US outland applicants' thread :)

[twtoca]

I need help understanding this email from CIC which is below. The email was titled Documents required for a complete application. Only thing I see that I need to send them more information showing my sponsor( wife) proof of residence. I am going to send utility bills, pay stubs, and copies of employment letter for wife, and t4 transcript again to satisfy this requirement. Everything else mentioned was provided in my original application package

Before reading the email below understand the following:
- Our family composition has not changed, Included marriage certificates and divorce certificates in original application package
- I sent my wife employment letter, and T4 transcript from 2014, showing my sponsor proof of residence
- I sent the receipt showing I paid RPRF with original application package
-I sent original FBI background check with orginal application package
-My medical records have been recieved
- I do not require CSQ

Here is the CIC email with personal information removed


Date: October 23, 2015

UCI: xxxxxxxx

Application: xxxxxxxxx

Email: xxxxxx

PR applicant name

Mailing Address

Dear xxxxxxx (Le français suit):

This is in reference to your application for a permanent resident visa, which is in progress at our office.

Your mailing address according to our records is indicated above. Please review it and advise us of any errors.

Has your family composition changed since our last correspondence?

· Have you married or divorced?

· Have you given birth or adopted a child?

· Do you intend to get married or divorced prior to becoming a permanent resident?

· Do you intend to give birth or adopt a child prior to becoming a permanent resident?

If any of these conditions apply, you must inform Case Processing Center – Ottawa (CPC-O) immediately:


You will be asked to submit evidence such as a copy of the marriage, divorce, birth or adoption certificate or a letter advising when and where the marriage, divorce, birth or adoption is expected to take place. Any new spouse and/or children must be added to your application and be found admissible to Canada before your case is finalized.

Proof of Residence/Intent to Reside

We wish to ask you at this time to provide additional proof that your sponsor resides in Canada. This includes but is not limited to: pay stubs, T4 slips, utility bills, banking history, employment letters, lease agreements, etc. Driver's licences, Property tax assessments, Social Insurance or Health Insurance cards are not sufficient.


If your sponsor does not currently reside in Canada, please provide proof that he/she intends to reside in Canada. This includes but is not limited to employment letters, lease agreements, copies of correspondence with: potential employers, real estate companies, property rental agencies, health care agencies, insurance agencies, financial institutions, etc. Please provide as many indicators as possible as any single one of these may not be enough on its own to prove intent of residency. Driver’s licences, property tax assessments, social insurance or health insurance cards are not sufficient to show intent to return.

RPRF (If you have already paid the RPRF, please disregard)

We wish to remind you at this time to pay your Right of Permanent Residence Fee (RPRF). You must pay this fee before a permanent resident visa can be issued. The RPRF will be refunded if the application is refused, if you withdraw your application or if you choose not to use your visa.

If you delay the payment of the RPRF, your security or medical results may expire, which would delay the issuance of your visas. We therefore encourage you to pay the RPRF as soon as possible, by following these steps:



· Go to the website:

· Read the instructions on each page, and click “Continue” to proceed

· Select the “Immigration” link, followed by “Right of Permanent Residence Fee”

· You must pay this fee once for yourself as principal applicant

· You must also pay this fee for your accompanying spouse or common law partner, if you have one

· Enter the number of fee payments (1 or 2) in the box beside the fee of $490

· Click “Submit”

· Proceed to pay your fees by selecting “Pay” and then follow the instructions to pay with a credit card.


Once the payment process is complete, the web site will display your official receipt in PDF format.

You must send the receipt to CPC-O. For fastest service, please attach it to an email and send it to the address CPCO-Cost-recovery.CTDO-Recouvrement-frais@cic.gc.ca .

If you have already paid the RPRF, do NOT pay again.

Police Certificates

Please note that you must submit original police certificates for you and any accompanying dependents for all countries where the residence period has been six months or longer since the age of 18. If you are currently in possession of any police certificates, which were not submitted with your original application, please submit them to our office now. If you have already submitted your police certificates, do not apply for or submit new documents. We will contact you once your application has been reviewed by a visa officer.

If you are in the process of obtaining the required documents and have not yet received them, submit them to our office as soon as they are available.

