+1(514) 937-9445 or Toll-free (Canada & US) +1 (888) 947-9445

hernandez_b

Newbie
Mar 9, 2014
4
0
I just received a letter saying that I'm not eligible to be a sponsor because I'm in receipt of social assistance. I was in social assistance but haven't being since I applied. What happens now? Will my application be refused? They still sent my application to my visa office will that be an immediate denial? Is there any way or any step I should take to show that I'm not in receipt of social assistance? Can I get the person who used to be my case worker wrote me a letter and send it to cic and my visa office for them to have prove? I don't know what to do I'm in shock because I'm not in any form of social assistance. Any help or input will be appreciate it. Thank you
 
it's been reported CIC goes back 12 months to check social assistance use. my guess is you will have to either wait a certain period of time, or show significant proof you have been off social assistance for a period of time before being eligible. I've read it's not advised for the applicant's application to continue processing and it's best the application is withdrawn at this point.

hopefully a senior member can tell you what steps to take next.
 
I agree with rhcohen2014 on this one. Should your application be transferred to the visa office (this only happens if you didn't tick the box to withdraw the application on form 1344, question 1), your spouse's application will be rejected, but that can take a long time (depending on when they start processing).

My best advice is to withdraw your application. Gather enough documents to prove that you are not on social assistance anymore (would be great if you could find a job too) and send the whole application again. Unless you are approved to be a sponsor, there is no way your spouse will get processed for Permanent Residence.

From 1344, Question 1:

"If you are found ineligible to sponsor, indicate whether yo want to:

*withdraw your sponsorship application (all processing fees less $75 will be refunded) OR *proceed with the application for Permanent Residence (processing fees will be retained)

If you checked *proceed with the application for Permanent Residence, you won't get any money back.


BTW, something you should know. When they refuse your spouse's application (based on the fact that he/she doesn't have an eligible sponsor), you can appeal their decision. But most people don't recommend this path, because appeals are lengthy and costly.

Best solution: withdraw the application and start from the beginning, but this time make sure you go out of your way to prove them and make it clear you are not on social assistance. Acknowledge this fact in a cover letter and explain your plans and how you will be able to financially support your spouse. Like I said before, it's a big plus if you have a job too.
 
I do have a job and had it even long before i appliesd. Thanks for all your help but I think my best bet it to get an immigration lawyer to help me with it because I don't think it's a fair decision. Application said that you have to be off social assistance , nowhere there it said 12 months. I'm off and have being for a long time, I currently hold a job and I'm fully eligible to be a sponsor. Thank you anyways
 
hernandez_b said:
I do have a job and had it even long before i appliesd. Thanks for all your help but I think my best bet it to get an immigration lawyer to help me with it because I don't think it's a fair decision. Application said that you have to be off social assistance , nowhere there it said 12 months. I'm off and have being for a long time, I currently hold a job and I'm fully eligible to be a sponsor. Thank you anyways

An immigration lawyer will suck you dry (of money of course) and maybe give you very bad advice (to appeal probably, since this will bring the lawyer more money).

The best advice and help you can get is here on this forum. I know lots of cases where lawyers gave the wrong advice to people. But it's your decision, of course. Good luck with everything and I'm sorry you were denied SA. CIC makes mistakes too (but they won't admit it).
 
i have to agree with the other poster. the quickest way to do things is to have the applicant withdraw the application, and submit adequant proof of being off of social welfare. This includes getting a letter specifically from the welfare agency stating when you were taken off the list, paystubs for an extended period of time or a t4, etc.

what was included in the original application? If it was just the option C, they aren't going to know when you went off of welfare, just that you were on it recently. People with jobs can still draw welfare so, to be approved with welfare history, solid proof of when it ended needs to be provided. That burden of proof is on the sponsor, not for CIC to figure out. The more information you can provide to convince them you are no longer on welfare, the better!

again, if you have all this proof, there is no sense going to the attorney. this will just cost you precious time and money. technically, if your spouse withdraws the application NOW, you can resubmit as soon as you can get another package together. you can still use the same medical exam and any receipts for fees that haven't been processed yet. The attorney route is just going to be an even longer, more frustrating route in my opinion.
 
hernandez_b said:
I do have a job and had it even long before i appliesd. Thanks for all your help but I think my best bet it to get an immigration lawyer to help me with it because I don't think it's a fair decision. Application said that you have to be off social assistance , nowhere there it said 12 months. I'm off and have being for a long time, I currently hold a job and I'm fully eligible to be a sponsor. Thank you anyways

Lots of things on the application don't explain fully what the requirements are .... No point in getting a lawyer , you have to prove to them that you can afford to support your sponsor . Get a letter anything, call them get them to take you off the system. Really no point on carrying on with out this approval . It sucks i know.
 
hernandez_b said:
I do have a job and had it even long before i appliesd. Thanks for all your help but I think my best bet it to get an immigration lawyer to help me with it because I don't think it's a fair decision.

It will be a LOT cheaper and a LOT faster to simply withdraw and reapply with more documentation. An appeal will cost you thousands and thousands of dollars and drag out for years.
 
hernandez_b said:
I just received a letter saying that I'm not eligible to be a sponsor because I'm in receipt of social assistance. I was in social assistance but haven't being since I applied. What happens now? Will my application be refused? They still sent my application to my visa office will that be an immediate denial? Is there any way or any step I should take to show that I'm not in receipt of social assistance? Can I get the person who used to be my case worker wrote me a letter and send it to cic and my visa office for them to have prove? I don't know what to do I'm in shock because I'm not in any form of social assistance. Any help or input will be appreciate it. Thank you

when was your application sent in?
 
Most likely even though you went off social assistance, the govt office may not have officially removed your name from the active list of people receiving assistance. This exact thing happened to another poster recently.

You need to immediately cancel your app so you aren't charged the applicant processing fee. Then you need to call the social assistance office and confirm your status, and ask them to send you a letter that says on what day you stopped receiving the payments and had your status changed. You can then apply again from scratch.