Question about Spousal Sponsorship and OWP

[saydaysago]

Hi everyone!

My spouse and I submitted our application for spousal sponsorship and immigration on November 1, 2013 received a confirmation that it had been received, and are now waiting.

I had been under the impression this whole time that we would have to wait until he receives his permanent residency in order for him to work here in canada (he is currently living with me, playing house-husband), but reading more around this forum, I have been seeing more talk about submitting Open Work Permit applications along with spousal sponsorship applications.

I had been under the impression that in order to get work permits, one needed an offer from an employer. Is there a chance my husband will be able to work here in Canada before he gets his permanent residency? This would take a lot of pressure off of our financial situation.

He is a USA citizen, with no special training in fields usually considered for work permits (he does have a yoga teacher certification).

Any information about which applications may be relevant, their costs, and requirements would be greatly appreciated.. It's so confusing wading through all of this!

 

[Rob_TO]

Hi everyone!

My spouse and I submitted our application for spousal sponsorship and immigration on November 1, 2013 received a confirmation that it had been received, and are now waiting.

I had been under the impression this whole time that we would have to wait until he receives his permanent residency in order for him to work here in canada (he is currently living with me, playing house-husband), but reading more around this forum, I have been seeing more talk about submitting Open Work Permit applications along with spousal sponsorship applications.

I had been under the impression that in order to get work permits, one needed an offer from an employer. Is there a chance my husband will be able to work here in Canada before he gets his permanent residency? This would take a lot of pressure off of our financial situation.

He is a USA citizen, with no special training in fields usually considered for work permits (he does have a yoga teacher certification).

Any information about which applications may be relevant, their costs, and requirements would be greatly appreciated.. It's so confusing wading through all of this!

If you applied inland, then if you submitted an OWP app along with inland app, after stage 1 approval (11 months) you will get an OWP.

If you applied outland, there is no OWP associated with it so you need to wait for full PR.

 

[saydaysago]

We applied inland, but did not send an OWP with the application. Can we send one in now, and would it still become valid after stage one approval?

 

[saydaysago]

I'm seeing some sources saying you can, and some saying you can't.

Right now, I am thinking we will send the OWP application in, along with a letter explaining that we would not like it to be processed until we get initial approval on the spousal immigration application. I will also include the application number and client number for my husbands application so that they will be able to easily match the applications.

Does this sound like a good plan?

 

[saydaysago]

Sorry to be annoying and bump my own thread, but I'm curious whether anyone on here has experience with sending in the OWP separately from the initial application.

I don't want to pay the OWP fee and just have it rejected on a technicality.

 

[Rob_TO]

I think (not certain though) that you should wait until you get AOR on your inland app so will have the UCI/Client number that goes with your application. Then if you send the OWP app and write a letter saying it is to be joined with your inland application, CIC should easily be able to match it up.

 

[Ponga]

If you have confirmation that your application has been received, you should have your UCI/Client number(s) already. When you say that you have confirmation of receipt, did you receive an email from CIC (AOR), or did you simply track the parcel and `know' that it was delivered?

If you do have AOR...
Send your OWP (form IMM5710E). I'd also suggest writing in capital letters across the top of the form:
OWP WITH IN-CANADA SPONSORSHIP APPLICATION. PROCESS AFTER AIP.

Your husband will only be eligible for the OWP after you have been approved as his sponsor, which is when AIP (Approval In Principal) is issued. If his OWP were to be processed before that time, it would be rejected.

For the sections on the form that ask about employer, simply write `Unknown', or `NA', since he probably has no idea where he'll be working or what he'll be doing...yet.

Good luck!

 

[screech339]

You have to be careful of using the AOR email. The UCI listed in the AOR belonged to the sponsor. Not the applicant. There is no UCI assigned to the applicant in the AOR. But if the applicant has a visitor record, the applicant has an assigned UCI that the applicant can use.

I have a feeling (I wish I'm wrong here) that you may have to wait until you get AIP. If the AIP is going to be longer than 6 months, you may have to submit a visitor extension before the 6 month stay is up. Otherwise you would be considered "out of status" since you didn't submit any form of extension with application.

 

[Ponga]

To the OP, what is the current status of your husband?

As screech mentioned, not including it with the application could be an issue if he is out of status...maybe?

Oh...and to answer one of your initial questions...the cost for an OWP is $150
What a bargain!!

 

[screech339]

And if the husband is considered out of status, he cannot submit the OWP as there is no status to extend to begin with. If he is out of status, he would have to wait until AIP is granted to get "back into status". If it has been longer than 6 months since the husband entered Canada, since he hasn't submitted any form of extension with PR application. He is considered "out of status".

 

[saydaysago]

Thanks For all of the answers!

My husband is currently here on a visitor visa (a simple stamp on his passport on last entry). His passport was last stamped entering the country in September, so he has a legitimate status here until March, at which time we were going to apply to extend his visitor visa.

So, if I submit the OWP application before he is out of status, would that be considered an extension, or should we still apply for an extension of the visitor visa? We could easily do both to be sure.

Screech is right, that the AOR e-mail (which I do have) only has a UCI for me, not for my husband, and also an 'application number', which I assume is for my sponsorship application. I think that if I was clear in my attached letter that the UCI belonged to my sponsorship application, they could still use it to find his application fairly easily.