US outland applicants' thread :)

[KarlR]

Question for BCers:

When my wife and I fly back from the States we will stop in Vancouver before heading to Nanaimo, does anyone know if my wife (Sponsor) can stand in the other line with me? Or, does she have to go in the Canadian Citizen line? RE: Canadian border check at VIA.

Thanks,

Michelle

MAKE SURE SHE STAYS IN THE LINE WITH YOU!!

I cannot stress that enough.when coming here with my partner,we went in seperate lines and I was nearly refused entry as I didn't have a return ticket or job back home etc.
I was explaining to th officer that my visa was in process etc but he was pretty skeptical of me.
After being sent to the area where you are questioned further (my partner was now with me) the other officer just looked up to see if I actually did have an application in process and was really nice about the whole thing and let me in no problem.

He told me at the other officer was probably just suspicious that I was on my own etc.

He then said "just a word of advice,next time you come through a border,always stay together.i know there's ussually airport staff who tell you which line to go in,but just ignore them.things will go a lot quicker and easier if you guys don't seperate".

So yeah,my advice would be to just both go through the "non canadian" part.
Worse case scenario,they will just tell your wife to line back up in the other line.

All I can say is,after that one officer seeing to not believe my story and nearly refusing me,there's no way I'm ever going through any of those border points on my own again!

 

[michminn]

MAKE SURE SHE STAYS IN THE LINE WITH YOU!!

I cannot stress that enough.when coming here with my partner,we went in seperate lines and I was nearly refused entry as I didn't have a return ticket or job back home etc.
I was explaining to th officer that my visa was in process etc but he was pretty skeptical of me.
After being sent to the area where you are questioned further (my partner was now with me) the other officer just looked up to see if I actually did have an application in process and was really nice about the whole thing and let me in no problem.

He told me at the other officer was probably just suspicious that I was on my own etc.

He then said "just a word of advice,next time you come through a border,always stay together.i know there's ussually airport staff who tell you which line to go in,but just ignore them.things will go a lot quicker and easier if you guys don't seperate".

So yeah,my advice would be to just both go through the "non canadian" part.
Worse case scenario,they will just tell your wife to line back up in the other line.

All I can say is,after that one officer seeing to not believe my story and nearly refusing me,there's no way I'm ever going through any of those border points on my own again!

Thanks for the advice, are you from a Visa exempt country? Just curious, I have a 1 year visitor record and was told I should be okay with that due to my application being in process already.

 

[KarlR]

Thanks for the advice, are you from a Visa exempt country? Just curious, I have a 1 year visitor record and was told I should be okay with that due to my application being in process already.

Yes I am.which is also why I thought being visa exempt it shouldn't be a problem but I guess I was wrong.i had also entered Canada last year as a visitor and with no return ticket and was let in no problem.


But yes,make sure your wife is with you and they will also be able to look up your application and see it is in process (as soon as the officer I was with saw my application online he had no problems with letting me in.
Just speaking from my own experience here and don't want anyone making the same mistakes we did.

Best of luck!

 

[freshman]

yes, they can look up your residency status in the system when they scan your passport.

And yes, you can be a dual citizen. Not only that, but recent changes made by the US State Department has made it even harder (and more expensive) to renounce your US Citizenship!

Thanks for your reply. It's good to know that dual citizenship is possible. If it's not, I'd just stay as a PR. I don't think I'd ever renounce my US citizenship.

 

[freshman]

You *can* hold both a US driver's license and a Canadian driver's license.

The reason people don't is that if you use your US license to transfer experience to Canada, these days most provinces exchange the Candian one for the US one (i.e., they keep the US one). However, New Brunswick (for example) I know would keep your US one for you if you are going to travel back and forth and let you swap them out as necessary. Also, you could apply from 'scratch' and have both.

Thank you for your reply. I'll be residing in New Brunswick. So that was a very useful information for me. I'll be visiting my parents in the States a lot, so I think I might just get it from scratch. But that might make me look like a brand new driver and I know the insurance is very high if you are a new driver here.

 

[michminn]

Yes I am.which is also why I thought being visa exempt it shouldn't be a problem but I guess I was wrong.i had also entered Canada last year as a visitor and with no return ticket and was let in no problem.


But yes,make sure your wife is with you and they will also be able to look up your application and see it is in process (as soon as the officer I was with saw my application online he had no problems with letting me in.
Just speaking from my own experience here and don't want anyone making the same mistakes we did.

Best of luck!

Thank You so much!

 

[OhCanadiana]

Thank you for your reply. I'll be residing in New Brunswick. So that was a very useful information for me. I'll be visiting my parents in the States a lot, so I think I might just get it from scratch. But that might make me look like a brand new driver and I know the insurance is very high if you are a new driver here.

Happy to help. Check with the Canadian insurance company; they may take a claim history letter from your US insurer as history (some do, especially from the US).

