LauraLynnR said:
Does something change if we get married while my PR is in process? Cause I read that it would probably speed up the process but I seriously doubt it... To get it done in Italy we need to wait 14 months, a very long time, so knowing how things work here I doubt they could make it faster!
14 months means - 80% of applications are done in 14 months or less. Many applications are done in less than 14 months. 50% are done in 13 months or less.
To get a better idea of how long it *really* takes, you can talk to people on the Rome Thread. What I suspect is - people applying from countries outside Italy (especially ones that require a visa) are what is slowing down the process. If you apply outside your home country, the IO makes special trips to interview you in your home country. (Example, if you're Swiss and apply through the Paris VO, the IO at the Paris office will arrange a trip to Switzerland to interview you, if needed.) However, these trip are only done 1-2 times per year, so if you apply at the "wrong" time, you may have to wait 11 months before the interview comes to you.
Another item that slows down processing are security checks. If you've lived in Italy your whole life, there isn't much to worry about. It's if you've lived in countries that have fringe governments, hostile (To Canada) governments, "terrorist" governments, etc. Many of them are on poor terms with Canada and some of them just have poor public infrastructure and services. So when CIC requests your security check, they can take a
very long time to reply. I've heard of some taking over a year to acknowledge the Canadian government's request.
So those are two big reasons why applications can take so long. In your case, #1 won't apply to you - and probably won't happen. Visa exempt citizens are rarely interviewed. (But if you are, you will have to go back to Rome.) #2 just depends on where you have lived, but if you've lived in a "modern" country (Visa exempt countries) then there is little to worry about.
It is not a guaranteed process time. (There is no such thing.) It is a guideline.
Getting married won't change your processing times. What it will do is make CIC request a copy of your marriage certificate. Anytime they are waiting on you to send something in, they are allowed to set your file aside until you provide the requested documents. So it has the
possibility of slowing them down. So if you do get married, I would inform them by mailing the marriage certificate with a letter explaining you got married and here's the certificate. You can even include a few pictures from the wedding. That way they don't have to wait.
CIC (and the Canadian government) consider Common-Law partners to be the same as married for all intensive purposes. You have the same rights and both are legal unions. There is little difference aside from a formal legal marriage contract.
It might sound stupid but I need to end a book I started some years ago and start another one while i'm there in Canada and my boyfriend's out for work... So I guess i already have something to keep myself busy until i'm allowed to find a job, something that however I can't do as a tourist :