For more information on how to obtain police certificates, including country specific requirements, visit;

DO NOT SUBMIT SCANNED COPIES OF YOUR DOCUMENTS VIA EMAIL.

We require only original documents (for police certificates) and all documents must be accompanied by English or French translations.

CSQ


If you are destined to the province of Quebec, please provide a Certificat de selection du Québec from the Ministre de l’Immigration, Diversité, et Inclusion. Visit the following website for instructions: website:

If you are NOT destined to Quebec, do NOT apply for/provide a CSQ

**Medical examination. Please complete your immigration medical examination. If you have already passed your medical examination, please also send your medical examination form with the rest of your documents.


Your response to the above request is required within 45 days. Thank you for your immediate attention to these matters.

 

[rugrat907]

This is a generic letter that most applicants are getting these days. Just send what you said you were going to send on residency, then just copy and paste exactly what you put here for th other items.

It's a silly email and I think they are trying to cover items that some people need to do (like the last fees) in one fell swoop, but all it does is add confusion to the process for people that have already done everything on the list.

 

[twtoca]

Thanks for the quick response rugrat.

Any one have recommendations as to how to send the required additional information. Should I send it via email or Canada Post to CIC CPC in Ottawa

 

[rugrat907]

Thanks for the quick response rugrat.

Any one have recommendations as to how to send the required additional information. Should I send it via email or Canada Post to CIC CPC in Ottawa

Email is totally fine...just hit reply, attach PDFs and you're set.

 

[Caribou]

Thanks for the quick response rugrat.

Any one have recommendations as to how to send the required additional information. Should I send it via email or Canada Post to CIC CPC in Ottawa

I got that email too, and received a second email asking for proof of residency specifically.
I scanned everything as pdf and hit reply.
I emailed them my additional documents for my CEC file couple of years ago, too, and they were fine.
Good luck.

 

[Caribou]

I want to share my border crossing experience with you guys, so it may help someone in future.
I got married last year, but we didn't file our immigration paperwork until May.
My spouse was living in WA at that time so crossed border quite often even after being married (for couple of weeks or months)
Right before we submitted paperwork in May, I paid for our file 1 week ahead and carried receipt with us and crossed the border together at Victoria-Seattle to ask border officer in hope to get 1 yr visitor record, so my spouse can apply for a driver license.

Well, the officer at the ferry just told us to "extend" visitor status online after stamping passport for 6 months, and told us you don't need visitor record. (almost sounded like getting a visitor record is a "bad thing")

Okay, 6 months rolls in, visitor extension takes FOUR freakin months right now, and since we still have my spouse's car sitting in storage in Seattle, we HAD to cross border to get a new stamp.

I really wanted to take the ferry straight to Victoria, but time just didn't work out, so went through Peace Arch, Douglas border. BIG MISTAKE.

Usually there is long border wait, but there was none at that time (around 2-3pm ish)

I brought receipt, SA copy, email, copy of application, proof of travel insurance for 3 months, etc. you name it. I have mild OCD. :

I said we have spousal application in process, my spouse will "visit" me for 3 months to get me settle down after moving.

Well, the border officer got mad at us for not waiting outside of Canada and started raising his voice. After usual Q&A, he got hotheaded.
You HAVE NO TIES to US, it take 18 months right now, Anybody can store cars in Storage, Why are you not waiting outside.
YOu need a visitor record. I showed the documents which he was not interested in.
He was literally yelling at us like we did something WRONG.
I kept telling him, I received additional document request email. It would NOT take 18 months at this point. I have a permanent full time job at hospital, blah. Officer was like you(to my spouse) have no job, how can you support yourself, what about money, blah blah. My spouse finally said "money is not the issue here."
I was so pissed off at that point and just looked straight ahead while officer was writing a yellow paper to go inside the office.

After I went inside I told the officer that when we were at Victoria border 6 months ago, they told us to just apply for extension to cross border again, but you know it takes 3-4 months now. (She nodded. It seems like all officers are aware of "published" processing time) I showed her all documents, and told her it will probably take another 3-4 months. She briefly asked my spouse timeline of what she was doing and when she entered Canada, etc.
Officer asked us how long "I" think it will take and if I phoned CIC to ask how long it will take. I told her I got additional information request, and it doesn't take that long after that point of time.

