Wife received Confirmation of PR (COPR)

[danko8]

HI, I wanted to ask the following.
- I'm a Canadian from Toronto, and submitted Family Sponsorship for my wife in March 2012 (crazy paperwork)
- Due to faster processing times, we submitted the application under "applicants outside of Canada" although she has been living here with me as a visitor for the past 2 years.
- My sposorship was approved May 2012, and the application forwarded to the Japan Visa office in Aug. 2012 (then forwarded to Manila CIC Visa office.)
- My wife is living with me, she has a Visitor Visa from CIC which we applied for 8 months ago and is valid till Jun 2013
- Today we received the CONFIRMATION of PR document that asks her to bring this letter/file when entering Canada (official Landing document) that needs sign-off from Immigration Officer

QUESTION: What do I need to do with this COPR document?
- She's already here, so does that mean we need to drive out of Canada to Buffalo, and re-enter?
- Or should I drive to Pearson Airport and ask if we can talk to an Immigration Officer? Possible?

Any help or advice would be great!! Thanks in advance!

 

[Rob_TO]

I just went through same thing. Korean common-law spouse living with me here in Toronto for last few years. We applied in July, and got the CoPR on Tuesday.

So just today we went to Niagara Falls, over the Rainbow bridge into USA. Then coming back into Canada, you tell the officer you need to do a PR landing, and you go into the Canada border office there and do the landing (see the other thread i just wrote about this today!) Whole process only takes a few minutes if there's no lineup. You get your actual PR card in 2-3 months.

I don't think you can do this from an airport, it has to be a land border crossing. Good luck and congrats!!

 

[Sweden]

HI, I wanted to ask the following.
- I'm a Canadian from Toronto, and submitted Family Sponsorship for my wife in March 2012 (crazy paperwork)
- Due to faster processing times, we submitted the application under "applicants outside of Canada" although she has been living here with me as a visitor for the past 2 years.
- My sposorship was approved May 2012, and the application forwarded to the Japan Visa office in Aug. 2012 (then forwarded to Manila CIC Visa office.)
- My wife is living with me, she has a Visitor Visa from CIC which we applied for 8 months ago and is valid till Jun 2013
- Today we received the CONFIRMATION of PR document that asks her to bring this letter/file when entering Canada (official Landing document) that needs sign-off from Immigration Officer

QUESTION: What do I need to do with this COPR document?
- She's already here, so does that mean we need to drive out of Canada to Buffalo, and re-enter?
- Or should I drive to Pearson Airport and ask if we can talk to an Immigration Officer? Possible?

Any help or advice would be great!! Thanks in advance!

Indeed - congrats! as Rob_TO said, best is to go to a border crossing. Contradictory information about the possibility at the airport... you can call them and try, but I doubt it ( I tried for Vancouver airport as I am in the same situation and no luck).

Alternatively, if you don't want to go to the border, you can try calling on of the CIC office and book a landing appointment with them. However it can take quite a while to get one, and the border is definitely the easiest way to "land" as a PR.

Cheers,
Sweden

 

[danko8]

Thanks Rob_TO, that makes sense.
I guess we're goin to Niagara tomorrow, driving through the border, and then turning around back to Canada! I suggested the road-trip now at 10pm, but got a big "WTF" from the wife. She's actually 6 months preggo now, so we need to get the ball rolling on the PR, and eventually the OHIP.

Thanks for your help!

I just went through same thing. Korean common-law spouse living with me here in Toronto for last few years. We applied in July, and got the CoPR on Tuesday.

So just today we went to Niagara Falls, over the Rainbow bridge into USA. Then coming back into Canada, you tell the officer you need to do a PR landing, and you go into the Canada border office there and do the landing (see the other thread i just wrote about this today!) Whole process only takes a few minutes if there's no lineup. You get your actual PR card in 2-3 months.

I don't think you can do this from an airport, it has to be a land border crossing. Good luck and congrats!!

