visa office advice - paris or rome?

[mirkopal]

Hi guys....
I just would like to ask you an advice.
my application has been refused because the officer in rome said that we did not have the requirements as conjugal partners...but we applied as COMMON LAW!!! ANOTHER big mistake is that he wrote that me, the sponsor, I was not living in canada during the process and I did not have the intention to come back to canada anytime soon. Well the application was sent in december 2009 and since january 2010 i graduated for my phd in montreal and i started working at the government in may 2010. I mean, i advised rome s office with TONS OF EMAIL of my graudation, pictures, new apt in toronto, but it seems that they never look at it!
anyway it s bad. we should do appeal, but we are getting married next week (a decision taken some time ago, and we wanted to celebrate with a new visa, but aouch) and it s better at this point to send a new application under a new category (with MANY PROOFS AS BEFORE).
anyway my partner is italian but he s resident in paris (we bought an apt there). he s living with me here in toronto as a tourist and we are enting the apt in paris, but he s still resident there (in canada is a tourist).

for these reason we are thinking to send the application in paris this time. not because we are scared of rome office, which refuses us, but because it s logistically easier for us to go to paris. My future husband need to go to paris in late august and in november to fix some stuffs related to the new people who are taking our apt there.and because flights are less expensive to paris than rome from here.
we spoke with a CIC officer by phone and she told me that there will be no prejudices if u send to one or other office. they will start the application from the beginning under the new category.
anyway my question is related to paris office. we read that the waiting time is more or less the same than rome (5-7 months). although rome gave us the asnwer after 2 months and half, i would like to have some info about paris.
can someone can share their experience there? how long did it take or something like that? the paris office seems to be kind of busy, and i m wondering if I can have some info...in case it is too long, well we are sending to rome..again..

i know that there is another website to check the timeline in the visa offices...does someone know that?
thanks a lot

 

[RobsLuv]

You will find the spousal processing timelines on this page of the CIC website. There is also another website where people voluntarily post their processing timelines and you can search specifically for applicants who process either through Rome or Paris. That website is trackitt.com
If your husband was legally admitted to Paris, on entry, with status valid for a period of at least one year, and if that status is still valid at the time of application, then he would be eligible to have his application processed through Paris and you could ask for that office for processing. You would have to include proof of that status with the application. CPC-Mississauga could still decide to transfer the application to Rome, based on his country of nationality, but if you're married and applying as spouses, the eligibility that got the first application refused should not be an issue.

Your thread looks familiar to me - maybe from one of the other forums - and, if so, I think there was question before about why they assessed you as "conjugal partners" when you had applied as common-law. The thought was that you did not demonstrate the one year co-habitation requirement of common-law qualification, so they tried to assess the application as though you were applying in the "conjugal partner" category - which, essentially, waives the cohabitation requirement for common-law - BUT you have to meet other eligibility criteria of being in a conjugal relationship for at least one year, but not being able to marry or co-habitate due to immigration barriers that prevent you from living together to meet the co-habitation requirement; or being unable to marry because of the nature of the relationship.

When you apply as conjugal partners, or as common-law partners, you have to meet the requirements of those categories by demonstrating the criteria for eligibility. If you marry, the legality of the marriage qualifies the applicant to apply without the need to demonstrate having co-habitated, etc. You do still have to demonstrate that the relationship is "genuine" - in other words, that it's not just a relationship entered into just to gain advantage (permanent residence) under the Immigration & Refugee Protection Act. So, when you marry, the marriage becomes the legal basis under which your partner is eligible to be sponsored. Unless the processing officer who refused the application also had questions about the "genuine nature" of your relationship during the first processing, which might come up a second time even after you're married, you shouldn't have to be afraid that a second processing through Rome would result in an automatic refusal. I would suggest that you order the CAIPS notes from the processing of the original application and see if there is any indication of concerns of that nature in them - before you file a new application. That way, if there were questions, you can address those issues with evidences you present the second time around.

 

[mirkopal]

ok Cna you give me more information about this CAIPS?
in the application there is nothing concerning the genuineness of the relationship. I mean they highlight
1. requirements as conjugal partner, by highlighting that there was no obstacle to get married or lived together in our case...(well we were living together...)
2. the sponsor who was not in canada for all the time (i left canada during the process 4 times, mainly for work reason, for a period of 4 - 5 days each time)...

so it was not about requirements.
and we are thinking to paris NOT BECAUSE WE ARE AFRAID OF ROME, but because for us, right now that my partner is living here in toronto, is logistically and economically more convenient Paris...

 

[canadianwoman]

The CAIPS notes are all the notes made by the visa officers who look at your file. If you order them, you can see what kinds of problems the visa officers were concerned about. You can see what areas need more or better proof, what the officers didn't understand, etc.

Make sure your husband can be sponsored through Paris. He's Italian, so can definitely be sponsored through Rome. To be sponsored through the Paris embassy, he needs proof of his legal residency there.