NEW DELHI - 2013 APPLICANTS.

[SINIP]

Hello, I have applied PR for my husband CIC received application on 14/06/2013. I got approval on 16/07/2013 and said in email file is transferred to new delhi. But still no status is changed from application received. How long its gonna take and on top of it the strike.....what should i expect next and when............

 

[ankush440]

Hi senior members of the Forum,

I have been following the thread (New Delhi -2013 applicants) for the last couple of Months and I must say , Reading the different experiences of different members really does give you a little confidence in the not so perfect Spousal immigration system. Kudos and hats off to that. Keeping the sanity of the fellow members in check is an achievement in itself and every member should be proud of that.

Now here is my first post as I have this question in my head.Hope the senior and more experienced members can me get my head around that.
I got married to my wife on November 2012 and was on an open work permit which had expired in feb this year ,after completing my Post graduation from Toronto.Now my wife (who is a CANADIAN CITIZEN and also the Sponsor) is pregnant and is due in October first week.

My time line is as follows :

Application Rec'd by CIC-M - 03-04-2013 (3rd April 2013)
Sponsorship Approval - 23-04-2013
Passport Request (PPR) - 11-05-2013
Passport recieved at NDVO -14-05-2013 ( 14th May 2013 by recipient STAMP)
Ecas Status - Application received

Now my quarries are as follows- a) As my wife is expecting for a Delivery date of 12 October , I have a letter from her doctor which shows my name , Wife's name and the due date. With this Strike looming on the decision and I want to be there for my Wife's delivery, would It be any help if I approach the New Delhi Visa Office and request them to process my application on the above mentioned grounds ( This is supposed to be humanitarian grounds ).
I have all the necessary documents with me to prove this.

Now I have had a word with our immigration lawyer in TO , and he says its no harm in trying , but just to get an opinion wanted to ask the members if there are any drawbacks of approaching the NDVO. Also Would It be beneficial if I could get a letter from the MP stating the Above facts and also carrying them with me when I go to the NDVO.

Also Is ordering the GCMS notes of any help

Thanks everyone for the valuable inputs and God Bless..

 

[deepakchauhan]

Dear All,


Although the strike has delayed everything but still need a major suggestion from you guys. I am a banker by profession and would be shifting with wife and 6 month old kid as soon as strike ends.

In my CIIP session I was insisted more on going to a smaller province like Alberta then Toronto because of NO PROVINCIAL TAX and lower cost of living. Also have heard child benefits in Alberta are higher than in Toronto..Pls suggest

How true is this and what do you suggest. Toronto Or anywhere in Alberta ( Calgary or Edmonton ).

I think Toronto would have more opportunities and less of climatic variations.

Please suggest plus and minus of these locations...

Thanks

 

[RD.NewDelhi]

Hello, I have applied PR for my husband CIC received application on 14/06/2013. I got approval on 16/07/2013 and said in email file is transferred to new delhi. But still no status is changed from application received. How long its gonna take and on top of it the strike.....what should i expect next and when............

don't expect anything till the strike ends. Coz from today onwards they gonna withdraw all the services. Hopefully things get better soon. All the best!!

 

[user828]

Dear All,


Although the strike has delayed everything but still need a major suggestion from you guys. I am a banker by profession and would be shifting with wife and 6 month old kid as soon as strike ends.

In my CIIP session I was insisted more on going to a smaller province like Alberta then Toronto because of NO PROVINCIAL TAX and lower cost of living. Also have heard child benefits in Alberta are higher than in Toronto..Pls suggest

How true is this and what do you suggest. Toronto Or anywhere in Alberta ( Calgary or Edmonton ).

I think Toronto would have more opportunities and less of climatic variations.

Please suggest plus and minus of these locations...

Thanks

Less likely in your field, but more in driving cabs, salesman etc. Move to a smaller town is better. The most educated are the ones who are driving cabs there

 

[Aryansharma]

Hi senior members of the Forum,

I have been following the thread (New Delhi -2013 applicants) for the last couple of Months and I must say , Reading the different experiences of different members really does give you a little confidence in the not so perfect Spousal immigration system. Kudos and hats off to that. Keeping the sanity of the fellow members in check is an achievement in itself and every member should be proud of that.