Then, we sat at the office, missed 3pm ferry to Vancouver Island, waiting for the worst. If they refused entry, I was just gonna head back to Seattle and buy a ticket to LA for my spouse to go to in-law's place. Again, being apart for so long over the years, money is really not an issue on our table.

Well, we waited little over 1 hour in those hard chairs. She called us and gave us 6 months visitor record and told us to return it that if we land before then. She just read usual not eligible to work, study, etc. and I thanked her and left.

Lessons learned:
1. No matter how much supporting documents you bring, officer is a person, too, so your experience will vary depending on which border you cross and border officer you meet.
-We never had any problem at Victoria border before even prior to submitting immigration file while my spouse was unemployed. They were so helpful when we asked questions and gave us advice.

2. Unless you absolutely have to go outside of Canada after applying, just minimize border crossing as much as possible.(we all know that but sh** happens)

We're crossing border again next week to Seattle with my spouse's visitor record, so we'll see how it goes this time. (BCFerries are having 50% discount on cars, so it's a great excuse to get out of Island.)

FYI for those in BC:
I already applied for MSP medical card and added my spouse under my extended medical plan, which worked fine. Medical is expiring until stamped expiry, so we sent copy of visitor record to extend medical. I work in health care field, so it is little easier for me to navigate through those process. Dental claim through Blue cross company worked fine as well even on visitor status.
for BC MSP, there is 3 months wait time in BC for everyone, so if you do not enter Canada until landing, you have 3 months gap of no coverage. I really wanted to get the medical going ASAP. (Emergency Room visit without any tests is $750 min without medical coverage JUST to see doctor's face for 5 min)
Since my spouse is not working right now and staying in Canada, I even notified CRA for change of my marital status and claimed my spouse as non-resident.
So, I saved TONS of tax as well. It actually saves us a lot of money by living together even though my spouse is not working at all because I fall lower tiers of tax bracket.

I got a specific email asking for my spouse's mailing address, proof of residency, option c of 2014 on Monday. I sent them on Monday night. eCAS still says "In process" I really hope we land before this year but I'll take any date as long as it's < 6 months now.

I'm still pissed at that officer, but trying to understand where he's coming from. They deal with lots of crazy and stupid people at Peach Arch. However, there was no reason for him to yell at us and even trying to pick on my spouse for being "unemployed".

 

[Decoy24601]

I want to share my border crossing experience with you guys, so it may help someone in future.
I got married last year, but we didn't file our immigration paperwork until May.
My spouse was living in WA at that time so crossed border quite often even after being married (for couple of weeks or months)
Right before we submitted paperwork in May, I paid for our file 1 week ahead and carried receipt with us and crossed the border together at Victoria-Seattle to ask border officer in hope to get 1 yr visitor record, so my spouse can apply for a driver license.

Well, the officer at the ferry just told us to "extend" visitor status online after stamping passport for 6 months, and told us you don't need visitor record. (almost sounded like getting a visitor record is a "bad thing")

Okay, 6 months rolls in, visitor extension takes FOUR freakin months right now, and since we still have my spouse's car sitting in storage in Seattle, we HAD to cross border to get a new stamp.

I really wanted to take the ferry straight to Victoria, but time just didn't work out, so went through Peace Arch, Douglas border. BIG MISTAKE.

Usually there is long border wait, but there was none at that time (around 2-3pm ish)

I brought receipt, SA copy, email, copy of application, proof of travel insurance for 3 months, etc. you name it. I have mild OCD. :

I said we have spousal application in process, my spouse will "visit" me for 3 months to get me settle down after moving.

Well, the border officer got mad at us for not waiting outside of Canada and started raising his voice. After usual Q&A, he got hotheaded.
You HAVE NO TIES to US, it take 18 months right now, Anybody can store cars in Storage, Why are you not waiting outside.
YOu need a visitor record. I showed the documents which he was not interested in.
He was literally yelling at us like we did something WRONG.
I kept telling him, I received additional document request email. It would NOT take 18 months at this point. I have a permanent full time job at hospital, blah. Officer was like you(to my spouse) have no job, how can you support yourself, what about money, blah blah. My spouse finally said "money is not the issue here."
I was so pissed off at that point and just looked straight ahead while officer was writing a yellow paper to go inside the office.

