Sponsorship Question: Use a Lawyer or Self-Apply?

[USjason]

Hello Forum,

I just wanted some basic advice, and I know every case is different so maybe I'm looking more for feedback? My spouse is Canadian, I am American. We met with an immigration attorney yesterday and after the $300 consultation, he wanted another $6,230 for us to apply for sponsorship. During our consultation, the attorney thoroughly reviewed our case and said that the timeline and evidence appears more than sufficient and that we shouldn't have any problems with the process at all. His fee includes everything from the application to the work permit to the eventual PR status. But after speaking with the attorney, I'm just wondering if it's still worth doing all this work in compiling everything for them, when all they are basically going to do is check it and submit it for us? It just seems like if we stick to the outline and provide ample proof of everything that it may be more economical to do it ourselves? We figured it up and even with printing and binding (our application will be more than thorough & professional) we can still do everything for around $1,000. It's a significant savings, I am confident in our ability to present a satisfying case, but I am not sure if an attorney is going to do anything more for us than we can do ourselves? Or, instead of an attorney, are their consultants or anyone out there who will only review a packet prior to submission? I don't mind paying a smaller fee for a legal review, I just can't justify $6,500 for an attorney when we can do it all ourselves? Please help

 

[keesio]

If you are sponsoring an American who will not have any issues with their application (no issues of criminality, past deportation, etc), then there is absolutely no need to use a lawyer or consultant. The only reason I can see where it would be useful is if money is of no issue and you hate dealing with the paperwork for the application (putting together the application will take some time and angst).

 

[KelseyTVS]

Self apply for sure. Any question you have can be posted here and will probably be answered within an hour. Especially if your case is so straightforward, there's no reason to have a lawyer

 

[USjason]

Thank you both so much! I am glad that we paid the $300 for the consultation because it did give us peace of mind that our application should be a smooth one, that was why we were skeptical to pay $6,500 for the process. I think what we may do is complete the entire process on our own and then find an immigration attorney who will charge us by the hour and spend 2-3 hours reviewing everything before it's submitted. I'm just so worried that one undotted i or uncrossed t will cause issues but that's a lot of money!

 

[Aquakitty]

Thank you both so much! I am glad that we paid the $300 for the consultation because it did give us peace of mind that our application should be a smooth one, that was why we were skeptical to pay $6,500 for the process. I think what we may do is complete the entire process on our own and then find an immigration attorney who will charge us by the hour and spend 2-3 hours reviewing everything before it's submitted. I'm just so worried that one undotted i or uncrossed t will cause issues but that's a lot of money!

I printed all our ID and document copies with an old inkjet printer with knockoff ink, but printed them on photo paper which makes the quality look quite professional.

I simply organised all the papers with short titled cover sheets with explanations of what was contained therein (mostly concerning the proof documents such as photos and printouts of chats etc.).

As for binding, CIC asks for the papers to be unstapled, so I'm not sure if they want the documents bound. I think a nice folder with the organised cover sheets is sufficient.

This year, processing for Americans is going very fast. My husband got his just under 4 months. We did nothing special. I simply double checked every paper and the checklists several times myself and had my husband do the same.

One thing that screws people up is out-of-date forms. CIC likes to ninja-update their forms without notice. Be sure on the day you are sending your forms in, that none of the forms have been updated. Checking these forums helps. The day we were to mail in our app I noticed a form got updated, so I had to open the application and redo the form. It's a good thing we did since that is like the top reason people have their app sent back.

Unless you really hate paperwork or don't want to learn, save yourself some money and do it yourself. In a way it's kind of fun to learn about the process.


Oh and, if you plan to apply in the next few months, get your FBI police certificate request sent in ASAP. The FBI is backed up and the wait is very long, about 3 months I think.

 

[deweysmith]

Thank you both so much! I am glad that we paid the $300 for the consultation because it did give us peace of mind that our application should be a smooth one, that was why we were skeptical to pay $6,500 for the process. I think what we may do is complete the entire process on our own and then find an immigration attorney who will charge us by the hour and spend 2-3 hours reviewing everything before it's submitted. I'm just so worried that one undotted i or uncrossed t will cause issues but that's a lot of money!

Honestly, I would not even do that. The forms are perfectly straightforward.

On Thursday, I got my FBI Identity History after 16 weeks of waiting. Friday, I paid $25 to print ~200 photos of us dating and our wedding,and $15 for two sets of PR Card photos at Costco.

Tuesday, I did my medical at an office in Montreal. That night, I printed all the forms with the inkjet printer/scanner I got for free with my laptop on the cheapest paper I could find at Staples, along with Delta ticket receipts from my SkyMiles account showing we had flown back and forth to visit for some time.

I also used the same free scanner/printer unit to copy our marriage certificate, passports, and birth certificates. I paid the fees online with my USA American Express card, printed the receipt, smudged it, printed it again, and put the smudged copy into the envelope by accident. I threw everything else into a kraft paper envelope I bought a 6-pack of at Dollarama, and sent it express Canada Post from Montreal the next morning.