 

[danko8]

Thanks Sweden,
I'm glad to see this process near the end of its cycle. When we first started our application, looking through all the forms and links from the CIC website, and all the checklists, it was so overwhelming I never thought this day would come. Glad I came across this website and thanks to helpful people with feedback, makes things much easier. Thanks guys.

Indeed - congrats! as Rob_TO said, best is to go to a border crossing. Contradictory information about the possibility at the airport... you can call them and try, but I doubt it ( I tried for Vancouver airport as I am in the same situation and no luck).

Alternatively, if you don't want to go to the border, you can try calling on of the CIC office and book a landing appointment with them. However it can take quite a while to get one, and the border is definitely the easiest way to "land" as a PR.

Cheers,
Sweden

 

[Rob_TO]

Thanks Rob_TO, that makes sense.
I guess we're goin to Niagara tomorrow, driving through the border, and then turning around back to Canada! I suggested the road-trip now at 10pm, but got a big "WTF" from the wife. She's actually 6 months preggo now, so we need to get the ball rolling on the PR, and eventually the OHIP.

Thanks for your help!

Just a little warning... the border guy at US side said today was super quick since its a weekday. He said if we were there on a nice weekend afternoon we may have had to wait several hours to get my fiancees temp US visitor visa!

I've heard of some people walking across the Rainbow bridge, and then going directly from US to Canada office after they tell the US side they are just looking to do a flagpole landing back in Canada and don't really want to enter the US. US can simply deny them entry, and send them right to the Canada side. Though dunno also if you have to end up waiting in line to do this.
Oh and also if your wife is 6 months pregnant, i dunno if all that walking would be a good idea!

I hope she has some temp health insurance now. Remember it takes 3 months after landing for OHIP to kick in. So that will be Feb 17 or so for her. If you guys have the baby with no insurance and before the OHIP kicks in... it could cost you a bundle!

 

[fandv]

First of all, big congrats to you danko8, and also to your wife! Glad to hear about the good news...

To everyone else: could you please explain how this COPR thing works...? (I'm just curious about it and wonder whether my wife and I will get it too?)

I'm a Canadian citizen, and my wife is Indonesian. We're doing the sponsorship outland, through Singapore.

So far I've always thought that the process works as follows:

- We submit the whole application to CPC-M
- CPC-M will then assess my eligibility as a sponsor.
- Assuming I'm approved to sponsor, CPC-M will then forward the immigration application to the visa office in Singapore
- The Singapore office will then assess my wife's applications, along with the relationship proofs
- Once approved, the Singapore office will then request my wife to send her passport, and then they will stick the PR visa on her passport, and then they will send the passport back to her, and then my wife will have to land in Canada within X months...


So when does the COPR play its role? Does it come together with the passport when the Singapore visa office returns it with the PR visa?

 

[Rob_TO]

- Once approved, the Singapore office will then request my wife to send her passport, and then they will stick the PR visa on her passport, and then they will send the passport back to her, and then my wife will have to land in Canada within X months...

So when does the COPR play its role? Does it come together with the passport when the Singapore visa office returns it with the PR visa?

The "PR Visa" they stick in your passport, is basically a temporary visa that will get you to Canada. This is only required for applicants from countries that are NOT visa-exempt. i.e. my fiancee is from Korea which is a visa-exempt country that doesn't require a special visa to visit Canada, so the passport request was never needed in our processing. As far as i know, the CoPR (2 copies, 1 for you and 1 for immigration) is sent along with the passport. Basically the PR Visa will allowed you to board the plane and then it's done its job.

The CoPR is the actual document that will become your PR card. It has the applicant's photo and info on it, as well as the sponsor. When your wife arrives in Canada she will need to give the CoPR to the immigration officer, and the officer will in turn declare you "landed" and send the CoPR off to the government so they can issue your real PR card.

 

[aerogurl87]

Indeed - congrats! as Rob_TO said, best is to go to a border crossing. Contradictory information about the possibility at the airport... you can call them and try, but I doubt it ( I tried for Vancouver airport as I am in the same situation and no luck).

