Hello to the Group.
I am hoping some of you may be able to offer advice. We are trying to help our friend from Colombia, Carlos, age 24 years, to come and visit us in Canada. He was recently refused a visitor visa (based on section 179(b) of the IRPR Act and I am seeking some advice how the application may have failed and what we can do to improve his chances next time we re-apply. It was difficult to know what is a reasonable request and what ‘life circumstances’ or assurances we can present to help his application.
Some background - both my wife and I are born and raised Canadians. We met Carlos last year while travelling South America on motorcycles. He was also travelling for 8 months on his tiny moto with his sister, Angie, on the back who has Cerebral Palsy. It was an incredible journey they undertook and they are true heros for taking on such a challenge. Angie cannot walk and needs constant care and was suffering deep depression languishing in the prison that is their home on the outskirts of Bogota. We wanted to give Carlos an opportunity to visit Canada and learn english as he is a person who has done amazing things for his sister and (we feel) deserves to have some doors opened for him.
Carlos has his whole family in Colombia but is un-married, no children, works as a night time security guard and likely did not have a lot of money in his bank account (maybe $1500 - $2000). We applied for a 6 month tourist visa and have purchased a flight for him in July for a 5 month trip. I had drafted a letter of invitation, had it notarized and sent down stating we were welcoming him in to our home where he will stay with us, do some travels during the summer and study english, and that we would cover his costs while he is in Canada. He will most certainly return to Colombia after his visit will not remain in Canada.
Is the fact that he is a young, unmarried man with not much money a non-starter in these sorts of situations?
Is it necessary to have a flight booked before a visa is approved?We booked him a flight without knowing if his visa would be approved and now we had to cancel the flight and pay a substantial cancellation fee.
How long should we wait before we re-apply?
In the original application we had to state his travel dates and duration – which I find difficult because how can we know his travel dates when we don’t know if and for how long his visa would be granted for.
Please - if you have and advice or can answer some of my questions it would be much appreciated. Based on the info provided – can anyone advise what, if any chance he has of actually getting a visa? I don’t want to keep throwing time and money at something that is a non-starter. Thanks in advance.
Regards, Mark
I am hoping some of you may be able to offer advice. We are trying to help our friend from Colombia, Carlos, age 24 years, to come and visit us in Canada. He was recently refused a visitor visa (based on section 179(b) of the IRPR Act and I am seeking some advice how the application may have failed and what we can do to improve his chances next time we re-apply. It was difficult to know what is a reasonable request and what ‘life circumstances’ or assurances we can present to help his application.
Some background - both my wife and I are born and raised Canadians. We met Carlos last year while travelling South America on motorcycles. He was also travelling for 8 months on his tiny moto with his sister, Angie, on the back who has Cerebral Palsy. It was an incredible journey they undertook and they are true heros for taking on such a challenge. Angie cannot walk and needs constant care and was suffering deep depression languishing in the prison that is their home on the outskirts of Bogota. We wanted to give Carlos an opportunity to visit Canada and learn english as he is a person who has done amazing things for his sister and (we feel) deserves to have some doors opened for him.
Carlos has his whole family in Colombia but is un-married, no children, works as a night time security guard and likely did not have a lot of money in his bank account (maybe $1500 - $2000). We applied for a 6 month tourist visa and have purchased a flight for him in July for a 5 month trip. I had drafted a letter of invitation, had it notarized and sent down stating we were welcoming him in to our home where he will stay with us, do some travels during the summer and study english, and that we would cover his costs while he is in Canada. He will most certainly return to Colombia after his visit will not remain in Canada.
Is the fact that he is a young, unmarried man with not much money a non-starter in these sorts of situations?
Is it necessary to have a flight booked before a visa is approved?We booked him a flight without knowing if his visa would be approved and now we had to cancel the flight and pay a substantial cancellation fee.
How long should we wait before we re-apply?
In the original application we had to state his travel dates and duration – which I find difficult because how can we know his travel dates when we don’t know if and for how long his visa would be granted for.
Please - if you have and advice or can answer some of my questions it would be much appreciated. Based on the info provided – can anyone advise what, if any chance he has of actually getting a visa? I don’t want to keep throwing time and money at something that is a non-starter. Thanks in advance.
Regards, Mark
