Sponsoring my Korean wife for permanent residency

[bartjones]

Another update. Since CIC hadn't called my wife by mid-afternoon today, I called the number I had been given at CIC Windsor on Monday to see what was going on. The officer I spoke to today said he couldn't tell me anything about the status of my wife's application as such applications go straight from receiving to the director's office, which doesn't accept phone calls from the public. He also said that they do not call people in for interviews by phone, as I was told on Monday, they do it by letter sent by snail mail. He said that he couldn't comment on what the officer had told me Monday but that he had a completely different understanding of the process, which was totally at odds with what I was told last Monday. I now have no idea where we are at in terms of getting her back in and feeling pretty frustrated at this point.

 

[CanNZ]

I am sorry to hear about all this bartjones, hopefully it will be resolved quickly to a positive conclusion.

 

[Sejong]

Sorry to hear about your situation Bartjones. It's starting to get ridiculous.

Update on our situation. My wife and I just arrived in Canada. Went through immigration in Vancouver without any issues. I told them my wife's PR application was being processed and that she was visiting me in Canada for 90 days (as indicated on her place ticket). Immigration was more concerned with my puppy than my wife. Is she supposed to receive an email from Manila in the next couple of months?

 

[bartjones]

Sorry to hear about your situation Bartjones. It's starting to get ridiculous.

Update on our situation. My wife and I just arrived in Canada. Went through immigration in Vancouver without any issues. I told them my wife's PR application was being processed and that she was visiting me in Canada for 90 days (as indicated on her place ticket). Immigration was more concerned with my puppy than my wife. Is she supposed to receive an email from Manila in the next couple of months?

Dunno. For Korea2Canada and me the first word from Manila came 4-5 months after the file was transferred there. Things seemed to have slowed down for Korean applicants. CanNZ is still waiting, so I suppose the answer is that she'll hear something at some point but who knows when.

I'm going down to Michigan to spend a couple days with my wife this week. I'll stop in at CIC at the border on the way back and see what I can find out about my wife's situation. The latest I'm hearing is that they won't discuss the status of her application with me because of Privacy Act concerns, even though my wife waived her Privacy Act rights by appointing me her representative when we filed the Crim. Rehab. application. ???

 

[CanNZ]

Finally got an email from Manila.

Fully Completed Appendix A (attached) for you and each of your family members, whether accompanying you to Canada or not. Passport details are not required for any family member who is not accompanying you to Canada.


• Personal history from July 2013 to present(see attached form--include jobs held, periods of unemployment, periods of study and any other extended use of time, such as time spent travelling in search of a country of refuge, stays in hospital, prisons or other places of confinement, as well as periods spent at home as a homemaker. PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE GAPS, AND USE MONTH-YEAR FORMAT.)
• Complete history of residential addresses from July 2013 to present (PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE GAPS, AND USE MONTH-YEAR FORMAT.) (see attached form).
• Original police certificate(s) from Korea for you with Criminal and Investigation record including lapsed records(Please see the CIC web site for details on how to obtain police certificates from different countries: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/security/police-cert/index.asp).
Note: if the original police certificate is not in English or French, you must include a translated copy.
• Documentary proof of your sponsor’s intent to re-establish in Canada.

This is what they want from us.

 

[CanNZ]

Bartjones, how did your wife get her background check while in Canada?

 

[bartjones]

Bartjones, how did your wife get her background check while in Canada?

First, you need a friend/family member in Korea who can do the check for you. Then you need to go to the nearest Korean Consulate with your wife. She will need her passport and probably her Korean ID card. Tell them you want to get someone to do a CHIR search for you in Korea for Canadian immigration purposes. They will provide you with a form which authorizes your friend/family member to do the search on your behalf. There's a small fee. I think it was six bucks.

You can then courier that form to your friend/family member in Korea who can then do the search for you, have it notarized and translated and then sent on to Manila.

It took about a week or so for my wife and I to get all that done and delivered to CIC Manila. I wouldn't be in any big hurry. From looking at her GCMS notes, after the initial document request in August last year, and the delivery of the requested documents a week or so later, nobody looked at my wife's file again until November.

Wonder what was wrong with your original CHIR? Did they also neglect to search lapsed records?

As for the balance of their request, haven't you already given them most of that information in the original application package? Don't they know that you're actually back in Canada and have been since last summer?

 

[CanNZ]

The rest of the information is a bit strange, they want info from the time SINCE we filed our application! As for my part, that will be easy to fill out as I am working now in Canada.

The appendix A form is a bit strange though all the sections are for children!

 

[bartjones]

The rest of the information is a bit strange, they want info from the time SINCE we filed our application! As for my part, that will be easy to fill out as I am working now in Canada.

The appendix A form is a bit strange though all the sections are for children!

The appendix A form just needs to list you and your wife if you have no kids. It can be handwritten, scanned and returned by email.

 

[CanNZ]

Yeah I figured that out but the personal history and address request for information since we have filed our application is weird.

 

[bartjones]

Yeah I figured that out but the personal history and address request for information since we have filed our application is weird.

I agree. That's a little strange. Tell me, If I recall correctly, you tried to advise them of your new address in Canada after you moved here. Did that address change show up in ECAS? Maybe they don't know you guys are in Canada.

I'm a little worried about this myself. I changed our address twice after moving to Canada and it showed up in ECAS about a week later both times. A month ago I changed my wife's address to her new location in Michigan using the same method as the first two times, but this time it hasn't changed in ECAS. Weird.

 

[Korea2Canada]

Finally got an email from Manila.

This is what they want from us.

We had a similar request back in Nov. We submitted it ( email and courier ) 2 days later. That was the last we heard from Manila.

 

[Korea2Canada]

Bart, sorry to hear about all the red tape. Its extreme for a DUI to have such impact on a PR. If anything, it should only affect getting a drivers permit ( if that ). It's really creating undue hardship in my opinion.

 

[Korea2Canada]

Manila does not reply to emails. I've sent emails months ago and just got auto replies. How are people supposed to apply if they can't ask questions. How archaic are they anyway?! This site has been 100 times more helpful than Manila.

We decided months ago to wait for the PR here in Korea.

 

[bartjones]

Bart, sorry to hear about all the red tape. Its extreme for a DUI to have such impact on a PR. If anything, it should only affect getting a drivers permit ( if that ). It's really creating undue hardship in my opinion.

Thanks. The whole thing is just becoming very frustrating. Maybe I'll be able to get some better information when I go back to CIC Windsor on Thursday, but I'm not holding my breath.

Bartjones, how did your wife get her background check while in Canada?

CanNZ, just read this on CIC's website. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/security/police-cert/asia-pacific/korea-south.asp. It says "Immediate family members (parents, spouses, siblings) may request a certificate on your behalf".

We couldn't do it that way as all my wife's immediate family live in the US, but if your wife still has someone in one of those categories that is in Korea, you may not need the document from the Consulate. Why don't you get one of your wife's parents or siblings to call the local police station and see if they can get one for you, without the Consulate document.