Reference Letter From Ex-Colleague

[Asivad Anac]

And you know to make matters worse, these aren't some random startup organizations either - both the companies I'm talking about are (I presume) fairly well known - Gartner (India) and Tripadvisor (Singapore)

Ofcourse I'm sure that makes zero difference to CIC but it does make me feel pretty bloody helpless and frustrated

For maximizing CRS points, you only need 3 years of full time foreign work experience in NOC 0/A/B within the last 10 years. For FSW eligibility though, you might need more years of experience to get to 67 AND they must be within the same NOC as well. 3 years of experience in a single NOC gets you 11 points on the FSW grid.

Check which combination of experience gets you to those 3 years of required experience and reach out to people for reference letters.

 

[hshringi]

Guys, one more thing

While going through my email history with Tripadvisor Singapore, I found an email from their HR with a Job Description (JD) attached which fairly closely matches the NOC

Unfortunately, this JD is written on Word without the company letterhead or any signatures whatsoever (it was sent to me as part of the interview process) - would attaching this email (and the JD) as part of my documents (alongside other supplementary documents like appointment letter, pay slips, etc) resolve my problem? Or would I still need to get a reference letter from someone?

The probability of me getting a letter from Tripadvisor is really slim at this point (mainly because I'm not in touch with anyone who I worked with while HR won't respond to my calls/email)

Hence why I'm trying to find the next best alternative (if one exists that is)

 

[hshringi]

For maximizing CRS points, you only need 3 years of full time foreign work experience in NOC 0/A/B within the last 10 years. For FSW eligibility though, you might need more years of experience to get to 67 AND they must be within the same NOC as well. 3 years of experience in a single NOC gets you 11 points on the FSW grid.

Check which combination of experience gets you to those 3 years of required experience and reach out to people for reference letters.

I need both of these companies to get the FSW eligibility (from a perspective of both 3 years requirements and the 67 points needed for qualification). The other companies I worked for are even smaller (startups essentially) so getting a reference letter from them is basically impossible

 

[Asivad Anac]

I need both of these companies to get the FSW eligibility (from a perspective of both 3 years requirements and the 67 points needed for qualification). The other companies I worked for are even smaller (startups essentially) so getting a reference letter from them is basically impossible

In that case, start stalking people on LinkedIn and social media to identify at least 1 ex-colleague who worked there with you. You only need to find that 1 person who is willing to sign a reference letter (written by you but from their perspective) and give you a business card as well. They don't even need to meet you in person - send them the letter, get them to sign and scan it back to you. You can then get it notarized at your end before submission. The core content of this reference letter would be job responsibilities as everything else can be proved by the supporting documentation which you already have at your end.

If that fails, reach out to the HR there and talk to them about the absolute necessity of having such a document for immigration purposes. Most HRs wouldn't care but some of them just might agree and support you with this. They might still need you to send them a sample reference letter (shouldn't be hard for you to do that) which they can print out on their letterhead, date, sign and scan it back to you.

Just remember that almost everyone struggles with this requirement. If they could do it, so can you. Give it an honest attempt.

All the best!

 

[hshringi]

Thanks mate...I've been bugging HR for as long as I recall and I intend to continue doing the same next week as well

I'll see if I can get in touch with some ex-colleagues as well

Just 2 things though:

a) Will the JD I mentioned before work at all or is it next to worthless?

b) I only need a scanned copy of their business card, right? Surely I'm not gonna get my hands on an original given my location (India) vs the location of those colleagues (Singapore)

Thanks for the help~

 

[Asivad Anac]

Thanks mate...I've been bugging HR for as long as I recall and I intend to continue doing the same next week as well

I'll see if I can get in touch with some ex-colleagues as well

Just 2 things though:

a) Will the JD I mentioned before work at all or is it next to worthless?

b) I only need a scanned copy of their business card, right? Surely I'm not gonna get my hands on an original given my location (India) vs the location of those colleagues (Singapore)

A better idea would be to include their contact details on the reference letter itself.

