stone8198 said:
Hi,
I am may 2015 applicant. Did my test Jan 6th and got RQ. I submitted my RQ end of Jan. Since then haven't received anything. Not really expecting to as its too soon.
Just wondering if there are any applicants who got RQ, how long did it take to get Oath or decision made online?
I know of one person whose application took 3 months after RQ to get Oath date,, but CIC agent over the phone contradicts saying it has become non routine and will take around 36months.
Would be grateful if someone can let me know,
Thanks,
stone8198 said:
Reason for my RQ was a lot of travel due to work, and really really short on days. almost 910 something. And i had many mistakes reporting my travel. Well i have 32pages passport and not a single one left empty. Every page has stamps, so i couldnt really track my dates well.
Most probably my file shall be going for CJ Hearing, and would have to convince him, being an immigrant having 3 businesses, 2 apartments, 30 year old unmarried. God knows what else will convince them. Have no family in Canada, nobody. Just me. prrobably thats raising suspicion.
Many, many applicants have taken the oath after having been issued RQ.
The much bigger factor in you case is the extent of the shortfall.
That there were "mistakes" in your declaration of travel is also a major factor.
It is indeed highly likely (perhaps certain -- just that we cannot know these things so definitely as to actually be certain) your case will be referred to a Citizenship Judge, and while I am usually reluctant to forecast the outcome for shortfall cases, I have to say your odds are
NOT good.
Even back when CIC was not so strict about physical presence (before Jason Kenney was Minister and there was an avalanche of RQs 2010 to 2013), internal CIC memos revealed that the absolute cutoff for CJ referrals was 900 days. (It is apparent that the practical cutoff has been much higher for a long time, and 910 days would have likely gone to a CJ hearing even when CIC was more flexible and lenient.)
That said, but for the
mistakes there would still be a chance; there was a relatively recent (latter part of last year) case where an applicant with an even larger shortfall
was approved.
How these cases go is very much dependent on the particular facts and circumstances, especially the extent to which the applicant is clearly a settled resident of Canada, but also on certain details including, for example, whether pre-landing credit is involved, extent of residential ties generally, overall duration of applicant's life in Canada (applying with 1099 days basic residence, and a shortfall in actual residence, does not make a good case), in addition to more general factors which can be influenced by detailed factors,
credibility looming very large in the latter part of the equation.
Regarding credibility, again it is a huge factor. Thus, the mistakes in reporting travel really hurt. These indicate you are
NOT a reliable reporter of the facts (since you did not accurately report the facts, it is an easy if not necessary inference you cannot be relied upon to accurately report the facts -- you did not, so you cannot be counted on). While many PRs make mistakes and do not keep accurate records of dates of travel, and to an extent there is some leniency allowed regarding this,
obviously, the applicant was personally there each and every time, so the applicant is the one person in the world capable of keeping an EXACT record. Stamps in passports are no where near a reliable source of information as to all travel dates. Moreover, it appears you were traveling often for business purposes, so of course you would be expected to keep precise records of all such trips for accounting and taxation purposes even if not for purposes of documenting compliance with the PR Residency Obligation or qualification for citizenship. The point of this is that when you go to the hearing with a Citizenship Judge, making excuses for the errors will not help but actually hurt.
Explain the errors, yes, acknowledging YOU failed to keep sufficient records, but do not suggest you could not have accurately declared your travel dates or that the failure to do so was due to anything other than your own fault. Why? Because your only chance to persuade a CJ to approve your application will be to persuade the CJ you deserve citizenship, that you definitively established your residence in Canada (and you must prove
the specific date you did so), that your life was centralized in Canada, and, most importantly, that you are being totally honest . . . and the only chance of being persuasive as to the latter is to acknowledge and explain, rather than to excuse or justify, the mistakes made.
This is the kind of case for which the assistance of an experienced, quality lawyer would be helpful. The question is whether it would be worth the expense. This depends, of course, to a large extent on your fiances. For some, spending a few thousand dollars is beyond consideration; for others, just a shrug, pocket change. If you can readily afford a lawyer, it would be a good idea to take all your paperwork to one and at the least get a paid-for consultation.
There is no harm in following the process through, so there is no compelling reason to withdraw the application unless you are ready to apply again under current law. Many applicants have reported the CJ strongly suggests, at the time of the hearing, withdrawing the application. Whether or not to do so at that stage is a personal choice. And perhaps not an easy one.