After I went inside I told the officer that when we were at Victoria border 6 months ago, they told us to just apply for extension to cross border again, but you know it takes 3-4 months now. (She nodded. It seems like all officers are aware of "published" processing time) I showed her all documents, and told her it will probably take another 3-4 months. She briefly asked my spouse timeline of what she was doing and when she entered Canada, etc.
Officer asked us how long "I" think it will take and if I phoned CIC to ask how long it will take. I told her I got additional information request, and it doesn't take that long after that point of time.

Then, we sat at the office, missed 3pm ferry to Vancouver Island, waiting for the worst. If they refused entry, I was just gonna head back to Seattle and buy a ticket to LA for my spouse to go to in-law's place. Again, being apart for so long over the years, money is really not an issue on our table.

Well, we waited little over 1 hour in those hard chairs. She called us and gave us 6 months visitor record and told us to return it that if we land before then. She just read usual not eligible to work, study, etc. and I thanked her and left.

Lessons learned:
1. No matter how much supporting documents you bring, officer is a person, too, so your experience will vary depending on which border you cross and border officer you meet.
-We never had any problem at Victoria border before even prior to submitting immigration file while my spouse was unemployed. They were so helpful when we asked questions and gave us advice.

2. Unless you absolutely have to go outside of Canada after applying, just minimize border crossing as much as possible.(we all know that but sh** happens)

We're crossing border again next week to Seattle with my spouse's visitor record, so we'll see how it goes this time. (BCFerries are having 50% discount on cars, so it's a great excuse to get out of Island.)

FYI for those in BC:
I already applied for MSP medical card and added my spouse under my extended medical plan, which worked fine. Medical is expiring until stamped expiry, so we sent copy of visitor record to extend medical. I work in health care field, so it is little easier for me to navigate through those process. Dental claim through Blue cross company worked fine as well even on visitor status.
for BC MSP, there is 3 months wait time in BC for everyone, so if you do not enter Canada until landing, you have 3 months gap of no coverage. I really wanted to get the medical going ASAP. (Emergency Room visit without any tests is $750 min without medical coverage JUST to see doctor's face for 5 min)
Since my spouse is not working right now and staying in Canada, I even notified CRA for change of my marital status and claimed my spouse as non-resident.
So, I saved TONS of tax as well. It actually saves us a lot of money by living together even though my spouse is not working at all because I fall lower tiers of tax bracket.

I got a specific email asking for my spouse's mailing address, proof of residency, option c of 2014 on Monday. I sent them on Monday night. eCAS still says "In process" I really hope we land before this year but I'll take any date as long as it's < 6 months now.

I'm still pissed at that officer, but trying to understand where he's coming from. They deal with lots of crazy and stupid people at Peach Arch. However, there was no reason for him to yell at us and even trying to pick on my spouse for being "unemployed".

This is why I will never cross at the Peace Arch again. I had a similar experience back in July. I was going to spend 3 months with my, then boyfriend, for the summer (this was before we had even looked into getting married and applying for PR much). Halfway through, I needed to go figure out some details for moving to Washington, so I crossed. When I tried to come back a couple days later, I ended up with a very rude woman questioning me for literally hours while rolling her eyes at me. Saying that three months is not visiting, a few days is visiting. She kept saying I have no ties to the US and am living in Canada, which was NOT true. I was NOT living there, but she didn't accept that. When I was originally flagged in for a secondary, I was riding with my spouse's mother (she offered to give me a ride to save money for a train or bus and neither of us have a car) and on the slip of paper he wrote down that we were two *residents*. She even brought it up to the officer that they made a mistake and that I'm not a resident. Then, she seized my passport and said I could enter for three days and gave me a "voluntary" withdrawal. Also, I had no ties to the US, because I was planning on attending a university and found out in the middle of my trip that I couldn't get student loans. University plans was more than enough to satisfy the first officer, who had no issues with letting me in for three months with that. He just wanted to be sure I at least had some money and that my then boyfriend could help support me if needed.

I'm crossing by train this time, which is a separate port of entry for the Canadian side. I hope that goes a lot smoother. This time, I'm saying that I'm visiting my spouse for three weeks for Thanksgiving and his birthday, which does fall perfectly within that timeline. My spouse will also be traveling with me this time, and I will have paystubs for proof of work and I don't have a lease, but I will have text screenshots from my roommate discussing rent and utilities and a return ticket, and proof that I am applying for residency.

