Applicant from PhD program after 5 Nov, 2011 connect here to get status

[asbereth]

Got our passports back yesterday....

Congrats!!! So Ottawa got your passport on the 14th, and you got it back yesterday. When did the xPresspost tracker got activated? That was super fast!!!

asbereth and mkrp21, if you could comment on the decument which I need to be ready with for landing. I understand from previous discussion

1. Bank statement (recent, last 30 days, 6 months???)
2. Job letter (is the photocopy of the letter from supervisor ok? or I need to get a job letter from department again?).
3. any thing else?

Your turn should be really soon too

As I kept saying, they may not ask you for these things, and in fact, most likely they won't ask, but they could still ask like in my case. Bank statement, account history, and proof of employment and PhD study should suffice.

Again, these documents may be redundant for most of you, but we want to make sure that our landing experience is as pleasant as possible

Got my MR today!

Congrats!!! Didn't you just get POF request the day before? Have you submitted your proof of funds yet? It's interesting how they did not wait until you passed settlement funds requirements to send you medical? What did you submit with the initial application? Did you submit POF with 6 months bank statement as well?

 

[kaziahmmed]

Hi guys,

I received my GCMS notes on Friday---and they were actually extremely useful for understanding what was going on with my file and how immigration officers work. Now I want to share my story with you.

Hi kg.jadu--
First of all thanks a lot for sharing your story extensively in order to help others. We really appreciate your time. I have a question, recently (May 23) I have also updated my reference letter from my school in order to make sure I have those magical words in that letter. But I just sent a hard copy to them and email them (FA01772, from whom I got the document request) to inform about the updated email. Do you think I also should send the document through e-mail as well?? I am in bit of of hesitation I should send the soft copy as well or not. I also realize CIC people doesn't like too much email or contact from us.Moreover, I learned from other member sending any document through email is also takes longer time to be attached with the file thats why I prefer to send the hard copy. Please advise me. Many thanks for your time.

 

[mkrp21]

Congrts AST, when your passport reached Ottawa? hope to get back mine next week.............

asbereth and mkrp21, if you could comment on the decument which I need to be ready with for landing. I understand from previous discussion

1. Bank statement (recent, last 30 days, 6 months???)
2. Job letter (is the photocopy of the letter from supervisor ok? or I need to get a job letter from department again?).
3. any thing else?

Hi ppb12,
Border agent did not ask me anything. However, I was prepared to show them bank statement or job letter. I brought with me letter from my bank stating my accounts and total balance, I also carried a printout of last month online statement and letter from my department stating that I am TA/RA and from my supervisor stating my job duties as RA(I think one letter from department or supervisor explaining duties is good enough even if border agent asks for it).
But, my landing was smooth, they did not ask for any document. But still I would suggest to keep these two documents (bank statement and job letter) with you just in case.

Good luck with your landing.

 

[anjuku]

Hi ppb12,
Border agent did not ask me anything. However, I was prepared to show them bank statement or job letter. I brought with me letter from my bank stating my accounts and total balance, I also carried a printout of last month online statement and letter from my department stating that I am TA/RA and from my supervisor stating my job duties as RA(I think one letter from department or supervisor explaining duties is good enough even if border agent asks for it).
But, my landing was smooth, they did not ask for any document. But still I would suggest to keep these two documents (bank statement and job letter) with you just in case.

Good luck with your landing.

congrats on your landing!!..by the way, where did you choose to exit and land?

 

[kg.jadu]

I have a question, recently (May 23) I have also updated my reference letter from my school in order to make sure I have those magical words in that letter. But I just sent a hard copy to them and email them (FA01772, from whom I got the document request) to inform about the updated email. Do you think I also should send the document through e-mail as well?? I am in bit of of hesitation I should send the soft copy as well or not. I also realize CIC people doesn't like too much email or contact from us.Moreover, I learned from other member sending any document through email is also takes longer time to be attached with the file thats why I prefer to send the hard copy. Please advise me. Many thanks for your time.

I would first check if the letter has been delivered to Ottawa, then would send them an email asking if the letter has been added to my file. Hopefully they reply soon, and then you can email your letter, if necessary.