Now here is my first post as I have this question in my head.Hope the senior and more experienced members can me get my head around that.
I got married to my wife on November 2012 and was on an open work permit which had expired in feb this year ,after completing my Post graduation from Toronto.Now my wife (who is a CANADIAN CITIZEN and also the Sponsor) is pregnant and is due in October first week.

My time line is as follows :

Application Rec'd by CIC-M - 03-04-2013 (3rd April 2013)
Sponsorship Approval - 23-04-2013
Passport Request (PPR) - 11-05-2013
Passport recieved at NDVO -14-05-2013 ( 14th May 2013 by recipient STAMP)
Ecas Status - Application received

Now my quarries are as follows- a) As my wife is expecting for a Delivery date of 12 October , I have a letter from her doctor which shows my name , Wife's name and the due date. With this Strike looming on the decision and I want to be there for my Wife's delivery, would It be any help if I approach the New Delhi Visa Office and request them to process my application on the above mentioned grounds ( This is supposed to be humanitarian grounds ).
I have all the necessary documents with me to prove this.

Now I have had a word with our immigration lawyer in TO , and he says its no harm in trying , but just to get an opinion wanted to ask the members if there are any drawbacks of approaching the NDVO. Also Would It be beneficial if I could get a letter from the MP stating the Above facts and also carrying them with me when I go to the NDVO.

Also Is ordering the GCMS notes of any help

Thanks everyone for the valuable inputs and God Bless..

I am in the same situation, my wife is due on 7 Sep. NDVO does not and will not speak to anyone in person.They'll ask you to send the query via email. If you email them, they will not reply. I have sent endless emails to NDVO, with letters from the doctor. Also we contacted the local MP, but they also said they cannot ask NDVO to speed up the procedure. All they can do is apply for GCMS notes and check if something is wrong with the application. But as we all know the situation, everything is stuck cuz of the strike. GCMS notes will only say background check not done yet. So no point doing that. Sorry to sound like this but this is true.... But if you want to try, go ahead man.. All the best !!

 

[Aryansharma]

Dear All,


Although the strike has delayed everything but still need a major suggestion from you guys. I am a banker by profession and would be shifting with wife and 6 month old kid as soon as strike ends.

In my CIIP session I was insisted more on going to a smaller province like Alberta then Toronto because of NO PROVINCIAL TAX and lower cost of living. Also have heard child benefits in Alberta are higher than in Toronto..Pls suggest

How true is this and what do you suggest. Toronto Or anywhere in Alberta ( Calgary or Edmonton ).

I think Toronto would have more opportunities and less of climatic variations.

Please suggest plus and minus of these locations...

Thanks

Go to a bigger City Toronto or Vancouver, Calgary is also good. But smaller the city,harder to find jobs in there... Unless you want to do dead end jobs -cab driving, security guard etc.

 

[aman_sidhu]

Itna sannata kyun hai Bhai 8) 8)

 

[kiratjohal]

I think there is going to up be some good update today. Govt. will respond responsibly and they will make PAFSO workers work. Because Govt. cant let so many visa applications from students/visitors/spouses to be left unanswered for long. Keep praying...

 

[aman_sidhu]

Government should act sensibly and take control of the situation.....better late than fall (sept 9)

 

[deepakchauhan]

Go to a bigger City Toronto or Vancouver, Calgary is also good. But smaller the city,harder to find jobs in there... Unless you want to do dead end jobs -cab driving, security guard etc.

Thanks... what about the difference in provincial tax's or child benefits. Is that a deciding factor as I have heard its better in Alberta as the only province with no provincial tax or I should go to Toronto only..

 

[zormas]

iPolitics ‏@iPoliticsca 26m

Experts divided over foreign service strike’s impact on Canada’s brand | iPolitics http://bit.ly/1e5JX7Y


Couldnt access the full article for some reason...if anyone can post the full article ..that will be great.

 

[skas13]

The following is my opinion on the whole situation:
PAFSO expects government to pay the foreign members the same as those working in Canada. I disagree with that because living expenses are much lower in the other countries compared to Canada. It's like an engineer working in India expecting to get the same salary as the engineer working in Canada with same qualifications which is not correct.
What do you guys think?

