URGENT: Please help us! Applying for visitor visa! Thank you in advance!

[MisterBob]

THe border option is a pretty common one, and the border officers are very used to it. a lot of people also do it like this to "flag pole", which means people ( like me) who were already in Canada when the PR was issued, on a tourist visa. I had to exit Canada, and re-enter to "land as a PR" (complete landing procedures, 10 min). Your case is a bit different as you are not flagpoling to land as a PR, but to renew her status ( or change it). But still - it's a pretty common case, and you are not doing anything illegal - so no need to be nervous ( although of course I understand why you would be...).

What you need to say ? the truth. Stick to the facts, don't volunteer too much information, but say what you're doing: her visa is ending, and she would like to stay with you in the country because you have applied for PR as common-law, so she would like to be let into the country as a tourist, for 6 months. Full stop. Wait for the officer to ask questions, or ask for proofs. Maybe they won't ask anything ( I came with no return ticket, and only proofs that I had money in the bank to buy one if needed, and the sponsorship approval and was not asked for anything, was waived in with a 6 months stamp, without further questions).

If they reject - they would not let her back into Canada. I would say it's unlikely... it has happened to US nationals before, but there is usually a "reason" - they have been crossing many times, they have overstayed before etc etc.... but in your case, your gf is Japanese, so they are aware that if they refuse entry, she would be stuck there... which wouldn't make sense. You're never sure of course, but in your case, the visa officer will probably wonder how she will support, and why she is here. Easy answer: she is waiting for her PR and staying with you ( you have to avoid at all costs saying she is "moving" to Canada, as technically she is on a tourist visa, so she is not moving, but she is coming to stay with you to wait for her PR to come through. She is not allowed to work etc - but you probably know all that), and you will support her ( and you have the proofs with you if asked).

If you go to the border tomorrow, then technically she would still have a valid visa for one day. But - if they give her a tourist visa they will take away the former visa - which is OK as it won't be valid for long anyway. The "stamp" is just a normal "stamp" in her passport because she is entering the country. If the officer just stamps her passport, and nothing else, it's good for 6 months. If he/she wants to restrict it, she/he will put a date on it... could be 1 month, could be 3. Then - if you're given 1 month for example, you would have to extend that online, or send in your application within that month ( then she is on implied status).

To do it perfectly : gather all the proofs (bank + pay the PR fee online and print the receipt), and go with her to the border.

IF she gets rejected, then she might be stuck in the US - but I don't really see how, because she would still have her work permit valid for one day. I'm not sure you can apply online now, and go to the border tomorrow, and I'm not sure it makes much sense at that point.

Good luck,
Sweden

Sweden,

Can I do this:
tell the officer the truth which is: her visa is expiring in 1 day, I will apply for common-law with her in middle february. We missed the "applying with a minimum 30 days" rule for the "extending the stay" visa. We want to have a tourist visa for 6 months or at least till march. Show him pictures of us together, and show him a letter stamped from her bank stating she has $10000 in her account (she currently does) and that she will be sufficient to stay here for the next few months.


What do you think about this?

*** does getting a stamp solve all this? Im just worried even if we get the stamp, we will still encounter problems relating her visa extension.

 

[Sweden]

Sweden,

Can I do this:
tell the officer the truth which is: her visa is expiring in 1 day, I will apply for common-law with her in middle february. We missed the "applying with a minimum 30 days" rule for the "extending the stay" visa. We want to have a tourist visa for 6 months or at least till march. Show him pictures of us together, and show him a letter stamped from her bank stating she has $10000 in her account (she currently does) and that she will be sufficient to stay here for the next few months.


What do you think about this?

You can tell him that, but I would leave out the part "we missed the applying etc" - going to the border is a valid way to get a tourist visa for visa-exempt, so you don't need to mention it. Going to Seattle for a day if you live in Vancouver (which I assume you do, or somewhere close - I'm in Victoria!) is a normal thing to do, you can do some Christmas shopping, and make a trip out of it, if you feel like it ( but I guess you will be too nervous to really enjoy it). Only tell him if he specifically asks for it. Tell him that you are putting the application together, and if you can, pay the fee already - it will still be valid when you apply, and it's the best proof that you are serious about the application. Anybody can have pictures together - but only people that are seriously going to apply for PR are going to pay the total amount. ( you can do it online, and print the receipt from your computer. But if you don't want to do that, pictures might help too). The letter from the bank is good, and it will show that she does have money to pay for her own plane ticket out of Canada if you haven't applied by the time the tourist visa expires... and that she has the means to support herself. To be on the safe side - bring some proofs that she is living with you now.

