Spouse visa application. Please help!!!

[Schmeej1]

Hi,

It would be great if someone could please give me some advice on my current situation.

My wife and I both live and work in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. She is Canadian and I'm British.
I have been in Dubai for 19 months on a resident visa organized by the company that I work for. My wife is in the same situation but has been in Dubai for 5 years. Before working at my current job I split my time between London and Dubai on a visit visa. We got married in Canada in 2010.

My wife is now 4 months pregnant and we wish to move to Canada to be closer to her family and begin a life there before our baby is born. The problem is that my wife was not aware that she had to declare herself a non resident (hand in health card, driving license etc) when she left for Dubai in 2007. We return home to Canada for a month each year for a vacation and to work with the family business. The income that she earns in this time, she declares for income tax. The income she earns in Dubai, she does not declare.

The big question is "what is the best way for us to apply?".
We feel that we should apply inside Canada because we think that she will have to pay 5 years worth of income tax if we apply from Dubai but applying from Canada will be as if she never left. What do you think?

The processing times for visas are so long!

We want to move to Canada in the next 4 months but I need to be able to work. If we apply in Canada will I be able to work after I have applied? Given a social security number etc? With my wife pregnant we can't afford for me not to.

I am also looking into applying for a 1 year work visa through International Experience Canada (IEC) but am unsure as I have been outside of the Uk for 19 months when a maximum of 18 months is allowed.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[scylla]

Applying inland vs. outland will make no difference to the income tax your wife must pay.

If you apply inland (from within Canada), you will be able to work once stage 1 processing has been completed. Stage 1 is currently taking 12-13 months to complete.

If you apply outland (from Dubai), you will be able to work once your application has been approved and you have landed in Canada as a permanent resident.

Unfortunately I don't believe you qualify to apply for IEC since you don't meet the 18 months rule.

Hope this helps.

 

[scylla]

Just to add, if you decide to apply inland and want to work sooner, you will have to find an employer in Canada who is willing to offer you a job. That employer will then have to apply for a Labour Market Opinion to demonstrate that they advertised the job and were unable to find a Canadian to fill the role. If the LMO is approved, you will then be able to apply for a work permit tied to that specific employer.

 

[Schmeej1]

Thanks for the reply

If we apply inland, will the government know that my wife has been working in Dubai or will they just see the income that she declared while spending 1 month in Canada? The amount in Canada that she earned in this time, although low, is an amount that someone could be paid over 12 months. Will she have to pay tax on the Dubai income?

You say that stage 1 is taking 12-13 months right now. Is there nothing that can be done to speed up the process? I think all Dubai applications go to London, UK. Could I bypass Dubai and send my application direct to London?

 

[scylla]

I can't answer your tax question. Hopefully someone else can help.

No - there is no way to speed up stage 1. For inland, all applications are processed by the Vegreville, Alberta office. Your file would only be processed by London if you apply outland.

 

[pinklady]

You should start getting your application ready as soon as possible and apply outland. You will send everything to Mississauga first where they will assess your wife as a suitable sponsor. This is currently taking around 54 days. Then the application will be forwarded to London.
If you look at the spreadsheet I made of London applicants, you will see that the average processing times are around 4 months total.
Take a look at the application forms and guides and the checklist to get an idea of what you need.
It will take longer than you think to gather the documents together so the sooner you start the better.
You need to do the medical, get an option C printout (and/or her paystubs from dubai for last year), and pay all fees up front to avoid delays further down the line. Total should be $1040.

 

[tim maguire]

You're not going to be able to speed up the process the way you want to. And my guess is your wife has a real tax problem on her hands (you'll need to discuss that with an accountant/attorney).

If you want your baby born in Canada and you want to be there when it happens, you'll have to apply inland and accept the longer waiting times. I don't know what you do for a living, but I am aware of a person who wanted to apply inland but could not afford to not work during the waiting period. He was a consultant and he maintained clients in his home country and filed taxes, etc. in his home country so that Canada did not know he was working during this period.

 

[pinklady]

Just because he is in Canada, does not mean he has to apply inland. He can still apply outland, as most visa exempt people do, myself included. Inland vs outland only means the visa office, not where you physically are. But people who do wish to apply inland, must be in Canada. Outland, you can be anywhere, including Canada.

 

[tim maguire]

Just because he is in Canada, does not mean he has to apply inland. He can still apply outland, as most visa exempt people do, myself included. Inland vs outland only means the visa office, not where you physically are. But people who do wish to apply inland, must be in Canada. Outland, you can be anywhere, including Canada.

Thanks for the clarification. I didn't know that.

 

[Victorfoxtrot]

If you want your baby born in Canada and you want to be there when it happens, you'll have to apply inland and accept the longer waiting times.

Not true. Your wife can apply to sponsor you now whilst you are still in Dubai. As Pinklady says, so an outland application via London, UK. Mine was processed in just under 5 months. You can go to Canada as a visitor whilst your application is in process, but you would not be able to work until you got it. So let's say you start gathering all the documents, doing the medicals, obtaining police checks and fill out the forms - you could be ready to submit everything 6 weeks from now if you act quickly. Based on current average times, if you posted your application off at the start of April, I'd estimate you would have your PR confirmed by end Aug/start Sept. Whereas if you apply inland the wait is more than double and you'd be ineligible to work for a much, much longer period of time.

As for your wifes tax issues, I cannot help there - you really do need to consult a tax expert. The other thing to consider of course is that although your wife did not declare herself as being overseas, she will surely be treated as a returning resident when she comes back and I know in Ontario that OHIP coverage does not kick in until 3 months after a new or returning resident has landed. It maybe that wanting to have the baby in Canada is not the wisest move as you could be liable for the costs of labour & delivery - unless of course you have insurance, but I think that is pretty difficult to obtain (not to mention expensive) as your wife is already pregnant. It perhaps might be wiser to have the baby in Dubai, and then return to Canada altogether once your PR is all confirmed when the baby is a couple of months old.

 

[tim maguire]

Victor, his wife is 4 months pregnant so, with the exception of pinklady's correction (already acknowledged), it is true. Unless his wife is an elephant. I didn't think of getting clarification on that point.