You can't do that because the foreign service officers move around every 2 years, they may be in India for 2 years, then move to Sweden or London the next 2 years where the standard of living is even more expensive than that of Canada. it just makes sense since they are Canadians, working for the Canadian government that they make the same wages as other Canadians with a few exceptions. it's just too hard to determine salaries based on postings when you have no idea where the next posting will be.

 

[jk45]

Dear All,


Although the strike has delayed everything but still need a major suggestion from you guys. I am a banker by profession and would be shifting with wife and 6 month old kid as soon as strike ends.

In my CIIP session I was insisted more on going to a smaller province like Alberta then Toronto because of NO PROVINCIAL TAX and lower cost of living. Also have heard child benefits in Alberta are higher than in Toronto..Pls suggest

How true is this and what do you suggest. Toronto Or anywhere in Alberta ( Calgary or Edmonton ).

I think Toronto would have more opportunities and less of climatic variations.

Please suggest plus and minus of these locations...

Thanks

Toronto is the financial capital of canada......it wont be easy to get a job in your profession right away and may be you will end up doing smaller jobs for some period of time....Try to upgrade yourself with some exams here like CSC etc...like most of the people prepare yourself for start from the zero....all you need patience, tolerance and hard work...

 

[RD.NewDelhi]

iPolitics ‏ @ iPoliticsca 26m

Experts divided over foreign service strike's impact on Canada's brand | iPolitics http://bit.ly/1e5JX7Y


Couldnt access the full article for some reason...if anyone can post the full article ..that will be great.

As the foreign service strike intensifies, experts are divided on the overall impact of the union’s job actions on Canada’s image abroad.

The Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO) has been in a legal strike position since April 2 and without a contract since June 2011. The union is demanding equal pay for equal work because some junior diplomats earn up to $14,000 less than colleagues doing the same work in Ottawa.

The union has taken job action over the past two months, including targeted rotating strikes and picketing at major Canadian missions. The effects of the strike have been felt around the world, especially by frustrated visa applicants.

However, the impact of the strike on Canada’s international stature is a topic for debate among Canadian foreign policy experts.

Talking Heads

MUST READS
Gibson
The new undeniability of climate change
Foreign Service
Is strike hurting Canada's image abroad?
Morning Brief
Foreign service workers on strike
Morning Brief
No go for Canada Job Grant

Alpheus Daily Watch
CommitteeWatchProvided by
The Alpheus Group
in the house
QP in Brief: Boston bombing leads off question period
In the house
QP in Brief: Foreign worker, national budget and offshore tax havens
in the house
QP in Brief: New taxes, new bureaucrats, new electoral reforms


LegislationMonitorFollow the bills


PrintOn DemandDownload here
78 ways to fix the way we do politics

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Click here for more special editions



For Andrew Cohen, an Ottawa-based columnist and author of While Canada Slept: How We Lost Our Place in the World, the strike has reflected badly on the Canadian government.

“There’s been a great deal of skepticism about how this government has treated diplomats and how we treaty diplomacy,” he said.

Cohen said there’s a long history of foreign service officers being underpaid in comparison to their equivalents who work as economists and lawyers in the public service. He highlighted the fact that most PAFSO members have at least two university degrees, speak two or more languages and carry impressive resumes — something that should be reflected in their compensation. Despite the stereotype of diplomats wining and dining in swanky restaurants and homes abroad, many foreign service officers live in modest, sometimes dangerous, conditions without fair compensation for the compromises they make, he said.

The Treasury Board begs to differ. It said the union has been presented with a fair offer and highlighted some of the perks, known as Foreign Service Directives, members are entitled to. These include a reimbursement of up to 50 per cent for dry cleaning expenses, the shipment of personal vehicles and household items to a diplomat’s posting, and a foreign service incentive allowance recognizing the challenges associated with living abroad.

But Cohen said he thinks the Treasury Board’s “stubborn” attitude reflects more than just a refusal to entertain PAFSO’s demands for equal pay.

“Does this simply reflect a distaste for not just public servants but particularly diplomats? And is it playing to a public sense that these are pampered, spoiled public servants who wander around at cocktail parties and sip sherry in tuxedos, in leather back chairs and have a view of diplomacy from the 1940s,” said Cohen. “I think when you talk to foreign officers today, that’s not so at all.”