 

[Sunset0505]

Thanks for the quick response rugrat.

Any one have recommendations as to how to send the required additional information. Should I send it via email or Canada Post to CIC CPC in Ottawa

After a 2.5 month delay with CIC not being able to open an attachment and responding to the CIC Dr to find out what the problem was..we have learned to send via email as well as courier...just saying...

 

[wingmands]

My husband and I are planning to go to the border tomorrow morning to "flagpole". My husband has been on implied status since September, we applied for the visitor visa extension in august and haven't heard anything. We have the receipt as proof that we sent in an extension. Just wondering if we will have any trouble with this?

 

[rugrat907]

My husband and I are planning to go to the border tomorrow morning to "flagpole". My husband has been on implied status since September, we applied for the visitor visa extension in august and haven't heard anything. We have the receipt as proof that we sent in an extension. Just wondering if we will have any trouble with this?

If you are flagpoling to land as a PR, they won't even ask about visitor stuff. It's irrelevant at that point since he will be a PR. Shouldn't even come up...

 

[gooh]

Hope everyone's process is going smoothly. Will be crossing the Ambassador Bridge in two weeks to get my notarized document for CIC and stay with my fiance for the (hopefully) short last duration of our application. Still quite nervous about the crossing, even though I have every reason to go for our document at the very least, I hope they don't find me visiting over the winter (going to say 3 months) to be an issue, ugh.

 

[carr1]

Hope everyone's process is going smoothly. Will be crossing the Ambassador Bridge in two weeks to get my notarized document for CIC and stay with my fiance for the (hopefully) short last duration of our application. Still quite nervous about the crossing, even though I have every reason to go for our document at the very least, I hope they don't find me visiting over the winter (going to say 3 months) to be an issue, ugh.

.

IMHO it is better to cross at the tunnel and not the bridge, I've crossed at both and always had trouble at the bridge and never at the tunnel, in fact last week I crossed at the tunnel and when I said I'm visiting while my PR app is in process they asked if I wanted to live here while I wait. I was given a 1 year visitor record so now I can cross without issues.

 

[gooh]

.

IMHO it is better to cross at the tunnel and not the bridge, I've crossed at both and always had trouble at the bridge and never at the tunnel, in fact last week I crossed at the tunnel and when I said I'm visiting while my PR app is in process they asked if I wanted to live here while I wait. I was given a 1 year visitor record so now I can cross without issues.

Maybe I'll give it a try then! What info do I need in crossing the Tunnel? I've only ever gone over the bridge. Anything special I need?

 

[carr1]

Maybe I'll give it a try then! What info do I need in crossing the Tunnel? I've only ever gone over the bridge. Anything special I need?

I think the tunnel is more used by US/Canadians that cross daily so CBSA are more familiar with our type of situations. Also the bridge is full of semi trucks crossing which sometimes can make a huge backup and the tunnel is a bit cheaper to cross. We live right outside Windsor and now I only use the tunnel.
I always carry all my PR paperwork including receipts for payment and marriage license. This time when I crossed I kept saying "I'm visiting" when the agent asked if I would like to live here, she finally laughed and said "but you would rather live her right?" I said of course but I know I can't. I told her I had applied for my second visitor extension ( I had been in Canada for 1 year) she directed us into secondary where I was asked for a copy of our marriage license, both our passports and a copy of our SA as we told her we already had SA.
After about 30 minutes she called us back up stapled the VR into my passport and said I can now live in Canada but cannot work or study and that I can now cross easier without hassles, she explained it's good for 1 year and if I need it extended to come back and that it was no charge.
I would say bring all your paperwork as you never know what they will ask for. I will say I have yet to encounter a grumpy CBSA agent at the tunnel but I can't say that about the bridge, in fact in August crossing the bridge.

 

[gooh]

Thank you for the info. I'm bringing a print out of the doc request, copy of our SA, etc. I should only have 3 big suitcases so, I'm not too worried about the luggage, plus I'll be with two other people. I've actually never had too much issue coming over the border, but obviously it's still nerve wracking. I'll definitely take the tunnel this time around.