Thanks for the help~

 

[hshringi]

Interesting.

I can certainly do that. I might even have a Tripadvisor logo on hand (will have to check) that I can insert.

That said, she (HR) probably won't sign it - I'll try my level best though

 

[Asivad Anac]

Interesting.

I can certainly do that. I might even have a Tripadvisor logo on hand (will have to check) that I can insert.

That said, she (HR) probably won't sign it - I'll try my level best though

Inserting the organizational logo (or use of letterhead/company stationery) on a letter issued in someone's personal capacity is a bad idea.

 

[hshringi]

Fair enough, I won't add any of my own touches then

But I think its only fair I include the details of the HR lady in the doc - that's included in her signature anyways (which was a part of the email I received including the JD)

 

[smtele]

Just wondering since you mentioned ex-colleague, why can't you get a reference letter from a current colleague, or a senior colleague who has worked with you since you were employed? CIC states that they need a letter from either an immediate supervisor or a personnel officer (http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/tools/perm/express/intake-complete.asp). I have always believed that "personnel officer" could be a colleague who knows about your experience, and can attest to your job duties and other details.

 

[hshringi]

Well to put it bluntly, its because I'm not in touch with anyone who continues to work there

Most folks who I worked with have since moved on - there's a few who are still around (who as I mentioned I'm not in touch with) but I guess I'll blast a few mails to them as well hoping one sticks

 

[hshringi]

So I managed to get a reference letter signed by an ex-colleague alongside a copy of his current business card

Will this suffice?

I'm still trying to get my hands on a current employee (and HR if that's possible) but in case I can't, do you guys this could work out?

I WILL get it notarized ofcourse

 

[Asivad Anac]

So I managed to get a reference letter signed by an ex-colleague alongside a copy of his current business card

Will this suffice?

I'm still trying to get my hands on a current employee (and HR if that's possible) but in case I can't, do you guys this could work out?

I WILL get it notarized ofcourse

This would work provided it mentions job responsibilities that closely match main duties of your chosen NOC, has all other details as required by IRCC, is supported by other supporting documentation (offer letter, appraisal letter etc) which further prove the authenticity of this employment, is notarized, is accompanied with a short LoE wherein you regret the inability to procure reference letter in the required format because your former organization wasn't supportive and make an earnest and polite request to the officer to treat these documents collectively as a valid substitute for that aforementioned reference letter.

All the best!

 

[hshringi]

This would work provided it mentions job responsibilities that closely match main duties of your chosen NOC, has all other details as required by IRCC, is supported by other supporting documentation (offer letter, appraisal letter etc) which further prove the authenticity of this employment, is notarized, is accompanied with a short LoE wherein you regret the inability to procure reference letter in the required format because your former organization wasn't supportive and make an earnest and polite request to the officer to treat these documents collectively as a valid substitute for that aforementioned reference letter.

All the best!

Now I finally know why you are rated so highly here...you are an absolute life saver mate!

Yes I do believe I have all of that information available to me (notarization aside but I'll get to that shortly) - the job duties certainly match my NOC as well so that's not a concern

As for the LOE, do I create multiple LOE's since I likely will face the same situation for another (even 2 more possibly) organization who might refuse to provide me a reference letter?

Also is there any format that I should follow for the LOE?

Again, thank you so much for everything so far!

 

[Asivad Anac]

As for the LOE, do I create multiple LOE's since I likely will face the same situation for another (even 2 more possibly) organization who might refuse to provide me a reference letter.

Yes. For each reference letter substitute, make a single PDF which has all the documents and have a customized LoE for each of those as the 1st/cover page on that PDF.

Also is there any format as such that I should follow while creating the LOE?

No specific format. Just a regular letter explaining what that PDF is all about, may be addressed 'To whoever it may concern' or 'To The Case Officer, IRCC' or to nobody at all.

Again, thank you so much for everything so far!