UPD: But anyways, I think it is better to annoy officer rather than to be rejected due to an objective reason, that is, letter of reference.

 

[ppb12]

Hi ppb12,
Border agent did not ask me anything. However, I was prepared to show them bank statement or job letter. I brought with me letter from my bank stating my accounts and total balance, I also carried a printout of last month online statement and letter from my department stating that I am TA/RA and from my supervisor stating my job duties as RA(I think one letter from department or supervisor explaining duties is good enough even if border agent asks for it).
But, my landing was smooth, they did not ask for any document. But still I would suggest to keep these two documents (bank statement and job letter) with you just in case.

Good luck with your landing.

Thank you for infromation.

 

[mkrp21]

congrats on your landing!!..by the way, where did you choose to exit and land?

Thanks. It was carway-piegan border

 

[mkrp21]

Thank you for infromation.

You are welcome

 

[mahiziya]

Hello All,
I am a newbie to this forum. I had applied for the permanent residence status in canada through the phd stream in april 2012. After one year long wait, I received the rejection letter earlier this week with the main reason being the following. This is regarding my job letter.

I am not satisfied that you meet these requirements. Your letter of reference for your work experience as a Research/Teaching Assistant, NOC 4012 at the XXXXXX (University) listed duties which matched the actions of a substantial number of the main duties under the NOC code selected, but not the actions contained in the lead statement. As such, you failed to demonstrate that your periods of work experience met the requirements listed in b) above.

I was wondering if anyone could help me in understanding this better. Does anyone know what they mean by lead statement. I am also wondering if there is any way to appeal and what is the success rate (previous experience of the senior members). I did complete my PhD in 2012 and am currently doing post doc. outside Canada. I was hoping to return to Canada after this with a better research experience. I would sincerely appreciate if someone could give me some insights and suggestion.
Thank You, Great Forum!!!!! and best wishes to all the applicants.....

 

[asbereth]

Border agent did not ask me anything. However, I was prepared to show them bank statement or job letter. I brought with me letter from my bank stating my accounts and total balance, I also carried a printout of last month online statement and letter from my department stating that I am TA/RA and from my supervisor stating my job duties as RA(I think one letter from department or supervisor explaining duties is good enough even if border agent asks for it).
But, my landing was smooth, they did not ask for any document. But still I would suggest to keep these two documents (bank statement and job letter) with you just in case.

Thanks for sharing this, and congrats While it is not likely for border agent to ask us for documentations, it is always a good idea to be prepared

Hello All,
I am a newbie to this forum. I had applied for the permanent residence status in canada through the phd stream in april 2012. After one year long wait, I received the rejection letter earlier this week with the main reason being the following. This is regarding my job letter.

I am not satisfied that you meet these requirements. Your letter of reference for your work experience as a Research/Teaching Assistant, NOC 4012 at the XXXXXX (University) listed duties which matched the actions of a substantial number of the main duties under the NOC code selected, but not the actions contained in the lead statement. As such, you failed to demonstrate that your periods of work experience met the requirements listed in b) above.

I was wondering if anyone could help me in understanding this better. Does anyone know what they mean by lead statement. I am also wondering if there is any way to appeal and what is the success rate (previous experience of the senior members). I did complete my PhD in 2012 and am currently doing post doc. outside Canada. I was hoping to return to Canada after this with a better research experience. I would sincerely appreciate if someone could give me some insights and suggestion.
Thank You, Great Forum!!!!! and best wishes to all the applicants.....

I'm sorry for your rejection. This is getting more and more ridiculous. Since the officer thinks that you have performed a substantial number of main duties of NOC 4012, then it is probably not a bad idea to share your reference letter with us, just to see if you have any case at all for reconsideration. I found it to be utterly ridiculous that they rejected your work experience, especially since it contained a lot of duties that match main duties of NOC 4012.

Also, since appealing will probably take months, it is probably not a bad idea to start preparing for a new application altogether. I hope you graduated within the last 12 months, so that you are still qualified to apply under the PhD. And I hope your IELTS scores are still valid. If so, I suggest that you start preparing your new application as soon as possible (before the 12 months are up, or before your IELTS scores get expired). Since your PhD is a Canadian PhD, you won't need to have your degree evaluated, and that could save a lot of time. But you still need to order for your transcript as a proof of graduation, and this could still take weeks since you're outside of the country.