 

[Tootarsh14]

Hey everyone, I am sponsoring my wife to B.C and since I applied in July, hopefully it won't take TOOOO much longer! . Anyways I have a question, do you need to apply for a care card when you land as a permanent resident, or how does that work? Is there forms that need to be filled out? Or does it automatically happen after a certain period of time. I don't have any health insurance at my work, so I can't add her to anything like that.

 

[US2CA4LOVE]

So glad I found this forum!!
I am a US citizen and just married my Canadian spouse last month ;D
We are compiling info and preparing to file Outland application as soon as we get our Marriage Certificate.
I have a quick question (I am sure there will be many more to follow)
I currently have a Passport Card as opposed to a Passport Book. Is there any reason I should go ahead and get the Passport Book before applying or will the Passport Card be sufficient for the COPR application and process?
Thanks again to all! It's so nice to find the wealth of information here!!

 

[michminn]

Hey everyone, I am sponsoring my wife to B.C and since I applied in July, hopefully it won't take TOOOO much longer! . Anyways I have a question, do you need to apply for a care card when you land as a permanent resident, or how does that work? Is there forms that need to be filled out? Or does it automatically happen after a certain period of time. I don't have any health insurance at my work, so I can't add her to anything like that.

I'm in BC, if your wife has a visitor record granted longer than 6 mos. she can get a BC divers license; shorter than she'll still qualify for a temporary. If your Sponsorship has been approved she is eligible for BC medical, apply through your employer or MSP for more information. There is a 3 month waiting period from the day your wife became a resident (Resident is different from PR//Joint name accts. bill in her name going to BC address things like that prove her residency) so apply ASAP.

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoben/eligible.html

 

[rhcohen2014]

So glad I found this forum!!
I am a US citizen and just married my Canadian spouse last month ;D
We are compiling info and preparing to file Outland application as soon as we get our Marriage Certificate.
I have a quick question (I am sure there will be many more to follow)
I currently have a Passport Card as opposed to a Passport Book. Is there any reason I should go ahead and get the Passport Book before applying or will the Passport Card be sufficient for the COPR application and process?
Thanks again to all! It's so nice to find the wealth of information here!!

you will have to get a passport book. i believe the application clearly states this. CIC will only issue the COPR for a passport BOOK, not card.

 

[US2CA4LOVE]

Thanks RHC!!
I had a feeling that might be the case....

 

[KarlR]

I'm in BC, if your wife has a visitor record granted longer than 6 mos. she can get a BC divers license; shorter than she'll still qualify for a temporary. If your Sponsorship has been approved she is eligible for BC medical, apply through your employer or MSP for more information. There is a 3 month waiting period from the day your wife became a resident (Resident is different from PR//Joint name accts. bill in her name going to BC address things like that prove her residency) so apply ASAP.

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoben/eligible.html

Hey sorry to cut in,but are you saying that an applicant can be covered by BC medical before they get their pr?

I am in BC right now living with my partner on a visitors visa.can I become covered by bc medical before I get my pr do you know?

Thanks!

 

[RajaJi]

Hey sorry to cut in,but are you saying that an applicant can be covered by BC medical before they get their pr?

I am in BC right now living with my partner on a visitors visa.can I become covered by bc medical before I get my pr do you know?

Thanks!

Read information on the page at link below:

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoben/eligible.html#who

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoben/pdf/covering-a-spouse-or-child-who-is-an-applicant-for-permanent-resident-status-in-canada.pdf


To qualify for MSP coverage, an individual must be a resident of British Columbia. A resident is a person who:

is a citizen of Canada or is lawfully admitted to Canada for permanent residence,
makes his or her home in B.C., and
is physically present in B.C. for at least six months in a calendar year, or
a shorter prescribed period*,
and includes a person who is deemed under the regulations to be a resident but does not include a tourist or visitor to British Columbia.

A spouse or a child of an eligible B.C. resident may also be deemed a resident provided that an application for permanent residence status has been accepted for processing by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), and the application remains active. For more information, see Covering a Spouse or Child who is an Applicant for Permanent Resident Status in Canada (PDF 274K).

 

[KarlR]

Read information on the page at link below:

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoben/eligible.html#who

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoben/pdf/covering-a-spouse-or-child-who-is-an-applicant-for-permanent-resident-status-in-canada.pdf


To qualify for MSP coverage, an individual must be a resident of British Columbia. A resident is a person who:

is a citizen of Canada or is lawfully admitted to Canada for permanent residence,
makes his or her home in B.C., and
is physically present in B.C. for at least six months in a calendar year, or
a shorter prescribed period*,
and includes a person who is deemed under the regulations to be a resident but does not include a tourist or visitor to British Columbia.

A spouse or a child of an eligible B.C. resident may also be deemed a resident provided that an application for permanent residence status has been accepted for processing by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), and the application remains active. For more information, see Covering a Spouse or Child who is an Applicant for Permanent Resident Status in Canada (PDF 274K).

Awesome,thanks very much!