I really don't think that you will be asked for all of that, but you never know, and it's always best to be over prepared.

Don't act guilty - you are not doing anything wrong, or illegal, or out of the ordinary. you're not trying to hide anything. Your gf is here legally, she has finished her work, and her visa is about to expire, but she wants to stay in Canada with you. You are a couple, that's normal, and she is from a visa-exempt country, so it's allowed. She has a place to stay ( with you), she has means to support herself, and so - it's legal. Canada is a nice country, she will enjoy being a tourist for the next 6 months, or whatever it takes to get her PR.... ( you could also decide to apply outland if you wanted to, even if she is Canada - but for today that's probably complicated, so I won't tell you more about it )

Good luck tomorrow!
Sweden

 

[frege]

Frege thanks again for your time!!

Question:
(1) My common-law is Japanese with a Japan passport assuming she is foreigner and we need to fill out that form high-lighted in red #5409 anyways.
(2) Does going to the border have a high success rate? What happens when they reject?
(3) Should I try going to the border and then apply online if that doesnt work?
(4) **If I have to do this perfectly tomorrow, what should I do?*** Ex, go to United States and try border first, then try applying online..etc


*** Also, what am I suppose to say or do at the border regarding this "stamp"? Please enlighten me.. I think I will get nervous about what to do. They usually ask "what are going to do there" when you are going there and they ask how much you bring back etc.. not sure when i am suppose to ask for this stamp

Also what is it we are looking for? Is it just a stamp? Please help. thank you.

The only reason you'd apply online after going to the border would be if the border officer gave you a short time, and you wanted to extend it. You can't do the online application at all if she's not in the country. If they don't let her in, she'll probably have to go back to Japan, unless the border officer tells you that with this or that document, he'll make a different decision. I don't think it's likely she'll be turned down, but if you don't have an income, it's an outside possibility.

What I said is that based on the instructions in the form, it appears you need to fill out IMM 5409 if you want to apply online. (You would scan the documents you submit.) However, and this is something I'm not sure about, it could be that that form is only really intended for foreign common-law spouses rather than Canadian ones. If that's the case, then you don't need to submit it. This is something the CIC call centre will be able to answer for you.

In the border scenario, the stamp will be the stamp in your girlfriend's passport. If they ask you what she's doing, you can say she'll be staying with you for as long as she's allowed to. If they ask, you can tell them that you plan to sponsor her. There's nothing wrong with that. The main thing is to have proof of funds/income for you and/or her in case they ask for it. I don't think that proving you're actually a couple, or that you're serious about a PR application, will be too big a deal at the border.

 

[MisterBob]

You can tell him that, but I would leave out the part "we missed the applying etc" - going to the border is a valid way to get a tourist visa for visa-exempt, so you don't need to mention it. Going to Seattle for a day if you live in Vancouver (which I assume you do, or somewhere close - I'm in Victoria!) is a normal thing to do, you can do some Christmas shopping, and make a trip out of it, if you feel like it ( but I guess you will be too nervous to really enjoy it). Only tell him if he specifically asks for it. Tell him that you are putting the application together, and if you can, pay the fee already - it will still be valid when you apply, and it's the best proof that you are serious about the application. Anybody can have pictures together - but only people that are seriously going to apply for PR are going to pay the total amount. ( you can do it online, and print the receipt from your computer. But if you don't want to do that, pictures might help too). The letter from the bank is good, and it will show that she does have money to pay for her own plane ticket out of Canada if you haven't applied by the time the tourist visa expires... and that she has the means to support herself. To be on the safe side - bring some proofs that she is living with you now.

I really don't think that you will be asked for all of that, but you never know, and it's always best to be over prepared.

Don't act guilty - you are not doing anything wrong, or illegal, or out of the ordinary. you're not trying to hide anything. Your gf is here legally, she has finished her work, and her visa is about to expire, but she wants to stay in Canada with you. You are a couple, that's normal, and she is from a visa-exempt country, so it's allowed. She has a place to stay ( with you), she has means to support herself, and so - it's legal. Canada is a nice country, she will enjoy being a tourist for the next 6 months, or whatever it takes to get her PR.... ( you could also decide to apply outland if you wanted to, even if she is Canada - but for today that's probably complicated, so I won't tell you more about it )

Good luck tomorrow!
Sweden


Sweden you are so kind! My gf a.k.a "common-law" is reading all these messages and it really helps us.
Do you have some kind of Skype account or Facebook account? Im really sorry to trouble you, but you are one of our hopes.