So start preparing your job experience letter, your PCC's, register for IELTS (if your scores are expired), proof of funds, basically get things going for re-application.

Also, if you did your PhD in Ontario, then you have 24 months after graduation to apply for PNP. So that could be another option.

 

[mahiziya]

Thanks for sharing this, and congrats While it is not likely for border agent to ask us for documentations, it is always a good idea to be prepared

I'm sorry for your rejection. This is getting more and more ridiculous. Since the officer thinks that you have performed a substantial number of main duties of NOC 4012, then it is probably not a bad idea to share your reference letter with us, just to see if you have any case at all for reconsideration. I found it to be utterly ridiculous that they rejected your work experience, especially since it contained a lot of duties that match main duties of NOC 4012.

Also, since appealing will probably take months, it is probably not a bad idea to start preparing for a new application altogether. I hope you graduated within the last 12 months, so that you are still qualified to apply under the PhD. And I hope your IELTS scores are still valid. If so, I suggest that you start preparing your new application as soon as possible (before the 12 months are up, or before your IELTS scores get expired). Since your PhD is a Canadian PhD, you won't need to have your degree evaluated, and that could save a lot of time. But you still need to order for your transcript as a proof of graduation, and this could still take weeks since you're outside of the country.

So start preparing your job experience letter, your PCC's, register for IELTS (if your scores are expired), proof of funds, basically get things going for re-application.

Also, if you did your PhD in Ontario, then you have 24 months after graduation to apply for PNP. So that could be another option.

Hi Asbereth,
Thank you so much for your kind reply. I appreciate your time and consideration. The following is the format of my employment history letter. Please have a look and let me know if I did any obvious mistake. I was actually very proud of this letter. Unfortunately it did not work that well with them.

This letter details the employment and work history of XXXX in my research group in the Dept. of XXX at the Univ. of XXXX as well as a teaching assistant in the Dept. of XXX at the Univ. of XXXX.

Paragraph 2 mentioned my history as a student in my supervisor’s group. The year I started as a masters student, the year I transferred to the PhD program etc. (about 4 sentences)

Throughout the M.Sc. and Ph.D. program he has been actively involved in research relating to novel XXX materials with emphasis on XXXX. XXX’s responsibilities are far reaching and included teaching undergraduate students in laboratory settings, assisting and guiding undergraduate research students, conducting independent research and publication of his research in leading peer reviewed journals as well as presentations at international conferences.

Paragraph 4 basically explained the work I do in the laboratory and my duties in a nut shell. Mr. XXX is an expert in XXXXXX. Throughout his employment he has overseen the operation of XXXXX (laboratories, instruments etc.). His responsibilities included computer system maintenance, data analysis, report writing, writing of publications, report evaluation and marking exams.

Employment Details
Mr.XXX was employed for more than 5 years in two functions
a. PhD student/research assistant (full time)
b. Teaching assistant (part time)

The following details XXX’s hours and responsibilities
a. RA:
Duration: > 5 years
Responsibilities: Carry out research, maintain lab equipment, publish research results, present at conferences
Work Hours: min. 40 hrs./week total: >10000 hours

b. TA
Duration: > 5years
Responsibilities: Teach undergraduate students, mark student reports and exams maintenance of teaching infrastructure
Work hours: x hrs./week total hours: > 1000 hours

The next in the letter was a table with year and total earnings for each year. I also attached another proof for this from the financial service of the university. Finally a general concluding remark.