Still got Acknowledgement of Receipt and Sponsorship Approval just as quickly as everyone else. If only Quebec hadn't taken 2 extra weeks to issue my CSQ, I'd be typing this as a permanent resident.

As for binding, CIC asks for the papers to be unstapled, so I'm not sure if they want the documents bound. I think a nice folder with the organised cover sheets is sufficient.

This is correct. Don't bind anything, the guide specifically states that everything should be loose. Cover sheets are optional, the only thing in our application that wasn't a form from the application package was a short sheet continuing my personal work history for IMM5669E.

Oh and, if you plan to apply in the next few months, get your FBI police certificate request sent in ASAP. The FBI is backed up and the wait is very long, about 3 months I think.

Best advice you could possibly get. If you haven't, do this TODAY. It was the longest part of my preparation.

 

[truesmile]

Exactly right! It's not a Sales proposal, they're government forms. Use the cheapest paper you can find.

 

[Galano1213]

Easy to do yourself just follow the directions and make absolutely sure the forms are the most up to date before you send them. I suggest you check on line before you send them in to make sure you have the correct dates as the website does post new ones. Some forms require both spouses to sign them as well. Any questions you have a member on here has usually incounted them and can answer it. Using a Lawyer does nor speed up the process and most are not all that familiar with immigration. Save your money for a celebration when you arrive in Canada .

 

[deweysmith]

Also, I have heard from multiple immigration officers (and said this on this forum about 38 times) that they get applications for sponsorship or other PR classes prepared by immigration attorneys that are STILL done wrong.

"one undotted i or uncrossed t" may cause issues, but as long as your application passed initial checks when it was received and doesn't get returned a month after you sent it for an incomplete or out-of-date form, then CIC won't close your file and ask you to reapply if something comes up. They may send an email asking for more information, or for you to clarify something on a form, or do an interview if they are uncertain of the genuineness of your relationship, but they they don't make people start over without a really good reason, or lack of communication, outside of that initial application acceptance.

Fill out the forms on your computer, make sure you hit the "Validate" button on all of them that support it, print them off and make sure they're all signed, and you're not gonna have any problems.

 

[Majromax]

or do an interview if they are uncertain of the genuineness of your relationship,

And even this is extremely unlikely for US/Canadian applications that are generally ordinary. I cannot recall of ever hearing a case here where CIC questioned the legitimacy of a US/Canadian spousal relationship.

Questioning common-law relationships is a bit more common since the couple has to prove cohabitation and intermingling of affairs, so even a sincere relationship may not meet the requirement. Questioning of conjugal partnerships on the other hand is extremely common because there are almost no legal barriers to a US/Canadian couple marrying or forming a common-law relationship.

 

[bigredmoose]

Do not hire a lawyer. $6,230 is ridiculous. You're still going to have to do all the work. Best case scenario they help you review the docs and mail it in for you. Worst case scenario they give bad advice that winds up costing you more money or worse, time. Time and time again, we see people on here who have gone to an attorney and been told things that simply aren't true. Lawyers understand the law and the good ones will have courtroom experience and thus have a sense of how legal cases will go. None of that is useful in navigating the CIC's bureaucracy.

Don't bother getting anything professionally printed (waste of money, inkjet at home is fine) and certainly do not bind any of it. This will just irritate the CIC agent when he or she has to undo it. You do not want the first impression the agent has of you to be a negative one.

 

[keesio]

Earlier I said that a lawyer is not needed. I stand by that. But a (good) lawyer does more than just review the application. They can make the whole process very easy. For my PR application, my company (I was working for them on a work permit) hired a very good immigration firm to handle it. They made it very easy for me. They made an appointment with me where they asked me to bring some documents (which they copied). They then set up appointments for me to get my security clearance and medicals - told me when and where to go. Then a few weeks later they asked me to come in again and sign the application in a few places and that was it. A year later they asked me for my passport so CIC can stick the immigrant visa in it (this is no longer done for people with visa-exempt passports, you just get a COPR in the mail now). A month later they call me in to give me my passport back and an envelope and tell me to present both to a CBSA officer on my next trip returning to Canada to land. Basically everything was abstracted from me, I knew nothing, just followed a few instructions and the rest was handled for me and next thing I know, I'm a PR. It was so abstracted from me that when I decided to sponsor my wife and apply myself, I had almost no idea how the PR process worked... I was learning for the first time even though I became a PR myself (though under different circumstances). I barely remember my PR process because I barely spent any time working on it or worrying about it. But I remember every detail of my wife's because I spent so much time on it.

Still, I would have never paid that big lawyer's fee out of my own pocket. My case was simple. But hey, the company paid it and the lawyer was from a top immigration law firm used by many corporations. But looking back, they definitely did more than just review my application. They basically put together my application and just asked me for some stuff. They basically did it all to the point where I don't even remember the application process much at all for my PR. So again, if you have money to burn and hate paperwork... it's not necessarily a bad idea if you can find a good lawyer (which apparently is harder than it seems)

 

[Hollywood]

I feel like I did everything correctly myself. I'm pretty meticulous on things like this. Crossing my fingers!