Thread for Outland LONDON, UK Applications!

[michty6]

Thanks!

Now I'm facing a dilemma. Do I extend my visitor's visa? I arrived here on the 29th October, so it would expire on the 29th April, yeah? You'd think that my COPR would have arrived by then, but it seems London aren't always on the ball with mailing them...

If it wasn't $75 to apply for an extension I wouldn't sweat it, but that's not small change (for me, anyway).

If I were you first thing I would do is email London right now and explain your situation to them. Then see what their response is and take it from there. If their response is 'we understand and have posted your visa out today' then excellent.

The thing is if you've gone to DM on ECAS the chances are your COPR is already in the mail on the way to you. That's how it works for most people since ECAS updates so irregularly - my ECAS updated 2 days after CIC told me they'd already mailed it...

 

[michty6]

So I tried to find out if Service Canada are open on weekends and it appears not. Does anyone know if there is any other way of getting a SIN or will I be stuck waiting till Monday morning?

 

[Uk2Can]

See how cic emailed me and told my husband to get his sponsor to pay the right to permenant resident fee of 490 to finalize the application, where are they getting the 490 from? My receipt says 550 was paid and so does my visa statment? 75 for sponsor and 475 for permenant resident fee. If the permenant resident fee was 490 it would be more?? Anyways, I emailed them back with the receipt and hopefully hear from them today! I was just thinking here about 490 and I thought, "wait I only paid 475 for residency fee and 75 for sponsor fee! Humm...!"

 

[baruderu]

So I tried to find out if Service Canada are open on weekends and it appears not. Does anyone know if there is any other way of getting a SIN or will I be stuck waiting till Monday morning?

You'll have to wait til Monday :-( OHIP can be done on Saturdays though (at least where we live).

 

[michty6]

See how cic emailed me and told my husband to get his sponsor to pay the right to permenant resident fee of 490 to finalize the application, where are they getting the 490 from? My receipt says 550 was paid and so does my visa statment? 75 for sponsor and 475 for permenant resident fee. If the permenant resident fee was 490 it would be more?? Anyways, I emailed them back with the receipt and hopefully hear from them today! I was just thinking here about 490 and I thought, "wait I only paid 475 for residency fee and 75 for sponsor fee! Humm...!"

Weren't there 2 fees? I remember the total coming to just over $1,000...

You'll have to wait til Monday :-( OHIP can be done on Saturdays though (at least where we live).

Don't you need a new SIN number before you can apply for OHIP?

 

[Uk2Can]

They found it just got an email, hooray!

 

[rebecassss]

Weren't there 2 fees? I remember the total coming to just over $1,000...

Don't you need a new SIN number before you can apply for OHIP?

I don't think so. I called them yesterday because I thought I might be eligible (I'm not lol, I misread the thing) and they said all they require is proof of residency. I think the COPR would probably do the trick.

 

[baruderu]

Weren't there 2 fees? I remember the total coming to just over $1,000...

Don't you need a new SIN number before you can apply for OHIP?

The fee came in around $1,040 I think.

SIN and OHIP are mutually exclusive in that you don't need one to help you get the other. OHIP was a pain in the rear because they insisted on a utility bill or other formal communication with my husband's name and Canadian address on it. That's pretty hard when you're a visitor and don't have credit established. Thankfully they accepted the paperwork for the offer we made on a house (somewhat random, I thought, since it was only an offer and not the mortgage paperwork). OHIP took 20 minutes of waiting in the queue as well.

For SIN all he needed to present was his passport and the COPR (stamped and signed by the border agent and stapled into his passport). It was done and dusted in 5 minutes at Service Canada and he left with his SIN paper (card to follow in 2 week I believe).

 

[Sweden]

So I tried to find out if Service Canada are open on weekends and it appears not. Does anyone know if there is any other way of getting a SIN or will I be stuck waiting till Monday morning?

you probably have to wait until Monday morning

 

[elmo11]

Logged on to ecas this morning - decision made!!

Congrats Korma!

elmo11 ^^

 

[Sweden]

See how cic emailed me and told my husband to get his sponsor to pay the right to permenant resident fee of 490 to finalize the application, where are they getting the 490 from? My receipt says 550 was paid and so does my visa statment? 75 for sponsor and 475 for permenant resident fee. If the permenant resident fee was 490 it would be more?? Anyways, I emailed them back with the receipt and hopefully hear from them today! I was just thinking here about 490 and I thought, "wait I only paid 475 for residency fee and 75 for sponsor fee! Humm...!"

total is 1040: 75 for sponsor, 475 for the applicant sponsored AND 490 for right of permanent resident fee. So if you have paid only 475+75, then you are missing the 490 RPRF - pay it right away, through CIC website, and then send the receipt both to London and to Mississauga. then they'll send out your PR!

 

[Merveille]

Logged on to ecas this morning - decision made!!

Congratulations!

 

[michty6]

The fee came in around $1,040 I think.

Right. So it's the $550 plus $490. So there's definitely a $490 in there!

I actually already have an OHIP card on my IEC but it has an expiry date, my new one based on my PR I presume wouldn't (or would expire when my PR does) - so mine should be a very simple (LOL at the idea they'd make this sort of thing simple) switch.

And if you think getting OHIP on the PR was difficult you should've tried while being on a temporary visa. For example, when I went to renew it in December I bring a letter from my employer (as is required) and it says 'Michty6 has been working here since XXX, he is a permanent full time employee and works in Toronto'.

Service Ontario lady says 'yeh but it doesn't say that they expect to employ you for more than 6 months'.

I'm say 'well I've been working there for almost a year now so I'd presume that the fact they have employed me more than 6 months is enough evidence that they intend to employ me for more than 6 months. That and the phrase 'permanent employee' kind of indicates permanent employment...'

Them 'no, it must state that in the letter'.

So I had to go back to HR and get another stupid letter with this one sentence added. God I love bureaucracy!

 

[Merveille]

I logged into to ecas this morning and DM! Address changed to city, province, Canada today. They never even said I was in process!

Congratulations! Could you share your timeline?

 

[baruderu]

Service Ontario lady says 'yeh but it doesn't say that they expect to employ you for more than 6 months'.

I'm say 'well I've been working there for almost a year now so I'd presume that the fact they have employed me more than 6 months is enough evidence that they intend to employ me for more than 6 months. That and the phrase 'permanent employee' kind of indicates permanent employment...'

Them 'no, it must state that in the letter'.

So I had to go back to HR and get another stupid letter with this one sentence added. God I love bureaucracy!

It's enough to make you want to scream, and/or drink. There's nothing wrong with rules, I just can't comprehend why they are (mis)understood and (mis)applied so commonly across the entire system.

Yesterday I submitted a formal complaint to CBSA regarding the ridiculously rude and incompetent border agent we had the pleasure of dealing with last Friday when my husband landed. Name tags are a handy thing...I always make a note of them when I need to.