Rejection despite several strong ties

[Moyita]

Hi there,

My conjugal partner and I just received notice of our TRV rejection. We had requested a 1 week visit to Canada for the baptism of our son and to familiarize with son's Canadian heritage. I am a Canadian Citizen but I live with my partner and son outside of Canada. Our application was substantial and we provided several proof of strong ties to my partner's country:

- Home ownership for property her leases
- Lease for our apartment (valid until January 2017)
- Car ownership
- Birth certificates for two children
- 4 letters from employers (confirming salary, years of service, position and responsibilities, approved vacation time and consequences for failing to return to work -- my partner works for the military and failing to return to work would be considered desertion of military duty and could be punishable by emprisonment)
- Letter from the bank stating available funds
- Letter from pension plan stating years of contributions
- Service contracts for phone, Internet and electricity
- Receipts for all furniture and appliances purchased and staying in current residence

We also provided substantial proof to support the purpose of our 1-week visit to Canada:

- Cover letter
- Statutory declaration of invitation from myself
- Letter from my bank confirming funds available
- Letter of invitation from my mother (who was providing us with food and accommodations)
- Letter from my mother's bank stating funds available (she was to serve as garantor in case my funds were insufficient)
- Flight confirmation and photos from my mom's visit 2 months ago
- Affidavit of intent to leave Canada
- Return flight ticket purchase confirmation
- Detailed itinerary within Canada for 1 week including estimated expenses
- Baptism ceremony contract for our son
- Restaurant reservation for a family gathering after the baptism

Finally, as if that wasn't enough to convince the immigration officer that we would leave Canada after our 1-week visit, we also provided a doctor's note and accompanying x-Ray confirming that my partner is scheduled to have dental surgery at the military hospital in May 2016.

At this point, we are very disappointed and confused about this rejection and its impact on our son (who is ultimately refused his baptism). With your help, I am hoping to find out what we could do (if anything) from here. Asking for a PR doesn't seem to make sense to me as we are not looking at moving to Canada. Anything we could change to had strengthen our application? Or is applying again not worth it?

Reasons for rejection were:

1. Travel history (no previous travel)
2. Family ties in Canada and country of residence (I guess that's me and our son although living outside of Canada)
3. Length of proposed stay (1 week!!)
4. Purpose of visit (our son's baptism and a full week of planned visits to historic and cultural sites to allow my partner to discover his son's Canadian heritage)
5. Personal assets and financial status
6. Other reasons: your conjugal partner's invitation and funds noted, however you have not satisfied me that you are well established and you have strong ties in your country to return

Thoughts??

 

[scylla]

This this your partner's first refusal or has your partner applied for a TRV before?

 

[Moyita]

He has one previous rejection from almost two years ago.

 

[Moyita]

Are you suggesting that the first rejection from 2 years ago is what likely caused the second?

 

[steaky]

Are you suggesting that the first rejection from 2 years ago is what likely caused the second?

I would disagree. Btw, since you are Canadian citizen, couldn't you travel to Canada alone with your son? That way, he wouldn't had missed out his baptism.

 

[BrianDell]

- Home ownership for property her leases

Are any of these various assets clearly in the name of the visa applicant?

1. Travel history (no previous travel)

This, of course, is something that can be addressed over time. Generally a Schengen visa should be easier to get, and then a US visa, and then try again for Canadian. This depends somewhat on country of origin.

3. Length of proposed stay (1 week!!)

One week is implausibly short if you're coming from another continent and particularly if coming from more than six time zones away. They say one should allow a time zone per day to fully adjust to the jet lag. How much are the flights here? Spend all that money on flights and then only in Canada for a week? Doesn't make sense. If you've got money to burn such that the flight cost doesn't matter then why hasn't the applicant already been jetting around the world? If I were the visa officer my reaction would be I'm being told only a week because someone thinks shorter is more likely to be approved, as opposed to someone telling me what's most likely to actually transpire.

4. Purpose of visit (our son's baptism and a full week of planned visits to historic and cultural sites to allow my partner to discover his son's Canadian heritage)

The son can't be baptized in another country? If there are relatives in Canada that would attend then the more direct reason would be to have relatives meet the child. As another poster noted, the child could also be baptized in Canada by just leaving the applicant behind.