I am from Vancouver! I was planning to go to "Point Roberts" tomorrow cause its like 40mins drive away but I am not sure if that office has the "stamp" or if they are kind enough to stamp us. OR will it be better to go the border towards "Seattle" instead? which is 2-3x bigger than "Point Roberts".


Sorry again for taking your time, it is well appreciated! seriously!!!

 

[MisterBob]

Just to let everyone know CIC has not picked up my calls 6 out of 6 times.

I tried morning, afternoon and evening. I tried many different days of the week and still no answer.
I dont think they answer calls anymore :'(

 

[Sweden]

Just to let everyone know CIC has not picked up my calls 6 out of 6 times.

I tried morning, afternoon and evening. I tried many different days of the week and still no answer.
I dont think they answer calls anymore :'(

it happens indeed! quite a few people have reported the same.
I just sent you a private message

 

[Aquib]

Hi all,

I really really need all your help with your knowledge and opinion for this. I will try to be as direct as possible.

Objective: (1) Apply for a visitor visa (2) Apply for in-land common-law marriage

Scenario:
-I have been dating with my japanese girlfriend since June 2011 (18 months)
-She has been living with me for over 12 consecutive months by the time we apply for common-law
-Her working holiday visa expires Dec 21, 2012
-She needs to apply for a visitor visa to end her stay
-We are applying for common-law in-land sponsorship in middle of January 2013 (taking time to put things together)
-Her agency advice her that she needs a minimum of $9000 to be "safe" to apply for a visitor visa to extend her stay in canada

Problems:
-Her agency says she needs official "bank statement" from the bank stamped showing her all her accounts as "sole responsibility" with "NO joint accounts"
-We have over 5 accounts including visa "joint responsibility" together (planning to remove all of them tomorrow with bank manager and change to "sole responsibility")
-We need to change back the "sole responsibility" accounts to "joint responsibility" accounts in January when we apply for common-law as evidence of joint things together for common-law (ex: chequing account, e-savings account, credit card - all joint)

Questions:
Q1: Does she need $9000 or that much money to switch from a working holiday visa and then apply for a visitor visa? Does the government really need that much? (Her japanese agency says she needs to)
Q2: Does she need to keep all $9000 in her account during the process while she waits for her visitor visa? Or can she take it out anytime after she has applied?
Q3: If we removed all "joint" accounts and changed them to "sole responsiblity" accounts for her, will we it be okay?
******* During process for visitor visa - it will say her accounts are "sole responsible" WHILE we apply for common-law, we will switch back to "joint responsible" to show evidence for things shared together.********
Q4: We can apply for common-law while she is still waiting for approval from visitor visa? She has "implied status"? Im assuming it should be okay?


Thank you dearly for all that can help us with this urgency. My girlfriend is in tears and panicking of what should we do. She realized it was big mistake to apply so late. I hope we can be assured and have a wonderful christmas together.

God bless you and Merry Christmas to you and your love ones.

Did you took any proffesional advice ?
I do recommend to took prof advice if thats not too expensive .

 

[MisterBob]

Did you took any proffesional advice ?
I do recommend to took prof advice if thats not too expensive .

I prepared everything myself and went to see two prof advice and they said we are on the right track. I think it a bit late and also expensive to ask for prof advice. I don't even know a good prof advice to go as they are very expensive. One phone call conversation needs appointment and is like $100/30mins

Can all the people that see this share with me your experience if you applied less than 30 days remaining of your visa to "extend your stay"?

 

[Sweden]

*** does getting a stamp solve all this? Im just worried even if we get the stamp, we will still encounter problems relating her visa extension.

I am from Vancouver! I was planning to go to "Point Roberts" tomorrow cause its like 40mins drive away but I am not sure if that office has the "stamp" or if they are kind enough to stamp us. OR will it be better to go the border towards "Seattle" instead? which is 2-3x bigger than "Point Roberts".

Yes - a stamp is a "new tourist visa" valid for 6 months (unless otherwise indicated) so having a stamp on your passport solves it - when she gets stamped in at the border, she is allowed to stay 6 months (unless they write something on it). That's why it's by far the easiest process if you leave close enough to the border.

Regarding borders - as long as you exit Canada to the US and come back in, it's fine, it doesn't matter where it is. Any border has "stamps" - because everybody who is not canadian gets a stamp at the border to say that you have been lawfully admitted into the country - it's nothing special, just the normal tourist stamp!

