hope someone sees this.
We fell in love upon meeting during my summer vacation in Montreal last year and got married in Vegas 30 days later. We've been together almost a year now and love each other tremendously, which drove us to this crazy and spontaneous decision in the first place. Upon arrival at Toronto-Pearson in late June '14 back from Vegas, an immigrations officer told us that we have until Christmas to apply for permanent residency, and said that after we send in the application, I don't have to apply for any extensions or do anything as my application will be in processing.
We submitted the PR Inland application and paid for it in December '14. I called CIC in late January because something I read online contradicted what the immigrations officer told us, and they told us that we had to file for an extension "as soon as possible." They sent me an email, which I wound up only scanning through and did not see that there was a 90 day window within which I had to apply for the extension, and that even if I apply, my extension may not be granted.
During the months of January-April of this year, I was also going through some very, very heavy times. I was without a medication that I was on in the U.S. for my severe ADHD because I don't have health coverage in Canada and did not have a psychiatrist. My mental health only deteriorated with time. My husband has been on par with a saint through this whole experience, as his love and patience for me and my situation had been instrumental in me seeking help and subsequently being diagnosed with a serious mental illness which impairs my judgment and moods, among other things.
Fast forward to now - my husband and I start looking at the paperwork for the OWP and status extension, and see that the 90 day window had passed. We are doing our best to not freak out, as other people with similar problems on this forum are being told to leave the country. My husband and I are both independently self-employed, which makes leaving together a little easier to do, but we are both very scared and unsure of how to proceed. Since it's Sunday afternoon, the CIC and lawyers' officers aren't open and I guess I'm just looking for a little peace of mind. My husband desperately wants to stay in Canada and does not want to move anywhere else. This is his home and he is very attached to it.
We have no kids and no criminal records.
I'm just really scared and hoping that someone here can share some advice or knowledge that extends beyond "call a lawyer" and "call the CIC" (which we're doing tomorrow morning). Thank you so very much in advance. Hope someone sees this.
