US outland applicants' thread :)

[Isometry]

thanks isometry! how much time did it take to get ur fbi certificate?do we also need to submit state police certificates with the application?

It took me about 2 months to get my FBI cert, though I don't know what the current wait time is on that. You do not need to submit state police certificates.

 

[Kiri]

Oh, and my other question with the FBAR... it mentions something about you file if it's over $10,000 (or something like that)... so a standard bank account that never even exceeds 10k at a time (within a year, sure.. since his work pay/oSAP for school goes in there - i put nothing in) isn't required an FBAR?

 

[Tullysgirl]

OK, so now, going over the Doucment Checklist and I'm getting conflicting info on how many photos of myself (I'm being sponsored) I need to send.

Appendix A says 4 photos and says to "see Photos in section on completing the Application for Permanent Residence in Canada) IMM5444 which is NOT part of the Spousal Sponsorship forms we filled out... And THAT says 2 photos placed in a small envelope. AND it says I need the IMM5455 the Supplementary Identification Form.

I'm getting so confused! PLEASE HELP! I feel like I"m running in circles now...and getting different info!

 

[cgagnon]

OK, so now, going over the Doucment Checklist and I'm getting conflicting info on how many photos of myself (I'm being sponsored) I need to send.

Appendix A says 4 photos and says to "see Photos in section on completing the Application for Permanent Residence in Canada) IMM5444 which is NOT part of the Spousal Sponsorship forms we filled out... And THAT says 2 photos placed in a small envelope. AND it says I need the IMM5455 the Supplementary Identification Form.

I'm getting so confused! PLEASE HELP! I feel like I"m running in circles now...and getting different info!

I got 8 done, that way i had 2 to spare....some DMP ask for 4 others 2 and then 4 for immigration

 

[Rose2D2]

Oh, and my other question with the FBAR... it mentions something about you file if it's over $10,000 (or something like that)... so a standard bank account that never even exceeds 10k at a time (within a year, sure.. since his work pay/oSAP for school goes in there - i put nothing in) isn't required an FBAR?

"Who Must File an FBAR. A United States person that has a financial interest in or signature authority over foreign financial accounts must file an FBAR if the aggregate value of the foreign financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year." http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f90221.pdf

The way I read it is that it's not just 10k at any time, it's an accumulation through the year. Again, not an accountant, and I'll be asking my friend about it, but I think that's the case. It appears that it's a simple form, and is just a notification kind of thing, not a taxable thing, so it probably couldn't hurt to just file it. That way you don't have to worry about whether or not you're exempt.

 

[computergeek]

Oh, and my other question with the FBAR... it mentions something about you file if it's over $10,000 (or something like that)... so a standard bank account that never even exceeds 10k at a time (within a year, sure.. since his work pay/oSAP for school goes in there - i put nothing in) isn't required an FBAR?

Right. That's an exception. But note that this is the value in US$, so be careful about currency fluctuations (I seem to recall they use the value of the currency at the end of the year in making this evaluation). If you have a retirement account (RRSP) for example, that often grows to be above the $10,000 mark. I'm signatory on business accounts as well, which also triggers this.

Also, note that the FBAR is NOT filed with your tax return. While you get the form from the IRS website, it's actually a US Treasury form that is filed separately, not with your tax return. It is due by the end of June each year - and it must be RECEIVED by 30 June, not SENT by 30 June!

 

[Kiri]

Okay, thank you But we never have $10k USD at any given time in there since we have our money separate really since I still have all my bills in the states. I'd love to have $10k in the bank all at once instead of over the year, but with him being a student right now, it can't happen

 

[apstone]

Sort of shocked to see that someone had a FBI check done by a channeller got rejected. I got mine done by channeller, and I believe the only difference is that it is not apostled (sp?), which is not required by CIC anyways. Numerous people said theirs was done by channeler with no problems.

My file was transferred to Ottawa a few weeks ago, and I'm wondering if it is worth getting a copy directly from the FBI. Chances are, if they are needed, I will still not have the prints, but at least it will cut down on delays? 50 bucks for prints plus 20 for the service is not much money to guarantee against delay, but what are the realistic chances of the channeler version being denied? More for my piece of mind than anything..