Alternatively, if you don't want to go to the border, you can try calling on of the CIC office and book a landing appointment with them. However it can take quite a while to get one, and the border is definitely the easiest way to "land" as a PR.

Cheers,
Sweden

I hope you can "land" at the airport. No way I'm driving 8 hours down to the border.

 

[Rob_TO]

I hope you can "land" at the airport. No way I'm driving 8 hours down to the border.

I don't think it's possible to do an airport "flagpole" landing. At least, in all cases people have discussed it, i've never read a case where someone has done it. Only from the US land border.

The only way you can "land" in an airport is if you actually arrive there by plane from another country, and go through the usual immigration process. As a random person walking into the airport, i believe its a security violation to allow you into the arrivals immigration/customs area.

The other option is to "land" in your own city at a local CIC office. You have to book an appointment in advance for a landing interview. I've heard it can take months to book an appt, but best to check with your local office.

 

[Sweden]

I don't think it's possible to do an airport "flagpole" landing. At least, in all cases people have discussed it, i've never read a case where someone has done it. Only from the US land border.

The only way you can "land" in an airport is if you actually arrive there by plane from another country, and go through the usual immigration process. As a random person walking into the airport, i believe its a security violation to allow you into the arrivals immigration/customs area.

The other option is to "land" in your own city at a local CIC office. You have to book an appointment in advance for a landing interview. I've heard it can take months to book an appt, but best to check with your local office.

Indeed - I called CBSA and they say you need to cross a border. I think the only other possibility is to exit from a ferry terminal if you are close to one - otherwise call ahead CIC office and book an appointment... in bigger cities it tends to be really difficult to get one, but in small CIC offices it's less busy, so maybe something to consider.. here is the list where immigration services are available http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/contact/listing/indexpages/indextype38-e.html

But - anytime it says "airport", you need to call in advance to see if you will be allowed to land there - for Vancouver I know it's not a possibility...and I think it's the case for most of the international airports (as Rob_TO explained - you need to be a passenger to be able to land there...).

Good luck - hope you find something that works for you.
Sweden

 

[aerogurl87]

I don't think it's possible to do an airport "flagpole" landing. At least, in all cases people have discussed it, i've never read a case where someone has done it. Only from the US land border.

The only way you can "land" in an airport is if you actually arrive there by plane from another country, and go through the usual immigration process. As a random person walking into the airport, i believe its a security violation to allow you into the arrivals immigration/customs area.

The other option is to "land" in your own city at a local CIC office. You have to book an appointment in advance for a landing interview. I've heard it can take months to book an appt, but best to check with your local office.

well that is fine. Edmonton is a 4 hour drive from me anyway, so either way I'd have to fly there. I thought y'all were saying you can't land at an airport at all, because that would be a definite no go for me.

 

[tavora]

well that is fine. Edmonton is a 4 hour drive from me anyway, so either way I'd have to fly there. I thought y'all were saying you can't land at an airport at all, because that would be a definite no go for me.

Would you be flying domestically? If so, you don't go through border control, so I don't think you could land that way. You may have to make an appointment to land if you're too far away from the land border.

 

[aerogurl87]

Would you be flying domestically? If so, you don't go through border control, so I don't think you could land that way. You may have to make an appointment to land if you're too far away from the land border.

I would be, but if I must fly out of the country to land, then I'll just use it as an excuse to go visit my family back in the US or convince my boyfriend to take a weekend trip to California. I know you can't get to the US side of the airport without a connecting flight to a US destination, so it would be worth the extra money.

 

[tavora]

I would be, but if I must fly out of the country to land, then I'll just use it as an excuse to go visit my family back in the US or convince my boyfriend to take a weekend trip to California. I know you can't get to the US side of the airport without a connecting flight to a US destination, so it would be worth the extra money.

Yeah, that's a good idea - I'd use it as an excuse to go visit family and then land on your way back.