A few questions about sponsoring my wife

[Sam9978]

I am a Canadian citizen, my wife is USA/British and we are currently living in Texas, USA. We've been married for 10 years and have 3 children. We'd like to move to Toronto but reading up on and looking into the sponsorship application is giving me a headache especially compared to the British Spouse visa which I did a while back and it was super simple, only took 2.5 months.

Anyway, I have a few questions that I'm hoping someone can clarify for me, it would be super appreciated.

1: If we apply "inland" at what point can my wife start to work? I've read that you can send the open work permit with the PR application but I can't find any info on how long that may take to get approved and we obviously can't be living there for too long on one income. the only think I can find on the cic.gc.ca site says:

...they are in Canada because they have already applied for permanent residence from inside Canada AND they have passed certain stages in the main application process

What is the "certain stage" they refer to and does anyone know how long it takes to get to that stage and/or simply to get the open work permit approved?

2: If we apply "outland" the guides on the cic.gc.ca site say to send the application to CPC-O and then it will be forwarded to the local visa office if accepted. Does anyone know which visa office would it would be sent to? Los Angeles or New York?

3: Current processing times for Los Angeles are listed as 26 months and New York at 30 months. Can that really be true? Applying outland seems it might be the better choice as my wife could be working but 30 months....? Are we really supposed to be in limbo for 2.5 years waiting to see if my wife can get residency? That sounds a little insane.

4: Would it be faster (or even possible) for us to apply "outland" and then after step 1 (which is currently listed at 29 days) then apply for the open work visa and at that point move to Canada while we wait on step two?

I hope those questions are clear. Thank you for your time and help. Like I said, it's really appreciated!

Kind Regards,
Sam

 

[Alurra71]

If you apply inland you will wait roughly 9 or 10 months for aip which is the step needed to get an owp.

An outland application is sent to Mississauga first and because your wife is from us then it would be forwarded to cpp-o. You can not apply for an owp with an outland application. Your file would not see either LA or NY unless there were problems which I don't see based on your relationship history.

The general consensus is it is faster to apply outland for a us citizen.

Good luck

 

[Rob_TO]

1. With an inland app you can get a work permit after stage 1 approval/AIP, which right now is listed at 8-9 months wait. Stage 2 is then another 8 months. During the entire processing time here, the applicant is not supposed to leave Canada at all.

2/3. You send the entire app to CPC-Mississauga. Then after sponsor approval (1 month), they send it to CPP-Ottawa. Everything should be processed there, and average times in CPP-O these days seems to be around 10 months to get full PR. NY/LA offices are only used if there are some red flags or other serious concerns with your app that will require an interview. Most US cases are done just in Ottawa.

4. There is no work permit associated with outland app. So with outland, would need to wait until full PR (which as mentioned should be around 10 months time). During this processing time the applicant can stay in Canada as a visitor, but can't work.

 

[Avadava]

Something else worth mentioning, is that with an outland application, your wife can choose to have it processed in London (since she is also British). London VO seems to be fast, I've seen cases getting processed within 6 months. The only drawback is that she will have to fly to London in case there is an interview. But with your history, I really don't think she will be called in for an interview.

 

[dhistikdhistik09]

Hi all,

I applied to sponsor my wife in Quebec last OCT, 2013. It took 2 weeks to hear from CIC and then another 3 weeks to get the CSQ of my wife. Now the application is being processed in singapore VISA office. Anybody have any idea how long it's gonna take for the passport request for the quebec sponsorship from the recent time experience? Thanks in advance.

 

[Sam9978]

Thank you all for the answers, they really help clear things up.

Avadava, thanks for the idea of applying in the UK. I will look into that. Maybe they'd also be willing to do a phone interview if there was a need for that, but like you said, I think we pass all the requirements so it shouldn't be needed.


So just to clarify:
1: If we apply inland my wife would probably not get the OWP for like 8 or 9 months and a total process of around 18 months.

2: Applying from the US (outland) should only take up to about 11 months in total (give or take) and the 30 months quoted for NY is only if something major comes up.


Also, something I've seen referred to but no hard data is that there's a time from the time you get the PR till the time you have to enter the country. Does that make sense? Does anyone know how long you usually get? When I did my UK residency I think they gave me 3 months to enter the country from the time the visa was issued.

 

[QuebecOkie]

Thank you all for the answers, they really help clear things up.

Avadava, thanks for the idea of applying in the UK. I will look into that. Maybe they'd also be willing to do a phone interview if there was a need for that, but like you said, I think we pass all the requirements so it shouldn't be needed.


So just to clarify:
1: If we apply inland my wife would probably not get the OWP for like 8 or 9 months and a total process of around 18 months.

2: Applying from the US (outland) should only take up to about 11 months in total (give or take) and the 30 months quoted for NY is only if something major comes up.


Also, something I've seen referred to but no hard data is that there's a time from the time you get the PR till the time you have to enter the country. Does that make sense? Does anyone know how long you usually get? When I did my UK residency I think they gave me 3 months to enter the country from the time the visa was issued.

You've been married a decade and have three kiddos. You're married to an American. As long as you put together a halfway decent application, your chances for an interview are around zero.

1. Yep, that's about right. The OWP can take longer (stage one stretched out for a while to just beyond 10 months, and you can NEVER depend on consistency from CIC), and stage two is often a bit shorter, but somewhere in the one-to-two years range is accurate, and I think a lot of us got through in a year or a year and a half. One note: if she applies inland, it is recommended that she stay in Canada for the duration of the process. Many visa-exempt people leave Canada for brief periods and don't have any trouble. However, if she were to leave and be denied reentry (shouldn't happen, but a border agent in a bad mood has a lot of leeway), her app would be considered abandoned.

2. Correct. A LOT of Americans get through in 8 or 10 months. If she were to encounter any trouble at the border with an outland app in process, while it would still ruin her day, it wouldn't affect her application.

You must land (enter Canada to officially become a PR) before your medical exam expires. It is good for one year from the day that it's done. So it will depend on how long the process takes. Note: you don't have to actually settle in Canada within that time, you just have to enter Canada and do the quick "landing interview" to make it official. Landing like that, just crossing the border, is for outland applicants. Inland applicants must wait for a letter from CIC giving them a date and time to "land" at a CIC office within their province. Another note: this can add up to another 6 months or more to the wait, as some offices are PAINFULLY slow. It will add at least three weeks to a month to the wait, and probably more. CIC has the option to extend the medical exam's validity if it will expire near the time of landing, but that's totally up to CIC. Some people have to redo their medical exam due to its expiration.

 

[Sam9978]

Thanks for the answers and advice, QuebecOkie and everyone else, it's very appreciated. I guess we'll be applying outland which is unfortunate as we were really looking forward to getting settled in the Toronto area this year but what can you do. Best of luck to you all!