 

[computergeek]

Sort of shocked to see that someone had a FBI check done by a channeller got rejected. I got mine done by channeller, and I believe the only difference is that it is not apostled (sp?), which is not required by CIC anyways. Numerous people said theirs was done by channeler with no problems.

I was surprised as well, but they did report it being rejected and a direct FBI report being requested. I suspect it's just because it's what the specific visa officer wanted, versus a generic CIC policy.

I paid $35 (including HST) for my fingerprints last time I had them done (commercial fingerprint place here in downtown Vancouver). In the US I had them done one time in Las Vegas by a roaming fingerprint place - they did live scan and printed them out on a card. I actually had two sets done (since it was like $5 extra for the second one). Last time I did it again because the previous prints were 17 months old and the FBI won't take a fingerprint card that is more than 18 months old. I plan on doing my prints again late this year just so I have an updated FBI clearance letter early next year to send to CIC.

A quick Google search found that Vancouver Police Department is $50 (plus HST) and you go to them. The RCMP in North Vancouver also offer the service. A separate private company offers a "come to you" service for $45 + HST (so $50.40) and the place I used (Safran Morfo, which has associated companies all over North America) offers walk-in service in Downtown Vancouver.

My file was transferred to Ottawa a few weeks ago, and I'm wondering if it is worth getting a copy directly from the FBI. Chances are, if they are needed, I will still not have the prints, but at least it will cut down on delays? 50 bucks for prints plus 20 for the service is not much money to guarantee against delay, but what are the realistic chances of the channeler version being denied? More for my piece of mind than anything..

The other alternative is if the channeler version you received was a PDF, you may be able to have the report authenticated by the US State Department. http://www.state.gov/m/a/auth/c16920.htm. Canada is not a signatory to the 1961 Hague Convention abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents. I've never done it this way, but assuming they will authenticate the document, this should be satisfactory to CIC.

Personally, I'd pay the $70 just to trim a few months off the process - even a small delay can have substantial knock-on effects with your application. Ergo, a 3 month delay and suddenly you find that your medicals have expired so you have to go spend $250-450 more repeating your medicals, etc.

 

[computergeek]

Here was the original post for the person who reported their channeler issued FBI report was rejected by Ottawa:

http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/los-angeles-visa-office-applicants-check-in-here-t107613.0.html;msg1688022#msg1688022

Your mileage may vary.

 

[maverick.dexter]

It took me about 2 months to get my FBI cert, though I don't know what the current wait time is on that. You do not need to submit state police certificates.

oh ok thanks a lot for your quick responses

 

[Occasita]

Just noticed there's an update on my ECAS
"Medical results have been received"
Does this mean anything important?

 

[Isometry]

Just noticed there's an update on my ECAS
"Medical results have been received"
Does this mean anything important?

It means that they have your medical results, which is good. It does NOT mean that they've actually started processing or anything.

 

[sfp123]

I know this forum does not support working illegally, but if you find steady under the table work, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Chance of getting caught are low, and the process for getting work permits for people in our situations is ridiculous. If you are here applying for PR, it should be very easy to get a work permit with an official job offer

So can someone tell me... is it that hard for someone waiting for a PR to get a work permit? What does it take? Just an organization that is willing to go through the whole HRSDC hassle thing and sponsor you? Anything else? I take it that's not an easy thing to convince an employer to do... which is worrying. Because like many others here, my partner and I cannot afford for her to be living in Canada without working...

 

[cgagnon]

So can someone tell me... is it that hard for someone waiting for a PR to get a work permit? What does it take? Just an organization that is willing to go through the whole HRSDC hassle thing and sponsor you? Anything else? I take it that's not an easy thing to convince an employer to do... which is worrying. Because like many others here, my partner and I cannot afford for her to be living in Canada without working...

Unless you are doing it inland you cannot obtain an open work permit unless you meet any NAFTA jobs standards, or have a job offer where a Labour Market opinion has been performed