Outland Application, Tired of waiting outside of Canada

[mq007]

Hello there,

I believe this my first post. I think this forum is a very resourceful place. Some of my questions were answered via the search function here. I am grateful for it.

So far we have sent the outland application to Manila because my wife is a Japanese. The sponsor application is approved and the status for the applicant mentioned that they started processing on January 29, 2015.

I am a Canadian citizen and my wife and I are both living in Japan. We are tired of waiting in Japan. We want to live together in Canada before the application finishes. Is this possible? If so, how would we come about this?

 

[Celandrius]

I believe she will need to get a TRV, then she can stay normally for 6 months, the customs officer stamping her passport will tell you how long, and apply for an extension after that. I'm not sure if this is 100% accurate though. I am pretty sure it is... but again not completely sure.

 

[mq007]

Thank you for your input! May I ask what does TRV stand for. How long can I extend it for? The main reason is that we don't want to be separated.

 

[CutiePie92]

hi there!

i wasn't sure so i checked on CIC's site:

Country: Japan
You do not need a visa to visit or transit Canada.

what Celandrius was talking about - TRV - is a tourist visa basically, for temporary residence. however, your wife doesn't need one. honestly i'm pretty sure you could go back to Canada with her, spouses with an on-going PR application that are from a visa-exempt country are *usually* given entrance, they'll probably stamp her passport for a 6-month stay or less. afterwards when she's close to the expiration of those 6 months in Canada, she can apply for a visitor-extension, that is, until she gets PR. many US habitants do this without problems, no reason not to work for you two.

Important to mention is that when you're at the border, best to be honest, say you have an ongoing PR application (show the sponsorship approval letter, the paid fees - receipt, marriage certificate etc) AND do NOT let your wife say she's there to stay permanently - she should just say she's visiting for a few months - the reason why is because CBSA doesn't want you to think "visiting" is a permanent thing, but if you have the right documentation proving your PR app + you say you only visit, it's fine. also don't bring all your belongings, it will look suspicious.

I'm sure other users from visa-exempt countries have more to say about this since they have more experience. pretty sure they'll agree with what i said though. hope this helped ;D

 

[Celandrius]

hi there!

i wasn't sure so i checked on CIC's site:

Country: Japan
You do not need a visa to visit or transit Canada.

what Celandrius was talking about - TRV - is a tourist visa basically, for temporary residence. however, your wife doesn't need one. honestly i'm pretty sure you could go back to Canada with her, spouses with an on-going PR application that are from a visa-exempt country are *usually* given entrance, they'll probably stamp her passport for a 6-month stay or less. afterwards when she's close to the expiration of those 6 months in Canada, she can apply for a visitor-extension, that is, until she gets PR. many US habitants do this without problems, no reason not to work for you two.

Important to mention is that when you're at the border, best to be honest, say you have an ongoing PR application (show the sponsorship approval letter, the paid fees - receipt, marriage certificate etc) AND do NOT let your wife say she's there to stay permanently - she should just say she's visiting for a few months - the reason why is because CBSA doesn't want you to think "visiting" is a permanent thing, but if you have the right documentation proving your PR app + you say you only visit, it's fine. also don't bring all your belongings, it will look suspicious.

I'm sure other users from visa-exempt countries have more to say about this since they have more experience. pretty sure they'll agree with what i said though. hope this helped ;D

Thanks for correcting me! As for being from a Visa exempt country, it's pretty easy to cross the border. Just make sure you file for an extension when it's needed unless your application gets completed by that point!

 

[mq007]

So is it possible to book a one way flight for my wife?

 

[scylla]

So is it possible to book a one way flight for my wife?

You need to book a two-way. At this time she is only allowed to come to Canada as a visitor - not stay permanently. It's quite possible the airline won't even let her board the plane with a one-way ticket.

 

[mq007]

I understand so I would get a two way and then refund the second ticket later? And extend the visa. If the application takes two years (worse case scenario, our application is already 6 months in Manila) would they allow that?

What I'm trying to say is what is the longest time they can let my wife stay via the extension?

 

[shesosilly]

If she is given 6 months to stay here and her application is not yet approved after the 6 months, you can apply for an extension of her visitor visa. I was given a one year extension, I've heard of other people getting 2 years.

 

[o6ocpaka]

My wife also got a 1 year extension with no issues (she is a US citizen).
Visa Extensions are pretty straight forward, take 2 months to process and completely done online, you don't have to mail anything.
Just follow the guide on CIC site.

 

[SchnookoLoly]

This is geared at British applicants, but really is applicable to anyone applying from a visa-exempt country, including Japan:

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Spousal_Sponsorship-Canada#Can_I_wait_in_Canada_while_my_application_is_being_processed:_Dual_Intent

Have a good read of that, it tells you exactly what you need to do to wait in Canada while your app is being processed.

 

[mq007]

Thank you! These information is very valuable! You all are awesome! Just curious though, what did you do to the return ticket when you book the two way ticket?

 

[SchnookoLoly]

You have a few options, there.

You can book a return ticket but with the ability to change the flight date. This will be a bit more expensive, but it means you can adjust the return date later. What a lot of people do is book a return trip, then use the flexible return leg to serve as the first leg of another trip later. (I myself did this - moved to Canada but couldn't fly on a one-way yet, so I booked a return from London where the return leg was actually the first part of a trip later, did this twice, then once I was able to fly permanently, I booked my one-way trip at that point.)

The other option is to just book a two-way and simply not use the return. Often return trips are cheaper than one-way fares anyway, but it depends very much on the airline.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

Just curious though, what did you do to the return ticket when you book the two way ticket?

Buy the tickets separately. Get a one way to Canada and a separate fully refundable one way back to Japan.

 

[mq007]

Thank you everyone! You are all so helpful. I can finally feel safe knowing that my wife and I won't be separated! Thank you!