Preparation for citizenship application (questions)

[mreda13]

Hi everyone,

I qualified under 3/5 rule last month and will apply as soon as the clause comes into effect this fall. I wanted to ensure that I have all the requirements ready to avoid last-minute preparations. I have some questions/clarifications and was hoping to get your experienced opinion on the following:

• Language requirements

I graduated high school from the UAE; I studied in an international school so education was in English. My HSD diploma is in both English and Arabic. My question is: Is it an acceptable proof of language? The reason I ask this is that on the CIC website they say the following:

You must have successfully finished a secondary or post-secondary program in English or French. A single course done in English or French does not meet the requirement. If the original document is in a language other than English or French then you must also include a letter from the academic institution indicating that the language of instruction was in English or French along with an official translation of the original document.

Since it is already in English, my question might be pointless but I am just worried because it is also written in Arabic and they don't mention that language of instruction is English. If it is acceptable, do I just send the English side or both sides and just translate the Arabic section?

• Biographical Passport copy

My passport's biographical page includes all the important information in both English and Arabic. However, there are some information such as address and conscription status that are only in Arabic. So, do I need to translate the biographical page or it's not that important?

• Passport stamps translation

I got a lot of stamps that are not in English or French , Arabic mostly. I am thinking of getting my friend to translate them and submit an affidavit instead of paying a lot for professional translations ( I got many stamps). I got 3 questions in this section.

1. How to format the stamps' translation? Do we just get a blank paper for each passport page and draw some circles resembling the stamps and translate them? Or do we photocopy the passport pages and provide the translations beside each stamp, space permitting? If anyone has a sample stamp translation, I'd appreciate it if they can share it with me. Same question goes for the biographical passport page translation.
2. Does the affidavit need to be sworn in presence of a person from the notary who knows the language of the stamps, arabic in this case? Or it doesn't matter? I've never done affidavits or authentications before so I might sound naive.
3. Some stamps are not clear; The border control officers stamp lightly to the point that the dates are barely visible/ not visible at all. What do I do in these cases? How can I translate those? I'm worried this might lead to residence proof questions in the future. I know which dates they represent as I keep excellent track of my entries/exits.

Sorry for making the post long, but i hope that the experienced users can help answer whatever they know. I hope that others who have similar questions can benefit from the answers as well.

Thanks in advance!