Sweden

 

[MisterBob]

Yes - a stamp is a "new tourist visa" valid for 6 months (unless otherwise indicated) so having a stamp on your passport solves it - when she gets stamped in at the border, she is allowed to stay 6 months (unless they write something on it). That's why it's by far the easiest process if you leave close enough to the border.

Regarding borders - as long as you exit Canada to the US and come back in, it's fine, it doesn't matter where it is. Any border has "stamps" - because everybody who is not canadian gets a stamp at the border to say that you have been lawfully admitted into the country - it's nothing special, just the normal tourist stamp!

Sweden

Sweden, if we just want to go to the border and get the stamp, what do we do when we arrive at the USA border when the USA officer ask us what are we going to do in USA? We are now just so worried and just wanting to go to the border to ask for a stamp and explain our situation and that we made a mistake that we didnt apply for a visitor extension minimum 30 days ago and that we thought we needed a new visitor visa which is not the case and that no one is answering the phone calls for cic..etc

How should we do this correctly? I just want to be sure. I feel just going there and talking with someone, cannot relax till its done.

 

[Sweden]

Sweden, if we just want to go to the border and get the stamp, what do we do when we arrive at the USA border when the USA officer ask us what are we going to do in USA? We are now just so worried and just wanting to go to the border to ask for a stamp and explain our situation and that we made a mistake that we didnt apply for a visitor extension minimum 30 days ago and that we thought we needed a new visitor visa which is not the case and that no one is answering the phone calls for cic..etc

How should we do this correctly? I just want to be sure. I feel just going there and talking with someone, cannot relax till its done.

I understand the stress, but panicking at the border won't help you, it will look like you are doing something illegal, which you're not. So - calm down! easier said than done, but I mean it.

At the US border, tell the truth - you are exiting Canada to re-enter again to renew your status in Canada. They won't ask more questions - what they are interested in is what you will be doing in the US, and your immigration information from Canada doesn't concern them.

In the US, you can do 2 things. Either you go to the US, have a coffee, and come back, OR you can also ask for an "administrative refusal of entry" ( or something called like this, can't remember the exact term). If you ask for that, they won't let you in the US and turn you back to Canada (it normally has no bearing on a future entry to the US but you will have to declare that you have been refused entry next time you want to go to the US, so just for that, I would not do it, but it's a possibility if you absolutely don't want to go to the US). It's mostly for people that require a visa to the US and need to exit and re-enter Canada for visa purposes ( usually for landing as a PR) but you can do it too... however, I think you would make it much more difficult for yourself.

Just say the truth at the US border - you're going for coffee/lunch/ a little bit of shopping because you needed to exit Canada and enter, and decided to make a trip out of it. no need to mention that you forgot to apply etc etc it will make them suspicious and probably confuse them, because they don't necessarily have a clue about Canadian immigration rules. Just stick to the minimum facts.

There are plenty of people doing the same, so as soon as you mention that you are here to renew your status, they'll know what it is about... no need to worry about it.

then you come back to Canada, and ask to be let in on a tourist visa etc ( see previous post about it).
Sweden

 

[MisterBob]

I just paid for the fees online:

1x $75.00
1x $475.00

Total: $550.00

I put in all the credit card information but since I will not be applying till February, is this too earlier to pay or is it still okay?

****Also, when I finished paying, the receipt had no information on it as I just made an account I'm assuming and didn't fill any forms****
Is that okay?? :'(

 

[Sweden]

I just paid for the fees online:

1x $75.00
1x $475.00

Total: $550.00

I put in all the credit card information but since I will not be applying till February, is this too earlier to pay or is it still okay?

****Also, when I finished paying, the receipt had no information on it as I just made an account I'm assuming and didn't fill any forms****
Is that okay?? :'(

It's OK to pay now, and it's normal that there is no information on the receipt. Just print it out, and add your information as the sponsor. Take that with you to the border.
Sweden

 

[MisterBob]

It's OK to pay now, and it's normal that there is no information on the receipt. Just print it out, and add your information as the sponsor. Take that with you to the border.
Sweden

Just sent you a message to your inbox Sweden! It says I didn't send anything but I hope it went through. Please let me know if it didnt.

 

[MisterBob]

Can anyone tell me what am is my girlfriend/common-law suppose to do if I am sponsoring her outland?

She is from Japan and I am wondering if anyone can share with me the important things she need. Information such as a health record..etc and how abouts to go with that?
Is she suppose to get record for her health from japan even though she is here now? Or, should she get her health checked here etc.


Thanks in advance for your help!