which application?

[back-itch]

Hi,

I apologize if this has already been covered. Here's my question:

I'm a Canuck, my wife is a Brit. We've been living in the UK and I moved back to Canada (4 weeks ago) to set things up for her (and the kids' arrival). She will be arriving in about 3 weeks.

I intend to send the sponsorship application form off this week. Do I sponsor her as living in Canada (as this is where she'll most likely be when they get to my application) or do I apply as her living abroad (as she is right now)?

What sort of info do I pass onto customs when she lands at Pearson airport?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Ponga]

Well, when she and (your?) kids arrive, she must NOT say that they are moving to Canada. You, will not be able to pass anything off to CBSA, but don't be surprised if they ask you a few questions if they have concerns about her `visit'. Until she is a PR she cannot legally `live' in Canada. She can potentially VISIT you , while she waits for her PR application to be processed, but it's not a guarantee that she will be allowed to do that. She will need to have things like:

A return ticket (fully refundable of course)
Some ties back to her home (house, job, bank account, etc.)

She needs to convince the CBSA officer that she will not stay beyond her visit, the duration of which will be determined by the officer. If s/he suspects that she is moving to Canada and may potentially overstay, they could refuse her entry. I'm not saying that to scare you, but it is a possibility. All it takes is a Border Officer that's...not so nice.

Hopefully, she is allowed to enter, gets the 6 month maximum and then simply applies to extend her visitor status (online) from within Canada prior to the expiry date, while waiting for the PR application to be approved. This seems to be the easy part of the `plan'.

You'll most definitely want to submit an Outland application, because the Inland application is close to 2 years to process and...it's hell! Even if she is visiting you in Canada, she can submit an Outland application. The current processing time for her would seem to be ~ 8-10 months, according to the recent threads for that visa office.

And...If the kids are yours, you probably already know that they are likely already Canadian citizens (depending on their age and when/how you became a Canadian citizen) and would not need to be sponsored, right?

Hopefully canuck_in_uk will see your thread and jump in, because that member can really offer you some help.


Good luck!