6. Other reasons: your conjugal partner's invitation and funds noted, however you have not satisfied me that you are well established and you have strong ties in your country to return

Looks like you got a reason here tailored to your case and not just a generic check off. As such, this reason is by far the most important. It's worth noting here that the officer has acknowledged your invitation and funds and then promptly set that aside to say, in effect, that that is not the problem. Tweaking the invitation is accordingly unlikely to make a difference.

 

[Moyita]

Thank you all for your replies. Just thought I would clarify that My partner and I do not reside 6 time zones away from Canada (don't know where you got this idea from). We are in the Caribbean which is only a 4-hour direct flight away from Canada with no time zone difference. Asking for a 1 week visit is very justifiable. As for our son's baptism, no he cannot be baptized without the presence of his father and no we can not baptize him in our current country of residence. I can travel alone to Canada with our son but there would be no point in doing so. The visit was for my partner to participate in his son's baptism and to familiarize himself with his son historical and cultural heritage. As for the application overall and the CIC's decision, it seems that they are trying to push us to apply for a permanent residency visa (PRV) even though we have no intention of moving and becoming established in Canada. To wait 2 years for such an unnecessary process to be completed (in our case) is truly appalling and seems prejudicial to me. I would appreciate any further thoughts on how we can strengthen our application to show that we do not want to move to Canada.

 

[tajinder107]

HI APPLY FOR GCMS NOTES AND THAN APPLY AGAIN. MAYBE THE VISA OFFICER WAS FRUSTRATED OR HAD FIGHT WITH SPOUSE ON THE DATE OF DECISION OF YOUR FILE

 

[Moyita]

I have already requested the notes but it says it can take up to one month. Now it's a waiting game...

 

[steaky]

Thank you all for your replies. Just thought I would clarify that My partner and I do not reside 6 time zones away from Canada (don't know where you got this idea from). We are in the Caribbean which is only a 4-hour direct flight away from Canada with no time zone difference. Asking for a 1 week visit is very justifiable. As for our son's baptism, no he cannot be baptized without the presence of his father and no we can not baptize him in our current country of residence. I can travel alone to Canada with our son but there would be no point in doing so. The visit was for my partner to participate in his son's baptism and to familiarize himself with his son historical and cultural heritage. As for the application overall and the CIC's decision, it seems that they are trying to push us to apply for a permanent residency visa (PRV) even though we have no intention of moving and becoming established in Canada. To wait 2 years for such an unnecessary process to be completed (in our case) is truly appalling and seems prejudicial to me. I would appreciate any further thoughts on how we can strengthen our application to show that we do not want to move to Canada.

Your family don't have to move to Canada immediately after your partner got his PR visa if the whole family does not want to in that time period. Consider this option: Once your partner got his PR visa and had to land in Canada to activate his PR status, while your partner is in Canada, he can participate your son's baptism and familiarize himself with the son's historical and cultural heritage. Afterwards your family can return to home country and live the way you desires. Since you are Canadian citizen, your partner will keep his permanent resident status as long as he accompanies you.

 

[fantas8]

I feel you gave them all the supporting documents, except the 1 week which is short. I wonder why they would refuse though.

 

[MrB]

I do not think there is any valid justification for the refusal. I think a lot of visa officers, are letting biases, ignorance and prejudice cloud their judgement. The reality is that you have a very strong application based on the information you have provided and I think you should file for a judicial review at the federal court using a Canadian immigration lawyer. You will be amazed at how their decision will be flawed in court.

 

[steaky]

I do not think there is any valid justification for the refusal. I think a lot of visa officers, are letting biases, ignorance and prejudice cloud their judgement. The reality is that you have a very strong application based on the information you have provided and I think you should file for a judicial review at the federal court using a Canadian immigration lawyer. You will be amazed at how their decision will be flawed in court.

What you had suggested would be expensive and time consuming. It should be quicker and cheaper for OP to sponsor his partner for PR from the Caribbean.

 

[scylla]

What you had suggested would be expensive and time consuming. It should be quicker and cheaper for OP to sponsor his partner for PR from the Caribbean.

Agreed. Unless the OP has $5K burning a hole in her pocket and is OK seeing that money disappear with zero guarantee of a successful outcome - a judicial review makes no sense.

 

[steaky]

Furthermore, if OP wants to investigate in more detail why their application was rejected, they can order GCMS notes.