Cohen, a loud critic of Canada’s “pinch-penny diplomacy” and foreign policy, said the government’s inability to come to an agreement with its own diplomats simply adds to the country’s “diminishing” international image, which, in the past, has been fueled by its lack of involvement at the world stage. He cited Canada’s recent withdrawal from the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and its failure to win a UN Security Council seat in 2010.

“I think it makes us look like a smaller, more parochial place that really cares less and less about its stature in the world,” said Cohen.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird’s Press Secretary Rick Roth said he rejects the “assumption” that the strike has affected Canada’s image abroad.

“Canadian diplomats are still working around the world standing up for Canadian interests and values – and Canada’s stellar reputation reflects this ongoing work,” he said in an email.

While other experts agree the PAFSO strike has affected Canada’s reputation, they question how far-reaching that effect has been.

Former Canadian ambassador Paul Heinbecker said the communities affected by the strike, such as students, visitors, business people and immigrants applying for Canadian visas, are probably more likely to rethink Canada’s image.

“With those particular communities, it affects the image of Canada. Will it affect the image of Canada with the man in the street? Probably not,” said Heinbecker. “It affirms that Canada is a difficult country to get into, … arbitrary and unpredictable.”

Daryl Copeland, who worked as a Canadian diplomat for 30 years, serving on the PAFSO executive, said the strike has probably not done any long-term damage to the Canadian brand because the “boutique union” represents such a small portion of the Canadian federal public service. But he also said the strike hasn’t exactly improved Canada’s image.

“I think it would be safe to say that it’s unlikely to have burnished the reputation because it’s caused undoubtedly some people inconvenience,” said Copeland.

Former PAFSO President Colin Robertson, who served as a foreign service offer from 1977 to 2010, said he believes the union’s demands are legitimate, but completely rejected the notion that the strike has damaged the Canadian brand.

“I think if you asked anybody abroad and said did you know the Canadian foreign service is on strike? They would look at you like you’re on Mars,” said Robertson.

Putting questions of Canada’s image aside, Robertson said the strike is definitely having an impact in a way the union and Treasury Board probably never expected — on the Canadian economy.

According to PAFSO President Tim Edwards, rotating strikes involving immigration officers have resulted in a 60 to 65 per cent drop in visa issuance in targeted missions and a 25 per cent drop system wide. Canada’s tourism, education and business sectors have especially felt the effects of delayed visa issuance.

The longer the strike continues, the more Canada will lose, said Robertson. For instance, if a visa applicant applies to Canada and doesn’t get their visa in time, they will start to look — and take their ambition, knowledge and money — elsewhere.

“If they can’t get to Canada, they say, ‘Alright I’ll go to the States, Australia, Europe.’ They get an experience there but they don’t get the experience in Canada. That’s not just a cost in tourism, that’s a cost in opportunity and investment.”

While experts agree on the impact of the strike on the Canadian economy, it remains unclear how the strike has affected the business of government.

In an email statement last week, PAFSO said the union’s job actions have contributed to the cancellation or postponement of more than a dozen cabinet-level visits or trip segments since mid-May, including trips to the U.S., Middle East and Asia. It did not elaborate on which specific visits were affected. However, Baird’s office had a firm response to the union’s claim — zero trips have been affected. Both sides continue to stick to their guns.

As of Monday, the strike was ongoing. Following an offer from PAFSO to enter into third-party binding arbitration, Treasury Board agreed under conditions — something that baffled Heinbecker.

“It sounds like the government is trying to negotiate the arbitration, in order words setting preconditions to the arbitration, which would defeat the purpose of the arbitration. If that’s what’s going on, then it’s bad faith by the government,” said Heinbecker.

After nearly a week of negotiation between the striking foreign service and Treasury Board, an attempt to reach an agreement to enter binding arbitration failed Friday, leading diplomats to move ahead with walks outs at fifteen of Canada’s largest visa processing centres. As the two sides continue to argue over who brought the attempt to arbitrate to a halt, the negotiation process seems to have come to a standstill.

Until an agreement is reached, the union said there will be no change in PAFSO’s job actions, including rotating strikes and picketing. Experts agree that the longer the strike continues, the more Canada risks tarnishing its image at home and abroad.