I believed the letter contained each and every details they were looking for and still think this has the potential to file an appeal. Kindly let me know your thoughts. I would also like to know if anyone succeeded in getting a refusal overturned though appeal. Thanks again

 

[mkrp21]

Thanks for sharing this, and congrats While it is not likely for border agent to ask us for documentations, it is always a good idea to be prepared

Thanks asbereth

 

[Mohazy]

Dear All,
I am new to this forum (got to know about it 3 days ago), and I have a strange timeline , so I am sharing it with you
Application sent: August 20, 2012
PER: November 1, 2012
I got married earlier this year and I informed CPP-Ottawa on February 23, 2013. (I sent them an updated proof of funds, original PCCs for myself and spouse at the time as well)
My CAIPS shows that they updated my status on March 25, 2013.
On May 13th, I sent them another update (My wife came as a visitor and she got an open work permit after that), I also sent them updated proof of funds, and updated letter of reference (with the lead statement and all the duties on the NOC code)
I have to add that I submitted original documents of everything at the time of application (PCC, Masters)

To my surprise , I received an email on May 30th asking me to pay the RPRF (from GG06553)
The wording was as follows : "This is in reference to your application for permanent residence in Canada. In order for us to continue the processing of your application, we require the following documents:RPRF: Pay the Right of Permanent Residence fee This must be received at this office by: 06/30/2013)
However, the emails did not contain any links. I searched online and i got to know this amazing forum where I found the correct link
I paid the RPRF on the same day and sent them the receipt by mail and email (they received it by mail the next day)

Another surprise on May 31st, they sent me 2 automated emails with the following subject "Citizenship & Immigration Canada: Information about E0000******"
The emails contained instructions on how to do my medicals (separate email for myself and separate email for my spouse)

Last surprise, today I checked my e-cas and found that they started processing my application on May 31st


My questions are:
1) If they requested me to undergo medicals, does it imply that they accepted my modified letter of reference and I already passed eligibility ? or the work experience have not been evaluated yet? Work experience is my only concern as I have enough points (wife has masters degree, high IELTS score, solid bank account)
2) In their email to pay the RPRF, they only mentioned my UCI number and did not mention my spouse's. However I paid the 980 CAD. Is that normal?
3) I highly doubt that they started doing any eligibility yet (I am an august applicant). But what about these medicals?

Please provide me with your comments
Thanks in advance

 

[kuzey]

I think officers check this forum and they are trying to be unpredictable . Good for you Order CAIPS and also check the email's signature for the officer code. If it is FA017XX most probably you passed the eligibility.

Dear All,
I am new to this forum (got to know about it 3 days ago), and I have a strange timeline , so I am sharing it with you
Application sent: August 20, 2012
PER: November 1, 2012
I got married earlier this year and I informed CPP-Ottawa on February 23, 2013. (I sent them an updated proof of funds, original PCCs for myself and spouse at the time as well)
My CAIPS shows that they updated my status on March 25, 2013.
On May 13th, I sent them another update (My wife came as a visitor and she got an open work permit after that), I also sent them updated proof of funds, and updated letter of reference (with the lead statement and all the duties on the NOC code)
I have to add that I submitted original copies of everything at the time of application (PCC, Masters)

To my surprise , I received an email on May 30th asking me to pay the RPRF
The wording was as follows : "This is in reference to your application for permanent residence in Canada. In order for us to continue the processing of your application, we require the following documents:RPRF: Pay the Right of Permanent Residence fee This must be received at this office by: 06/30/2013)
However, the emails did not contain any links. I searched online and i got to know this amazing forum where I found the correct link
I paid the RPRF on the same day and sent them the receipt by mail and email (they received it by mail the next day)

Another surprise on May 31st, they sent me 2 automated emails with the following subject "Citizenship & Immigration Canada: Information about E0000******"
The emails contained instructions on how to do my medicals (separate email for myself and separate email for my spouse)

Last surprise, today I checked my e-cas and found that they started processing my application on May 31st


My questions are:
1) If they requested me to undergo medicals, does it imply that they accepted my modified letter of reference and I already passed eligibility ? or the work experience have not been evaluated yet? Work experience is my only concern as I have enough points (wife has masters degree, high IELTS score, solid bank account)
2) In their email to pay the RPRF, they only mentioned my UCI number and did not mention my spouse's. However I paid the 980 CAD. Is that normal?
3) I highly doubt that they started doing any eligibility yet (I am an august applicant). But what about these medicals?

Please provide me with your comments
Thanks in advance

 

[Mohazy]

The email requesting the RPRF was signed by GG06553
The medicals had no signatures