immigration procedure taking for ever

[0979230]

Hello everyone,
I am writing here, because I need some opinions, since the CIC cannot provide my with any information regarding my boy friend’s application for immigration.
I met him here in Canada over 3 years ago and since then we have been together. He has studied here for four years as a foreign student and now has a bachelors degree. He went back to our country, but he applied for permanent resident card in December 2009. He was a bit carless in the beginning so he wasn't always sending them documents right away. Anyways, he left Canada in November 2009, he had applied for resident permanent before that, but he wasn't taking it very serious and that is why he had to apply again in 2009. Now that we have been apart we really want to get back together, I visited him for three months in the summer of 2010, then it the winter and now I'm going to visit him again this summer. Since we separated, he got more serious about his application and had done the medical exams and sent them last year, but there was a problem with his Certificat de selection du Quebec, the Quebec authorities sent him in 2010 a document that is valid starting 2011, a huge mistake and then refused to issue another document, he sent this document to the Federal people and this March they asked for a proof that the Quebec people refused to issue another certificate, but actually, the one that is valid starting 2011 should be valid starting this May . . . But since he sent them the document in March, there have been no news at all, we sent them a letter asking for an update, but they said that they cannot provide any information at this point and we just have to wait. They should have all the necessary papers, medical documents, payment, but still there is no answer and they haven't even asked us to send any other documents. I don't understand what is going on. He now did a masters degree in Europe, so he's got a very good education, he's fluent in both English and French, has lived here for 4 years, has family here and will be looking for a job once he gets his visa for here. His application is just perfect, I don't know why they are taking so long, supposedly on their website it says that it takes 31 working days to proceed an application for which they have received all documents required, but it has been months since the last they have contacted us. We have been apart for 2 years now and it is really hard, I don't know what to do to make the procedure faster, I have been suggesting a marriage, but I think that that would take another 6 months to a year, may be more for him to come here . . .
Thank you very much for reading this and I'll really appreciate any advice you can give me.

 

[scylla]

Which PR category/class did he apply under?

 

[0979230]

SW1 - I guess that means skilled worker . . .

 

[scylla]

If he applied through the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW1) program as a Quebec applicant, the processing times are much much longer than 31 days. Official processing times are posted here:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/perm/skilled-que.asp

 

[0979230]

mmm, ok, but he has sent the documnets to Buffalo, New York.

 

[scylla]

mmm, ok, but he has sent the documnets to Buffalo, New York.

If his file is being processed through Buffalo, then the processing time for applications is approximately 14 months.

 

[0979230]

OMG, thank you so much. I really don't know much about the whole procedure and I thought that he's working on it, but he really hates paper work and so he was careless and didn't do much research . . . do you think that there is any chance to make this faster? Is getting married going to help at all ?

 

[scylla]

OMG, thank you so much. I really don't know much about the whole procedure and I thought that he's working on it, but he really hates paper work and so he was careless and didn't do much research . . . do you think that there is any chance to make this faster? Is getting married going to help at all ?

No - being married won't speed up the processing of a FSW file. However I suppose you could get married and sponsor him as your spouse. How long this process takes will depend on where he's from and how solid your application is.

I will be honest with you and say that when it comes to immigration applications, it's very bad to be careless because this can significantly delay the processing of your file - or even cause you to be rejected. If your boyfriend is truly serious about immigrating to Canada, he need to do his research and he needs to make sure that his paperwork is complete.

 

[0979230]

Thank you so much for the information. I should have monitored him more since the beginning, it's my mistake also I guess. This is really disappointing . . . I don't understand why it should take so long . . .

 

[0979230]

Well, what if he applies for a permanent resident card ? cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/perm-card.asp , here it says 42 days if I understand it correctly.

 

[scylla]

Well, what if he applies for a permanent resident card ? cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/perm-card.asp , here it says 42 days if I understand it correctly.

That's for people who have already been approved as permanent residents and have landed in Canada. The 42 days is how long it takes for their permanent resident card to be created and sent to them.

 

[0979230]

I see, and if he comes here with a tourist visa and we get married, and then can he possibly stay here and most importantly would he be able to work? I just read that someone was asking the same question and someone told them that you can get an extension of the visa if you do get married and have filed for sponsorship, but then my question is if the person will be able to work during that time period.

 

[0979230]

I'm sorry for asking so many questions, you are being really helpful.
I guess another possibility is if he manages to come here with a tourist visa and then finds a job here. But then will they give him a visa if he says that he'll be visiting his sister and if they actually do, then let’s say he finds some job, doesn't matter too much what kind of a job it is, anything that is even remotely related to his degree, will he be able to stay and work?

 

[scylla]

Read the following post. It will answer some of your questions about sponsoring him as a spouse:

http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/spousal-sponsorship-t46995.0.html

If he wants to work in Canada, he will first have to find an employer who is willing to hire him. Next that employer will have to post his job on Canadian job boards to see if a Canadian can be found to take the job. If no Canadian is found, the employer will then submit a Labour Market Opinion to Canada Human Resources to ask permission to hire your boyfriend. If the Labour Market Opinion is approved (not all of them are), your boyfriend will then have to apply for a work permit. If your boyfriend is approved for a work permit, he will then be able to work. It's a long process and for this reason many employers aren't willing to hire foreign workers.

 

[scylla]

To add to my above post, if he is able to obtain a tourist visa and you get married in Canada - then he will be approved to work 9-10 months after you submit the sponsorship application.

Make sure you read through the link I provided.